The response to Andrew isn't a benchmark?
Second-most expensive natural disaster in US history (if Andrew had centered on Miami, it might be a toss-up). Same cause, with nearly the same storm intensity.
True, Andrew happened a full decade before the DepHomSec was invented (and subsumed FEMA). Also true, there was no persistent flooding to complicate the arrival of rescue and relief. Even so, that shouldn't obviate the comparison of certain aspects of response... for example, rapidity of awareness of the scope of the disaster.