This story from the Associated Press details the damage sustained by Katrina Cottages on the Gulf Coast resulting from Hurricane Gustav.
"The Labor Day storm ruined dozens of cottages in southern Mississippi that were supposed to be a safer, sturdier alternative to government-issued trailers for families displaced by Hurricane Katrina in 2005."
According to the Clarion Ledger dot com
More than 230 Mississippi Cottages have been deemed uninhabitable by insurance adjusters in the aftermath of Hurricane Gustav -forcing many into hotels and left to consider their living options.
The Gustav-damaged cottages have forced people into more temporary housing. FEMA's post-Katrina housing program is slated to end in March 2009. The cottages are designed to provide safer and more permanent living accommodations for families who lost their homes in Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and had been living in FEMA trailers.
"It's a tough situation for residents," said MEMA deputy director Lea Stokes. "Gustav took away the convenience of living in the cottage for another six or seven months while their house is being rebuilt."
The 230 residents who lost their cottages this time around were given three options :
A cottage may be placed inside a mobile home lot, with the owner being responsible for paying any lot rent or fees to the park.
A cottage may be placed on land allowed by local codes to remain permanent, where the unit does not have to be elevated higher than six feet.
Families may arrange to be placed in a rental unit, or apartment, with the state paying rent and security deposit, through Feb. 28, 2009 - the same day FEMA halts its housing assistance.
As for the federal aid to municipalities, no one is happier about the decision this week to give assistance than Waveland Mayor Tommy Longo.
"We had no injuries, no loss of life," Longo said Tuesday. "But we had about 100 flood-damaged homes. These are people who were still recovering from Katrina, so we hope the government helps them and us get back on our feet."
Waveland is in Hancock County, where the most severe Gustav damage occurred in the state.
Like many municipalities along the state's 70-mile coastline, Waveland will use the federal dollars to help pay for emergency repairs and Longo's overtime payroll to law enforcement. The federal government has promised to cover 75 percent of the costs.
Even before Gustav pushed more than 14 feet of storm surge into his community, Waveland was still in the red financially - and still reeling - from Katrina in 2005.
Every storm has it's signature," Longo said. "Gustav pushed hundreds of baby pelicans inland from the barrier islands. It pushed flocks of flamingos in from Cuba and it pushed thousands of dead nutria onto our beaches. That will be what we remember about Gustav."
More than 130,000 pounds of dead, beached animals have slowed recovery in recent weeks.
The removal of nutria, hogs, goats, dogs and deer has been slowed by public health concerns, but Hancock County administrator Tim Kellar said the project is 40 percent complete.
"Aside from the dead animals, we're looking at more than 100,000 cubic yards of debris," he said. "So the beaches have remained closed until further notice."
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Friday, September 26, 2008
United Houma Nation
From Gambit writer Sean David Hobbs, an excellent, heart wrenching article about his recent trip down to Terrebonne Parish to visit with United Houma Nation Principal Chief Brenda Dardar Robichaux.
I didn't know until I read this article that this Louisiana-recognized tribe is NOT recognized by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). Although the BIA acknowledged that the Houma had Native American ancestry, it was unable to find sufficient evidence that they were actually the descendents of the Houma tribe. Because of this, the United Houma Nation is ineligible to receive any sort of relief from the Federal Government for the myriad of losses they've been experiencing from Katrina, Rita, Gustav and Ike.
But our Government can bail out a bunch of rich Wall Street Bankers. Go figure.
I didn't know until I read this article that this Louisiana-recognized tribe is NOT recognized by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). Although the BIA acknowledged that the Houma had Native American ancestry, it was unable to find sufficient evidence that they were actually the descendents of the Houma tribe. Because of this, the United Houma Nation is ineligible to receive any sort of relief from the Federal Government for the myriad of losses they've been experiencing from Katrina, Rita, Gustav and Ike.
But our Government can bail out a bunch of rich Wall Street Bankers. Go figure.
Take a Visual Diversion
UK "grafitti artist" Banksy visited New Orleans around the third anniversary of Hurricane Katrina and left his mark.
Here's some of his work. Scroll from left to right to view some of this great stuff.
Here's some of his work. Scroll from left to right to view some of this great stuff.
Is this fool for real?
Courtesy of Your Right Hand Thief
Quote from Northwestern Professor Steven G. Calabresi
This Administration deserves to be trusted because it has kept us safe from terrorist attack since 9/11, has fought and won two wars, has presided over eight years of economic growth, has appointed two stellar justices to the Supreme Court, and has even learned how to do Louisiana’s job of protecting that state from hurricanes. The day will come, and not before long, when Americans will wish that George Bush was still president.
where's my puke bucket?
Quote from Northwestern Professor Steven G. Calabresi
This Administration deserves to be trusted because it has kept us safe from terrorist attack since 9/11, has fought and won two wars, has presided over eight years of economic growth, has appointed two stellar justices to the Supreme Court, and has even learned how to do Louisiana’s job of protecting that state from hurricanes. The day will come, and not before long, when Americans will wish that George Bush was still president.
where's my puke bucket?
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Scuzzbuckets of the Week
Actually, scuzzbucket isn't strong enough word for this week's evil people. Gleaned from local headlines, we have two cases of horrific child abuse.
The first case took place this past week in Harvey, Louisiana where a babysitter became "frustrated" with a five month old baby and put it in the clothes dryer and TURNED IT ON. Jefferson Parish sheriff's deputies on Thursday booked 19-year-old Ariel Smith, of Harvey, with one count of first-degree murder.
Investigators say Smith was babysitting Andre Jenkins and his 18-month-old brother and said she admitted placing the infant in the dryer because she was frustrated with him.
Meanwhile, this fine young couple from Shreveport, Louisiana have been arrested for abusing not one, but TWO babies.
The children of Christopher Vailes and Conchetta Rhymes were taken to LSU Hospital in Shreveport on Wednesday for their four-month check up when the pediatrician suspected one of the infants had a broken leg, police said. X-rays later showed both children to have multiple injuries to their ribs and femurs and swelling to the soft tissues in their spines.
Just makes one want to cry, doesn't it?
The first case took place this past week in Harvey, Louisiana where a babysitter became "frustrated" with a five month old baby and put it in the clothes dryer and TURNED IT ON. Jefferson Parish sheriff's deputies on Thursday booked 19-year-old Ariel Smith, of Harvey, with one count of first-degree murder.
Investigators say Smith was babysitting Andre Jenkins and his 18-month-old brother and said she admitted placing the infant in the dryer because she was frustrated with him.
Meanwhile, this fine young couple from Shreveport, Louisiana have been arrested for abusing not one, but TWO babies.
The children of Christopher Vailes and Conchetta Rhymes were taken to LSU Hospital in Shreveport on Wednesday for their four-month check up when the pediatrician suspected one of the infants had a broken leg, police said. X-rays later showed both children to have multiple injuries to their ribs and femurs and swelling to the soft tissues in their spines.
Just makes one want to cry, doesn't it?
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Gate needs a gravestone
Just catching up on the news of the week after spending some time behind the walls of the hospital recovering from an extremely vicious attack on my digestive system and ran across this story about Hurricane Ike disturbing - actually freeing - the remains of the late, great Clarence "Gatemouth Brown
I see that Varg caught this story first, but I just had to talk about it too.
According to The Associated Press, the Grammy winner's casket was one of dozens .......that floated up from the ground as Ike's gulf and rain waters flooded Hollywood Cemetery, (note that this story incorrectly identifies the cemetery as being in Bogalusa, Louisiana when it is actually in Orange, TX)....
...two days after Ike reached land, water gurgled and bubbled ominously from submerged graves ..... the top of Brown's vault had popped off, and his bronze casket had floated away. But three jars of Bama grape jelly remained by his aluminum marker, no doubt left by a fan of his instrumental classic "Grape Jelly."
"Somebody made the comment that he's evidently still touring. He probably wouldn't care too much to be in the ground anyway" said Gate's longtime manager Jim Bateman of Bogalusa.
Gatemouth's trademark was a cowboy hat, with boots and Western wear.
He liked to smoke a pipe.
And his long, thin fingers glided flat over guitar or fiddle strings with the grace of a ballet dancer.
He called himself a "guitar slinger" and had a stick figure caricature he used, including one attached to his black Cadillac.
The 81-year-old musician was living in Slidell when Katrina destroyed the city.
Gate went home to Texas die after evacuating from Katrina in September of 2005. When he evacuated to Orange, he brought an oxygen tank, which he had been carrying everywhere. He played the New Orleans 2005 Jazz Festival in April using the oxygen tank, Colin Walters, Gatemouth's last biographer, said.
image from pbase dot com
Orange local educator and church music director Robert Finch is on a quest to put a label on Gatemouth - well, at least on his grave.
Finch has set up a non-profit group to raise money for a tombstone and hopefully a state historical marker. He ultimately would like to see a statue of Gatemouth in the cemetery.
The account for Gatemouth Brown is set up at Sabine Federal Credit Union in Orange, Texas: Gatemouth Brown Memorial Committee Acct # 1892149.
I'll be contributing and hope you will, too. Gate was a great musician. Hubby & I were lucky enough to have several opportunities to see and hear him live in Slidell before his death . What a colossal talent he was.
I see that Varg caught this story first, but I just had to talk about it too.
According to The Associated Press, the Grammy winner's casket was one of dozens .......that floated up from the ground as Ike's gulf and rain waters flooded Hollywood Cemetery, (note that this story incorrectly identifies the cemetery as being in Bogalusa, Louisiana when it is actually in Orange, TX)....
...two days after Ike reached land, water gurgled and bubbled ominously from submerged graves ..... the top of Brown's vault had popped off, and his bronze casket had floated away. But three jars of Bama grape jelly remained by his aluminum marker, no doubt left by a fan of his instrumental classic "Grape Jelly."
"Somebody made the comment that he's evidently still touring. He probably wouldn't care too much to be in the ground anyway" said Gate's longtime manager Jim Bateman of Bogalusa.
Gatemouth's trademark was a cowboy hat, with boots and Western wear.
He liked to smoke a pipe.
And his long, thin fingers glided flat over guitar or fiddle strings with the grace of a ballet dancer.
He called himself a "guitar slinger" and had a stick figure caricature he used, including one attached to his black Cadillac.
The 81-year-old musician was living in Slidell when Katrina destroyed the city.
Gate went home to Texas die after evacuating from Katrina in September of 2005. When he evacuated to Orange, he brought an oxygen tank, which he had been carrying everywhere. He played the New Orleans 2005 Jazz Festival in April using the oxygen tank, Colin Walters, Gatemouth's last biographer, said.
image from pbase dot com
Orange local educator and church music director Robert Finch is on a quest to put a label on Gatemouth - well, at least on his grave.
Finch has set up a non-profit group to raise money for a tombstone and hopefully a state historical marker. He ultimately would like to see a statue of Gatemouth in the cemetery.
The account for Gatemouth Brown is set up at Sabine Federal Credit Union in Orange, Texas: Gatemouth Brown Memorial Committee Acct # 1892149.
I'll be contributing and hope you will, too. Gate was a great musician. Hubby & I were lucky enough to have several opportunities to see and hear him live in Slidell before his death . What a colossal talent he was.
The Murder of New Orleans Neighborhoods
(Posted at Mosquito Coast, cross posted from Squandered Heritage) The political puppet that is Ray Nagin keeps proving that he does not give a damn about saving the soul of New Orleans through his actions that allow the demise of New Orleans' historical structures.
......In the wake of Gustav, a number of buildings around town suffered severe damage and fell down. Since the middle of last week, city Code Enforcement inspectors have been surveying properties to determine if any are in Imminent Danger of Collapse (IDC). If a property is truly IDC,..... under a city law that has been on the books for years, the city can move to knock it down immediately and clear the debris, bypassing all the normal (historic value, preservation) reviews.........
image from Matternetwork dot com
What this appears to be is a naked grab at power, using Gustav’s glancing blow to Orleans Parish as an excuse. The mayor is temporarily (I hope) stamping out a committee made up mostly of citizens, a committee formed to protect citizens’ rights to not have their property arbitrarily destroyed. His aim would appear to be to accelerate demolitions resulting from Katrina, in order to look good in the eyes of Washington.
The link provides the whole sickening story. The murder of historic neighborhoods for the nightly news to make everything looks shiny and new.
What horseshit.
What horseshit
......In the wake of Gustav, a number of buildings around town suffered severe damage and fell down. Since the middle of last week, city Code Enforcement inspectors have been surveying properties to determine if any are in Imminent Danger of Collapse (IDC). If a property is truly IDC,..... under a city law that has been on the books for years, the city can move to knock it down immediately and clear the debris, bypassing all the normal (historic value, preservation) reviews.........
image from Matternetwork dot com
What this appears to be is a naked grab at power, using Gustav’s glancing blow to Orleans Parish as an excuse. The mayor is temporarily (I hope) stamping out a committee made up mostly of citizens, a committee formed to protect citizens’ rights to not have their property arbitrarily destroyed. His aim would appear to be to accelerate demolitions resulting from Katrina, in order to look good in the eyes of Washington.
The link provides the whole sickening story. The murder of historic neighborhoods for the nightly news to make everything looks shiny and new.
What horseshit.
Friday, September 19, 2008
Been Away.....
Spending the better part of a week in the ICU is not my idea of R&R. Still 'incarcerated' but a little more freer and feeling better than the last few days. Got some catching up to do......
Saturday, September 13, 2008
Friday, September 12, 2008
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
help for Gustav victims
From Greg Peters' blog, links that portray who badly hit LaFouche and Terrebone Parish were by Gustav.
Some of the communities hit hardest by Hurricane Gustav are being ignored by the larger media: The United Houma Nation, the Native Americans group located in Terrebonne parish, is facing the complete destruction of several small communities, no electricity and no water in many more, and are in serious need of money and supplies. Chief Brenda Robichaux was one of the heroes of Katrina and a straight shooter. I have no doubt it hurts her and the Houmas to ask, but they’re asking.
Local blogger Karen Gadbois and a group of friends visted the Houma Nation on Saturday. check out her site to see how much wetland loss has taken place down there.
Another NOLA blogger - Maitri - was on the same trip with Karen. Here she writes about the experience.
Photos from Pointe-au-Chien post Gustav
Here are some links where you can get more info on how to help:
Gustav Relief Blog
The United Houma Nation Relief Fund
20986 Hwy. 1
Golden Meadow, LA 70357.
All of Terrebonne parish was badly hurt, as was neighboring Lafourche parish. Assumption parish will be out of power longer than Baton Rouge. Vermilion parish, flooded and battered by Rita, was hit again, while Cameron was spared this time, but still hasn’t recovered; neither has Calcasieu parish.
pictures of the affected areas in Terrebone/LaFouche are below:
Houma
Lower LaFouche Parish
Baton Rouge was pretty beat up. for details of how they're doing, check out my cyberfriend Margaret Saizan here.
Some of the communities hit hardest by Hurricane Gustav are being ignored by the larger media: The United Houma Nation, the Native Americans group located in Terrebonne parish, is facing the complete destruction of several small communities, no electricity and no water in many more, and are in serious need of money and supplies. Chief Brenda Robichaux was one of the heroes of Katrina and a straight shooter. I have no doubt it hurts her and the Houmas to ask, but they’re asking.
Local blogger Karen Gadbois and a group of friends visted the Houma Nation on Saturday. check out her site to see how much wetland loss has taken place down there.
Another NOLA blogger - Maitri - was on the same trip with Karen. Here she writes about the experience.
Photos from Pointe-au-Chien post Gustav
Here are some links where you can get more info on how to help:
Gustav Relief Blog
The United Houma Nation Relief Fund
20986 Hwy. 1
Golden Meadow, LA 70357.
All of Terrebonne parish was badly hurt, as was neighboring Lafourche parish. Assumption parish will be out of power longer than Baton Rouge. Vermilion parish, flooded and battered by Rita, was hit again, while Cameron was spared this time, but still hasn’t recovered; neither has Calcasieu parish.
pictures of the affected areas in Terrebone/LaFouche are below:
Houma
Lower LaFouche Parish
Baton Rouge was pretty beat up. for details of how they're doing, check out my cyberfriend Margaret Saizan here.
Sunday, September 07, 2008
More Scuzzbuckets of the week
To whomever was responsible for dumping about 50 elderly people along the curb in Houma and left
From the above link:
..... I saw about 50 people along the curb and in the parking lot just sitting next to their luggage. (By luggage I mean garbage bags) I had seen this before, I had seen these types of faces before... Katrina evacuees had the same look to them. I knew something was wrong. And it was.
These people had evacuated before Gustav and were brought back to the civic center before the parish had a shelter ready for them. I sat down with a few of them and asked what was going on. Nobody had any idea.
Who would just drop a bunch of elderly people on the side of the road, and leave them there for hours.
Finally a school bus arrived to take them to a shelter. I saw a woman whose bag was torn to shreds, I ran to my car and grabbed a roll of tape and fixed it up. I told her "It might be hard to open up later, but it's safe now." As the folks started to load onto the bus, I noticed nobody was helping. The sheriff deputies, the National Guard... nobody. These elderly people were dragging their bags by themselves and trying to load them onto the bus.
I got on the bus and helped move the bags to the seats. After everybody was crammed onto the bus, they just sat there. And they sat some more. An hour passed and finally the bus moved. Less than a mile later, they arrived at the shelter. Had I known where they were going, I could have driven people over there using my car in the amount of time it took officials to bus them over there.
To make a really long story not as long... the people arrived safely at the shelter where a few Red Cross Volunteers were waiting with cots and blankets. No water or food just yet, but they were able to kick off their shoes and relax. I helped carry bags into the shelter and set up cots. When I left, most of the people were sound asleep. They deserve a good nights rest.
During these situations, I'm a human first and a photographer second. Yes, I took some pictures, but my main goal was to help these people anyway I could. As I left the shelter I heard a man say "The took us from heaven and brought us to Hell."
written by a photographer from the LaFouche Parish Daily Comet.
Links to pictures of these victims of neglect are here (at the bottom of the page)
Scuzzbuckets of the Week
The low life imbeciles who left pets behind in the Houma area to survive Hurricane Gustav.
From Hurricane Katrina dot org website:
in places like Terrebonne, LaFourche and St. Mary’s Parishes have been trying to work through the system to find out information. When no information could be obtained, individuals made their way to Houma on Wednesday 9/3 and again on 9/4.
Animals found include the following:
A pitbull, crated in a garage, dead from lack of food and water
A puppy, locked in a garage, no food or water
3 pitbulls, no food, 1 no shelter, 2 in kennels, all chained
7 cats with no food outside a house, no idea how many inside
3 Catahoula dogs, loose
2 yellow laborador dogs, loose, now tied to telephone pole
Dead dog and puppy were photographed, live animals were left food and water, and neighbors were left with more food in case residents do not come back within 2 days.
I am nauseated that people would treat their pets this way. I wish there were some way to keep these numbnuts from ever owning an animal again.
From Hurricane Katrina dot org website:
in places like Terrebonne, LaFourche and St. Mary’s Parishes have been trying to work through the system to find out information. When no information could be obtained, individuals made their way to Houma on Wednesday 9/3 and again on 9/4.
Animals found include the following:
A pitbull, crated in a garage, dead from lack of food and water
A puppy, locked in a garage, no food or water
3 pitbulls, no food, 1 no shelter, 2 in kennels, all chained
7 cats with no food outside a house, no idea how many inside
3 Catahoula dogs, loose
2 yellow laborador dogs, loose, now tied to telephone pole
Dead dog and puppy were photographed, live animals were left food and water, and neighbors were left with more food in case residents do not come back within 2 days.
I am nauseated that people would treat their pets this way. I wish there were some way to keep these numbnuts from ever owning an animal again.
Friday, September 05, 2008
Gustav Annoyances
We stayed home for the storm. There were some annoyances we wanted to avoid, like trying to get back home. While escaping highway gridlock and over zealous authorities, we were held hostage by other minor irritations..
Aaron Broussard - King of Jefferson Parish
What an obnoxious little gnome this guy is. Even though there were originally 20 Parishes affected by Hurricane Gustav (Orleans, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, Jefferson, St. Charles, St. John the Baptist, St. Tammany, Ascension, Assumption, East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Iberville, Lafourche, Livingston, Pointe Coupee, St. Helena, St. James, Terrebonne, West Baton Rouge and West Feliciana) Broussard insisted on parading his little gang of minions out at least twice a day for an hour on live TV to talk about every minute happening in Jeff Parish. All other Parish Presidents passed along status of things via WWL radio or call in's to local TV, including LaFouche Parish, which saw Gustav's eyewall.
Ray Nagin. Need I say more?
Jackie Clarkson - Brown-Nose-at-Large, City of NOLA
Orleans Parish was the other entity that insisted upon having all of the elected officials appear on stage while Nagin and company blathered on about how well everything was going. Clarkson seemed to be attached to Ray-Ray's hip during every press conference. She busted a gut everytime Ray said something "humorous". Ugh.
Press Coverage
I got this message from a lot of folks from out of town....all they're covering is New Orleans.
more on the talking heads here
Gustav came ashore a near Houma
Although I will admit that the video from the Intracoastal Waterway in New Orleans WAS pretty damn dramatic footage. Thank God it didn't cause a lot of damage.
Geraldo....blech
Whiners
Craig over at Metroblogging puts it well:
Speaking of bite me — it’s been pretty easy to tell who stayed during the storm and who evacuated. Those who stayed have been patient and shown a good sense of humor as we’ve come back up to speed this week. They’re just glad to have someplace to go that has power and a/c and is serving a semblance of a normal menu. A lot of them don’t have power at home yet, so they’re pretty much just happy to show up. But a lot of those who bugged out are just coming back — and they expect (they sometimes DEMAND) that things be just like they were a week ago, before the storm kinda threw everything out of whack for awhile.
The whiners evacuated as they were told to by the "authorities". However, the minute the winds died down they insisted on coming home, not understanding that things were not as they left them. The minute they got to their houses, they wanted all of the comforts of daily life, not understanding that things were not as they left them. They whined on the radio, they whined on TV. They whined at everyone who would listen. Aside from those who desperately needed electricity and running water, I have no pity on these whiners. Do like the rest of us have done and PREPARE for the conditions you were told about.
Aaron Broussard - King of Jefferson Parish
What an obnoxious little gnome this guy is. Even though there were originally 20 Parishes affected by Hurricane Gustav (Orleans, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, Jefferson, St. Charles, St. John the Baptist, St. Tammany, Ascension, Assumption, East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Iberville, Lafourche, Livingston, Pointe Coupee, St. Helena, St. James, Terrebonne, West Baton Rouge and West Feliciana) Broussard insisted on parading his little gang of minions out at least twice a day for an hour on live TV to talk about every minute happening in Jeff Parish. All other Parish Presidents passed along status of things via WWL radio or call in's to local TV, including LaFouche Parish, which saw Gustav's eyewall.
Ray Nagin. Need I say more?
Jackie Clarkson - Brown-Nose-at-Large, City of NOLA
Orleans Parish was the other entity that insisted upon having all of the elected officials appear on stage while Nagin and company blathered on about how well everything was going. Clarkson seemed to be attached to Ray-Ray's hip during every press conference. She busted a gut everytime Ray said something "humorous". Ugh.
Press Coverage
I got this message from a lot of folks from out of town....all they're covering is New Orleans.
more on the talking heads here
Gustav came ashore a near Houma
Although I will admit that the video from the Intracoastal Waterway in New Orleans WAS pretty damn dramatic footage. Thank God it didn't cause a lot of damage.
Geraldo....blech
Whiners
Craig over at Metroblogging puts it well:
Speaking of bite me — it’s been pretty easy to tell who stayed during the storm and who evacuated. Those who stayed have been patient and shown a good sense of humor as we’ve come back up to speed this week. They’re just glad to have someplace to go that has power and a/c and is serving a semblance of a normal menu. A lot of them don’t have power at home yet, so they’re pretty much just happy to show up. But a lot of those who bugged out are just coming back — and they expect (they sometimes DEMAND) that things be just like they were a week ago, before the storm kinda threw everything out of whack for awhile.
The whiners evacuated as they were told to by the "authorities". However, the minute the winds died down they insisted on coming home, not understanding that things were not as they left them. The minute they got to their houses, they wanted all of the comforts of daily life, not understanding that things were not as they left them. They whined on the radio, they whined on TV. They whined at everyone who would listen. Aside from those who desperately needed electricity and running water, I have no pity on these whiners. Do like the rest of us have done and PREPARE for the conditions you were told about.
Thursday, September 04, 2008
Evacuation issues
This was originally published in the Times Picayune, but was deleted by the TP.
Next time, we won't leave
Posted by James O'Byrne, staff writer, Times-Picayune September 02, 2008 8:11PM
The next time, my family will stay. I'm sure that Gov. Bobby Jindal, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, Mayor Ray Nagin, Jefferson Parish President Aaron Broussard and all the other public officials mean well. I'm sure they thought it was a good idea to panic people into leaving. I'm sure they believe it's in the public's best interest to stay away while they clean up.
But the evacuation of the metro area in advance of Gustav, and the subsequent policies regarding re-entry, will guarantee that in the next major storm to strike the region - which may occur in a matter of days or weeks - many more people will be at risk. The slightest bit of vision, combined with an open ear to the anger and frustration of this hurricane-weary citizenry, would make the government officials responsible realize that they helped to make this happen.
Under Louisiana law, it is still legally not possible to forcibly remove people from their property and make them leave in advance of an approaching storm. So every evacuation becomes an implicit contract between the officials and the public. You tell us the truth, and the risks as the scientists and forecasters see it. We'll try to make good decisions for the sake of our families.
When that contract is broken, as I believe it was in the case of Gustav, then the tradeoff is that fewer people leave the next time. Here's three rules that public officials must follow if they want people to evacuate in significant numbers again:
Rule No. 1: Don't exaggerate and force a panic.
It is not supposed to be the business of public officials to panic people with disinformation, misinformation, or downright lies. To call Gustav "the mother of all storms" 900 miles wide, as Mayor Nagin did, was demonstrably untrue, and an insult to Katrina and all who suffered through that storm. Gustav had hurricane force winds extending 50 miles from its center. Katrina, by comparison, had hurricane force winds extending 105 miles from the center. It was 50 percent more powerful, and carved a path of destruction more than twice as wide as Gustav.
Mayor Nagin on Saturday night, while foreshadowing his plan to call for a mandatory evacuation on Sunday, proclaimed that everyone should "leave now." It worked, but how shocking was it that Interstate 10 east and Interstate 59 became complete gridlock, and a place of suffering for people trying to escape the storm? At the time Nagin made his breathless proclamation, the National Hurricane Center had already issued an advisory describing how forces of shear and dry air were inhibiting Gustav's strength, and how all of the computer models -- all of them -- were showing the storm moving west of New Orleans.
To one degree or another, this pattern repeated itself across the metro area. Public officials succeeded in panicking the populace into fleeing - this time. But such a tack will not succeed as well the next. There are those who will say that people must heed the warning to leave, because even though Gustav missed New Orleans, the next one might not. It could be so much worse the next time, they argue. That may be true.
But the one commodity that is absolutely essential in communication between officialdom and its populace in times of crisis is credibility. It was cast aside this time in favor of hyperbole and exaggeration calculated to induce panic. The fact that it worked so well this time almost guarantees that the next time it won't.
Rule No. 2: Don't respond to people's criticisms and complaints about how things went by telling them this is how it's supposed to be.
Sixteen hours to Birmingham, 23 hours to Tuscaloosa, 14 hours to Pensacola. In many cases, these horrific journeys were made with infants and the elderly, trapped on the interstate, blocked from exiting for hours and hours, with no hope of food, gas or bathroom facilities. Yet when public officials, standing in their air-conditioned Emergency Operations Centers, were questioned about what went wrong, they responded that everything worked well, and this is how it's supposed to be. Back to that contract. If people don't actually have to leave, and they are telling their public officials that this evacuation did not work well, the correct response to that message is not, "You're wrong, it did." Because if there is no hope of improvement in the time it takes to get out of harm's way, then the next time many thousands won't go.
Rule No. 3: You have to let people return to their property as soon as humanly possible.
Yes, I know that in many cases, there is still some modicum of danger on the streets, what with tree limbs and power poles and all manner of difficulties, just as it's dangerous to live here in the first place, dangerous to evacuate, dangerous to return on highways clogged with angry and frustrated citizens.
News flash: We know it's dangerous to live here. We accept the possibility of no gas, no power, no readily available food. We're Katrina survivors. We'll figure it out.
But if the enduring image of Gustav is a U.S. soldier with an M-16 denying a citizen the right to return to his home, then you can pretty much write off the next "mandatory" evacuation. Leaving your home in advance of a storm is an extraordinarily stressful, difficult, traumatic and expensive proposition. The one thing that must be honored is that people must be allowed to return to their homes as soon as humanly possible.
As a journalist, I spent the past two days driving around reporting on the storm. And by Tuesday afternoon, this city was as safe as it needed to be. Indeed, all those tree branches and debris would be picked up and stacked neatly on the curb by lunchtime on Wednesday if people had been allowed to come home.
I fully appreciate the risks of letting my family stay. But I have to weigh that risk against the alternate risks, of getting trapped in an endless evacuation traffic jam, of being stranded on a highway far from help, of not being able to return in a timely manner, to secure our property and come back to as much of a normal life as possible.
New Orleans is my home. I love it, and I choose to keep living here. But if you are a public official who wants me to leave for the next storm, then you have to hear what I am telling you. It's time to rewrite the contract.
•••••••
James O'Byrne
Posted by James O'Byrne, staff writer, Times-Picayune September 02, 2008 8:11PM
The next time, my family will stay. I'm sure that Gov. Bobby Jindal, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, Mayor Ray Nagin, Jefferson Parish President Aaron Broussard and all the other public officials mean well. I'm sure they thought it was a good idea to panic people into leaving. I'm sure they believe it's in the public's best interest to stay away while they clean up.
But the evacuation of the metro area in advance of Gustav, and the subsequent policies regarding re-entry, will guarantee that in the next major storm to strike the region - which may occur in a matter of days or weeks - many more people will be at risk. The slightest bit of vision, combined with an open ear to the anger and frustration of this hurricane-weary citizenry, would make the government officials responsible realize that they helped to make this happen.
Under Louisiana law, it is still legally not possible to forcibly remove people from their property and make them leave in advance of an approaching storm. So every evacuation becomes an implicit contract between the officials and the public. You tell us the truth, and the risks as the scientists and forecasters see it. We'll try to make good decisions for the sake of our families.
When that contract is broken, as I believe it was in the case of Gustav, then the tradeoff is that fewer people leave the next time. Here's three rules that public officials must follow if they want people to evacuate in significant numbers again:
Rule No. 1: Don't exaggerate and force a panic.
It is not supposed to be the business of public officials to panic people with disinformation, misinformation, or downright lies. To call Gustav "the mother of all storms" 900 miles wide, as Mayor Nagin did, was demonstrably untrue, and an insult to Katrina and all who suffered through that storm. Gustav had hurricane force winds extending 50 miles from its center. Katrina, by comparison, had hurricane force winds extending 105 miles from the center. It was 50 percent more powerful, and carved a path of destruction more than twice as wide as Gustav.
Mayor Nagin on Saturday night, while foreshadowing his plan to call for a mandatory evacuation on Sunday, proclaimed that everyone should "leave now." It worked, but how shocking was it that Interstate 10 east and Interstate 59 became complete gridlock, and a place of suffering for people trying to escape the storm? At the time Nagin made his breathless proclamation, the National Hurricane Center had already issued an advisory describing how forces of shear and dry air were inhibiting Gustav's strength, and how all of the computer models -- all of them -- were showing the storm moving west of New Orleans.
To one degree or another, this pattern repeated itself across the metro area. Public officials succeeded in panicking the populace into fleeing - this time. But such a tack will not succeed as well the next. There are those who will say that people must heed the warning to leave, because even though Gustav missed New Orleans, the next one might not. It could be so much worse the next time, they argue. That may be true.
But the one commodity that is absolutely essential in communication between officialdom and its populace in times of crisis is credibility. It was cast aside this time in favor of hyperbole and exaggeration calculated to induce panic. The fact that it worked so well this time almost guarantees that the next time it won't.
Rule No. 2: Don't respond to people's criticisms and complaints about how things went by telling them this is how it's supposed to be.
Sixteen hours to Birmingham, 23 hours to Tuscaloosa, 14 hours to Pensacola. In many cases, these horrific journeys were made with infants and the elderly, trapped on the interstate, blocked from exiting for hours and hours, with no hope of food, gas or bathroom facilities. Yet when public officials, standing in their air-conditioned Emergency Operations Centers, were questioned about what went wrong, they responded that everything worked well, and this is how it's supposed to be. Back to that contract. If people don't actually have to leave, and they are telling their public officials that this evacuation did not work well, the correct response to that message is not, "You're wrong, it did." Because if there is no hope of improvement in the time it takes to get out of harm's way, then the next time many thousands won't go.
Rule No. 3: You have to let people return to their property as soon as humanly possible.
Yes, I know that in many cases, there is still some modicum of danger on the streets, what with tree limbs and power poles and all manner of difficulties, just as it's dangerous to live here in the first place, dangerous to evacuate, dangerous to return on highways clogged with angry and frustrated citizens.
News flash: We know it's dangerous to live here. We accept the possibility of no gas, no power, no readily available food. We're Katrina survivors. We'll figure it out.
But if the enduring image of Gustav is a U.S. soldier with an M-16 denying a citizen the right to return to his home, then you can pretty much write off the next "mandatory" evacuation. Leaving your home in advance of a storm is an extraordinarily stressful, difficult, traumatic and expensive proposition. The one thing that must be honored is that people must be allowed to return to their homes as soon as humanly possible.
As a journalist, I spent the past two days driving around reporting on the storm. And by Tuesday afternoon, this city was as safe as it needed to be. Indeed, all those tree branches and debris would be picked up and stacked neatly on the curb by lunchtime on Wednesday if people had been allowed to come home.
I fully appreciate the risks of letting my family stay. But I have to weigh that risk against the alternate risks, of getting trapped in an endless evacuation traffic jam, of being stranded on a highway far from help, of not being able to return in a timely manner, to secure our property and come back to as much of a normal life as possible.
New Orleans is my home. I love it, and I choose to keep living here. But if you are a public official who wants me to leave for the next storm, then you have to hear what I am telling you. It's time to rewrite the contract.
•••••••
James O'Byrne
Oh, Ray-Ray
Ray Nagin is so screwy. As we were listening to the radio yesterday, we caught a telephone interview from WDSU.com between Nagin and Eric Paulsen. In a "did he really say that" moment, we heard a few gems:
..... this was the worst storm in the history of Baton Rouge. That’s what we’re missing here. God was smiling on us. It kind of made a happy face around New Orleans, but then it took off through the rest of the state.
....no one will be turned back if you have identification card that you live in the metropolitan area. Now if you’re coming from out of town, if you’re a Tampa Bay fan, we’re turning them around. We don’t need them in our stadium anyway (chuckles). This is just today. Tampa Bay fans can come in tomorrow
..... this was the worst storm in the history of Baton Rouge. That’s what we’re missing here. God was smiling on us. It kind of made a happy face around New Orleans, but then it took off through the rest of the state.
....no one will be turned back if you have identification card that you live in the metropolitan area. Now if you’re coming from out of town, if you’re a Tampa Bay fan, we’re turning them around. We don’t need them in our stadium anyway (chuckles). This is just today. Tampa Bay fans can come in tomorrow
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