WTC Records Folder 0128 Disaster Information General label, 2001

NYC 9/11 Public Portal Document

Responding to Terrorism Victims - Oklahoma City and Beyond Page I of 7

Chapter III Postcrisis Victim Assistance A Summary of Victims' Needs After the Immediate Crisis Is Met

As Oklahoma City responded to victims during this postcrisis phase following the immediate crisis, the following victims' needs were identified:

■ Mental health services to ease the transition for those involved with the criminal event when the immediate crisis ended and they returned to "normal" work and family conditions.

■ Recognition by employers and service providers of the traumatic impact on first responders and others working with victims and efforts to provide opportunities for debriefing, counseling, and other assistance to help them cope.

■ Streamlining service requests and benefit claims so that the process of and documentation for accessing services and benefits are simpler for victims and enable agencies to cope with the increased demands of responding to a terrorist crime.

■ The ability to increase or supplement the number of victim assistance staff in agencies faced with responding to mass casualties.

■ Experienced staff aware of the unique needs of terrorism victims.

■ Access to an experienced prosecutor who is sensitive to victim- witness issues and provides victims with information about the status of the case and the legal issues.

■ A resource plan developed by OVC and other U.S. Department of Justice components that provides guidance in managing personnel resources for future disasters.

■ Information sharing and identification of victims to enable prompt extension of legal rights and services to victims and notification about the status of the investigation.

Ongoing Victim Needs and Vicarious Victimization

ictim services needed to be adjusted and expanded to help yictims and families after the immediate crisis as they began to stabilize their lives and cope with the impact of the event. Victims and survivors had to deal with a wide range of

http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/o vc/publications/infores/respterrorism/chap3.htmi 9/29/01

NYC-WTC 000137319