FEMA Hard at work...

[Speck Tater]

FEMA won't accept Amtrak's help in evacuations -
http://news.ft.com/cms/s/84aa35cc-1da8-11da-b40b-00000e...


FEMA turns away experienced firefighters -
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2005/9/5/105538/7048


FEMA turns back Wal-Mart supply trucks -
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/05/national/nationalspec...


FEMA prevents Coast Guard from delivering diesel fuel
-
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/05/national/nationalspec...


FEMA won't let Red Cross deliver food -
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/05246/565143.stm

[Beaverhausen]

1. thanks! I was just talking to my boss about this stuff

and she didn't believe me.

[elehhhhna]

2. kick & nom 2.

[SeattleGirl]

3. They should be charged with criminal neglect, at the very least.

There are way too many witnesses this time. This is just not going after Valerie Plame, Joe Wilson, Richard Clarke, etc. There are hundreds of thousands of people who LIVED the consequences of this totally f**ked up "response", and millions upon millions of people who witnessed it. How they gonna shut us up now?

[Sparkman]

10. FEMA chief needs to be LYNC...no I won't say it. It's not a joke. This is

Bush's government...Bush's country. Not mine. I won't own it.

[Synnical]

4. FEMA turns away Sheriff's deputies and emergency personnel

http://www.zwire.com/site/tab1.cfm?newsid=15144436&BRD=...

Loudoun relief crew turned away
By: Shannon Sollinger
09/02/2005

Loudoun Sheriff's deputies and emergency personnel were on their way to hurricane-stricken Louisiana Thursday night but had to turn around when the federal government failed to come up with the required paperwork.

Sheriff Steve Simpson and his staff spent 12 hours trying to get the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the State of Louisiana Emergency Operations Center to act act. They didn't, and the 20 deputies and six emergency medical technicians - all volunteers -- turned around and came back to Loudoun.

The deputies' experience brings to our doorsteps a glaring illustration of the chaos in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. But it does not dampen the deputies' willingness to assist: They may try again next week.

[dogindia]

5. kick.

[Synnical]

6. FEMA refused 300 emergency vehicles, cut emergency communications

http://www.yubanet.com/artman/publish/article_24723.sht...

Ranking Members Request Hurricane Oversight Hearings

<snip>

Other reports indicate that FEMA blocked the Coast Guard from providing 1,000 gallons of diesel fuel, turned away three trailer trucks sent by Wal-Mart filled with water, refused an offer from the American Ambulance Association to provide 300 emergency vehicles, and rejected major assistance from the city of Chicago. FEMA apparently cut the emergency communications line to Jefferson Parish. When the sheriff fixed it, he assigned armed guards to protect it from FEMA.

Nor was there a coordinated effort to establish security. While the National Guard and military took days to arrive, New Orleans police were left without instructions, food, water, or supplies. The force was unable to protect residents from roving gangs, lawlessness, and violence.

Many of those fortunate enough to have been lifted from flooded homes were later abandoned without basic necessities or security. Former FEMA Director Joseph Allbaugh stated that " lot of decisions are being made that aren't being coordinated very well."

[Synnical]

7. Officials stop medical convoy

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/12565203.htm

<snip>

``We have tried so hard to do the right thing. It took us 30 hours to get here,'' said one of the frustrated surgeons, Dr. Preston ``Chip'' Rich of the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. That government officials cannot straighten out the mess and get them assigned to a relief effort now that they're just a few miles away ``is just mind-boggling,'' he said in a phone interview.

<snip>

Next door in Mississippi, the North Carolina mobile hospital waiting to help also offered impressive state-of-the-art medical care. It was developed with millions of tax dollars through the Office of Homeland Security after the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. With capacity for 113 beds, it is designed to handle disasters and mass casualties.

Equipment includes ultrasound, digital radiology, satellite Internet, and a full pharmacy, enabling doctors to do most kinds of surgery in the field, including open-chest and abdominal operations.

It travels in a convoy that includes two 53-foot trailers, which Sunday afternoon was parked on a gravel lot 70 miles north of New Orleans because Louisiana officials for several days would not let them deploy to the flooded city, Rich said.

[SoCalDemocrat]

8. They are outsourcing to private contractors

From day one they have been looking to private companies to outsource the work. Look for croneyism at the bottom of all of this.

Sept 1st they already had a contract in place for Halliburton to do repairs to oil resources in the Gulf. They had already hired the former FEMA boss to head up the agency. So they guy who appointed the current head of FEMA is hired by Halliburton, and they get a big contract to do repair work?

This is the same guy who left FEMA to rape Iraq for all it was worth.

[Sparkman]

9. FUCK the conservatives...THEY ARE NOT COMPASSIONATE. I'm sickened.

[Synnical]

11. FEMA Chief Delayed Request 2 Days - Navy had 9 Million Meals available

http://rawstory.com/news/2005/Northern_Command_spokesma...

Lt. Cmdr. Sean Kelly of U.S. Northern Command noted that his forces were not authorized to aid Katrina survivors until given direction by the President, RAW STORY has found.

<snip>

"Northcom started planning before the storm even hit," Kelly said. "We had the USS Bataan sailing almost behind the hurricane so once the hurricane made landfall, its search and rescue helicopters could be available almost immediately. So, we had things ready."

In the same interview, he also asserted that the ships carried nine million packaged meals that could be made available to survivors, and that at least 100,000 had been provided for those staying in the Superdome.

BBC Video http://news.globalfreepress.com/movs/katrina/BBC_Katrin...


Kelly later added:

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/20...

USNORTHCOM was prepositioned for response to the hurricane, but as per the National Response Plan, we support the lead federal agency in disaster relief — in this case, FEMA. The simple description of the process is the state requests federal assistance from FEMA which in turn may request assistance from the military upon approval by the president or Secretary of Defense. Having worked the hurricanes from last year as well as Dennis this year, we knew that FEMA would make requests of the military — primarily in the areas of transportation, communications, logistics, and medicine. Thus we began staging such assets and waited for the storm to hit.

The biggest hurdles to responding to the storm were the storm itself — couldn't begin really helping until it passed — and damage assessment — figuring out which roads were passable, where communications and power were out, etc. Military helos began damage assessment and SAR on Tuesday. Thus we had permission to operate as soon as it was possible. We even brought in night SAR helos to continue the mission on Tuesday night.

The President and Secretary of Defense did authorize us to act right away and are not to blame on this end. Yes, we have to wait for authorization, but it was given in a timely manner.

[Synnical]

12. WH Press Briefing: Scottie's non response

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2005/09/2005090...

Q But, Scott, more concretely, an officer of the Northern Command is quoted as saying that as early as the time Hurricane Katrina went through Florida and worked its way up to the Gulf, there was a massive military response ready to go, but that the President did not order it. It could have been ordered on Sunday, on Monday, on Tuesday -- the call didn't come. Why not?

MR. McCLELLAN: Bill, let's point out a couple of things. There were a lot of assets that were deployed and pre-positioned prior to the hurricane hitting. And you have to look back --

Q These assets were deployed, but the order to use them never came. The Bataan was sitting off behind the hurricane.

MR. McCLELLAN: I know these are all facts that you want to look at and want to determine what went wrong and what went right. I'm not prepared to agree with your assessment just there. There is a much larger picture here that we have to take a look at, and --

Q It's not mine, it's an officer in the Northern Command.

MR. McCLELLAN: -- in terms of the President, the President issued disaster declarations ahead of time so that we could make sure we're fully mobilizing resources and pre-positioning them. But this was a hurricane of unprecedented magnitude.

Q Right, but the military can't go into action without his order.

MR. McCLELLAN: I'll be glad to talk to you about it, but I've got to have a chance to respond to --

[Synnical]

20. More on The USS BATAAN - Navy ship nearby underused

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0509...

Craft with food, water, doctors needed orders

By Stephen J. Hedges
Tribune national correspondent
Published September 4, 2005

ON THE USS BATAAN -- While federal and state emergency planners scramble to get more military relief to Gulf Coast communities stricken by Hurricane Katrina, a massive naval goodwill station has been cruising offshore, underused and waiting for a larger role in the effort.

The USS Bataan, a 844-foot ship designed to dispatch Marines in amphibious assaults, has helicopters, doctors, hospital beds, food and water. It also can make its own water, up to 100,000 gallons a day. And it just happened to be in the Gulf of Mexico when Katrina came roaring ashore.

<small snip>

But now the Bataan's hospital facilities, including six operating rooms and beds for 600 patients, are empty. A good share of its 1,200 sailors could also go ashore to help with the relief effort, but they haven't been asked. The Bataan has been in the stricken region the longest of any military unit, but federal authorities have yet to fully utilize the ship.

<small snip>

"Could we do more?" said Capt. Nora Tyson, commander of the Bataan. "Sure. I've got sailors who could be on the beach plucking through garbage or distributing water and food and stuff. But I can't force myself on people.

"We're doing everything we can to contribute right now, and we're ready. If someone says you need to take on people, we're ready. If they say hospitals on the beach can't handle it ... if they need to send the overflow out here, we're ready. We've got lots of room."

[Synnical]

13. (Warning RW response) Regarding Wal-Mart supply trucks

Not saying this is legit, only that this is the response from Wal-Mart via a RW site - the water went "somewhere else" where it was "needed most". I feel dirty just typing this.

http://redstate.org/story/2005/9/6/114926/3369

Notably, Wal-Mart has not made public comment about Broussard's allegations. Of all the claims Broussard made, this seemed the easiest to confirm.

So I called Wal-Mart's public relations office (479-273-4314) to ask them for comment. Wal-Mart's Sharon Weber returned my call. She told me that they had not heard of the incident - which supposedly took place last week - until they "read about it in the newspaper." When I asked if she could confirm or deny that the story was true, she told me she would have to check and call me back later today.

Weber was able to tell me that any relief efforts in the field would have been subject to any orders given by FEMA. Other media sources have been quite clear that many shipments of aid from Wal-Mart have made it to relief distribution centers, and this reporter thinks that Wal-Mart's efforts are commendable

More as this story develops.
UPDATE: Sharon Weber of Wal-Mart called back. She said that last week, FEMA diverted those water trucks to "another location, which felt was in greater need than where they were headed." Weber emphasized that Wal-Mart would not override any FEMA decisions made in emergency situations. So Broussard, who claimed that Wal-Mart's aid was ourtight rejected, was wrong. Based on Wal-Mart's information, their trucks were taken where FEMA thought they were needed most. It would appear that the same story occurred with the Coast Guard fuel issue. Broussard said that FEMA wouldn't release the fuel to Jefferson Parish - but surely that fuel went somewhere else it was neded. Thanks to Wal-Mart's Sharon Weber for tracking down this information.

Sep 6th, 2005: 11:49:26

[Synnical]

14. FEMA blocks 500 boat citizen flotilla from rescues and delivery of aid

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2005/9/3/171718/0826

On Wednesday morning a group of approximately 1,000 citizens pulling 500 boats left the Acadiana Mall in Lafayette in the early morning and headed to New Orleans with a police escort from the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Department. The flotillia of trucks pulling boats stretched over FIVE miles. This citizen rescue group was organized by La. State Senator, Nick Gautreaux from Vermilion Parish. The group was comprised of experienced boaters, licensed fishermen and hunters, people who have spent their entire adult life and teenage years on the waterways of Louisiana.

The State Police waved the flotillia of trucks/boats through the barricades in LaPlace and we sped into New Orleans via I-10 until past the airport and near the Clearview exit. At that time we were stopped by agents of the FEMA controlled La. Dept. of Wildlife & Fisheries.

A young DWF agent strolled through the boats and told approximately half of the citizens that their boats were too large because the water had dropped during the night and that they should turn around and go home.

[Synnical]

15. Self Delete - wrong place

[Synnical]

16. More Volunteer Firefighters waiting on FEMA, stuck in Atlanta

http://www.wwltv.com/local/stories/WWLBLOG.ac3fcea.html

Tuesday, September 6, 2005

Tom Planchet

7:02 P.M. - ATLANTA (AP): Hundreds of firefighters have been sitting in Atlanta, playing cards and taking FEMA history classes, instead of doing what they came to do: help hurricane victims.

The volunteers traveled south and west from around the country, leaving their homes in places like Washington state, Pennsylvania and Michigan. They came after FEMA put out a call for two-thousand firefighters to help with community service.

Firefighters arrived, as told, with lifesaving equipment and sleeping bags.

But one of the waiting volunteers says it might have been better if they'd brought paper and cell phones. That's because some of the emergency responders are being told they will go to South Carolina, to do paperwork.

Others don't know where they'll be put in action.

The FEMA director in charge of firefighters says he's trying to get the volunteers deployed ASAP, but wants to make sure they go to the right place.

One firefighter points to nightly reports of hurricane victims asking how they were forgotten. He says, "we didn't forget, we're stuck in Atlanta drinking beer."

[thethinker]

17. Where did the buses come from?

Were they from a private company? Which private company? How far did those buses come before they got to NO? We need to check this out. They were not school buses.

[Synnical]

25. NOLA DUers--urgently need to know if RTA buses ran to the Dome

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.ph...

[Synnical]

18. Aug 29, 2005 - FEMA urges Local Responders NOT to respond

So, see FEMA did respond prior to Friday, Sept 2nd! They responded on Aug 29th and told everyone NOT to respond unless FEMA so instructed. All is well with the Feds.






http://www.fema.gov/news/newsrelease.fema?id=18470

First Responders Urged Not To Respond To Hurricane Impact Areas Unless Dispatched By State, Local Authorities

Release Date: August 29, 2005
Release Number: HQ-05-174


WASHINGTON D.C. -- Michael D. Brown, Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Emergency Preparedness and Response and head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), today urged all fire and emergency services departments not to respond to counties and states affected by Hurricane Katrina without being requested and lawfully dispatched by state and local authorities under mutual aid agreements and the Emergency Management Assistance Compact.

“The response to Hurricane Katrina must be well coordinated between federal, state and local officials to most effectively protect life and property,” Brown said. “We appreciate the willingness and generosity of our Nation’s first responders to deploy during disasters. But such efforts must be coordinated so that fire-rescue efforts are the most effective possible.”

The U.S. Fire Administration, part of FEMA, asks that fire and emergency services organizations remain in contact with their local and state emergency management agency officials for updates on requirements in the affected areas.

“It is critical that fire and emergency departments across the country remain in their jurisdictions until such time as the affected states request assistance,” said U.S. Fire Administrator R. David Paulison. “State and local mutual aid agreements are in place as is the Emergency Management Assistance Compact and those mechanisms will be used to request and task resources needed in the affected areas.”

Paulison said the National Incident Management System is being used during the response to Hurricane Katrina and that self-dispatching volunteer assistance could significantly complicate the response and recovery effort.

FEMA prepares the nation for all hazards and manages federal response and recovery efforts following any national incident. FEMA also initiates mitigation activities, trains first responders, works with state and local emergency managers, and manages the National Flood Insurance Program and the U.S. Fire Administration. FEMA became part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security on March 1, 2003

[SammyWinstonJack]

19. Who was giving this Horses Ass his orders? Pinhead** puts a

TOTALLY INCOMPETENT MORAN in charge of FEMA, and this is what happens! I'm heading for the HILLS! I don't want to be any where near these MORANS! SAFER? What a Joke!

[Synnical]

21. FEMA tells Chicago - send only one truck

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-050902dale...

Tribune staff reports
Published September 2, 2005, 10:24 PM CDT

Frustration about the federal response to Hurricane Katrina has reached Chicago City Hall, as Mayor Richard Daley today noted a tepid response by federal officials to the city's offers of disaster aid.

The city is willing to send hundreds of personnel, including firefighters and police, and dozens of vehicles to assist on the storm-battered Gulf Coast, but so far the Federal Emergency Management Agency has requested only a single tank truck, Daley said.

"I was shocked," he said.

"We are ready to provide considerably more help than they have requested," the mayor said, barely able to contain his anger during a City Hall news conference. "We are just waiting for the call."

[Synnical]

22. Could someone else take over researching this?

I have to walk away for awhile - I have the luxury of being employed and must iron clothes for work tomorrow. Was hoping we could document FEMA's lack of a response in one place.

I read rumours that FEMA also refused generators . . .

Thanks,

-Cindy in Fort Lauderdale

[Synnical]

23. Feds did not authorize other State's NG authority to go in until Thursday

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/katrina_national_guard

Sat Sep 3, 6:38 PM ET

WASHINGTON - Another 10,000 National Guard troops are being sent to the hurricane-ravaged Gulf Coast, raising their number to about 40,000, but questions linger about the speed with which troops were deployed.

Several states ready and willing to send National Guard troops to the rescue in New Orleans didn't get the go-ahead until days after the storm struck — a delay nearly certain to be investigated by Congress.

New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson offered Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco help from his state's National Guard last Sunday, the day before Hurricane Katrina hit Louisiana. Blanco accepted, but paperwork needed to get the troops en route didn't come from Washington until late Thursday.

[Synnical]

24. Power Struggle emerges (State vs. Feds)

Glad and thanks that the "my posts" option is available again on DU so I can find the posts on DU relative to this thread! Jeez, and here I was thinking that conservatives wanted more local government control.

I know, I'm silly.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/20...

Behind the scenes, a power struggle emerged, as federal officials tried to wrest authority from Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco (D). Shortly before midnight Friday, the Bush administration sent her a proposed legal memorandum asking her to request a federal takeover of the evacuation of New Orleans, a source within the state's emergency operations center said Saturday.

The administration sought unified control over all local police and state National Guard units reporting to the governor. Louisiana officials rejected the request after talks throughout the night, concerned that such a move would be comparable to a federal declaration of martial law. Some officials in the state suspected a political motive behind the request. "Quite frankly, if they'd been able to pull off taking it away from the locals, they then could have blamed everything on the locals," said the source, who does not have the authority to speak publicly.