Another vehicle which was to play a vital role in the amphibious operations of World War II was the amphibian tractor (amtrack, LVT). It was built in 1935 by Donald Roebling, a wealthy young inventor living in Clearwater, Florida. The "Alligator," as Roebling called his creation, was a track-laying vehicle which derived its propulsion afloat from flanges fixed to he tracks, essentially the principle of early paddle-wheel steamships. Originally intended as a vehicle of mercy, for rescue work in the Everglades, the "Alligator" was destined for fame as an instrument of war.Make note of those humble beginings. The vehicle was originally designed for rescue work in flood prone areas. Hurricanes are a recurring problem in the southern US and the amphibs designed by Roebling were and are the answer to rescuing people during severe flooding.
Fast forward to today and instead of buying or asking for amphibs from the Army or Marine Corps, most of our countries first responders are begging for MRAP type vehicles.
This type truck does no good for the type of conditions that our fellow Americans are facing on the eastern sea board. The REALLY sad thing about all this is that the US Army has several thousand first generation M-113's that are nimble (they can turn in a much shorter distance than MRAP's), can be equipped with band tracks to increase mileage and if fully restored are amphibious.
Don't get me wrong. The M-113 is still a weapon of war, but like the LVT it can be re-purposed toward fulfilling a major hole in our disaster response.
Flooding is too common in the US for Federal and State Disaster Response Agencies not to have amphibious vehicles in their arsenals. If anything this illustrates a lack of proper planning and thinking outside the box.
The next time a major hurricane hits the US, it would be nice to know that FEMA, the National Guard or some other agency had the tools necessary to rescue people that chose poorly and didn't heed evacuation notices.