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FEMA Says No to Ice For Hurricane Survivors: Under New Policy, FEMA Says Ice is Not Its Responsibility

Hurricane survivors are being put at risk in Texas and other hot weather states because the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is no longer providing ice in relief situations, say watchdogs, relief workers and local leaders in Hurricane Alley.

It's frustrating that the government can deliver $85 billion to bail out AIG, and they can't deliver ice in Texas," said Ben Smilowitz, executive director of the Disaster Accountability Project (DAP), a nonpartisan organization that monitors the nation's disaster response system.
In fact, while the federal government can deliver ice to disaster areas, it's chosen not to, under newly-revised FEMA rules. Instead, individual states and local governments are now tasked with purchasing, delivering and storing ice, even though they face tough logistical challenges in doing so, according to critics of the new policy.
"FEMA is effectively saying we can't guarantee you ice," said Mike Womack, director of the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency.

Besides preserving food when electricity is out, ice is essential in maintaining temperature-sensitive medication and feeding formulas and keeping people cool in the aftermath of disaster, relief and support workers say.

"This isn't for their gin and tonics," said Elise Hough, CEO of the Houston chapter of United Cerebral Palsy, who says she encountered a lot of indifference when she started raising the issue of FEMA's ice policy last month. "This is for people who are extremely sensitive to heat, and ice has a huge impact on their health and safety."

FEMA says it instituted its new policy in July 2007, although those in disaster relief circles widely point to the National Hurricane Conference in Florida in April as the announcement of the change.

There, FEMA Administrator R. David Paulison told attendees that the agency would stop providing ice to disaster victims, except in the case of medical emergencies or life-threatening situations, according to media reports at the time.

That's the first time, support workers, watchdogs and local officials say they heard about the policy change, just as hurricane season was beginning. Since then, many say, they've had no direction or guidance as to what the new procedures entail.MORE

Hurricane Gustav: Levees hold, storm falls to Category 2, hits 70 miles away from New Orleans, minimal damage.

Via: Hullabaloo

What's wrong with this Hurricane?

I just noticed that the daily brief customarily done in advance of a hurricane is happening because Gustov is bearing down on the Gulf Coast…but a big shift here: the briefing is being given by NORTHCOM. So what does this tell us and why does it matter? It tells us that things are as broken as they were before Katrina.

...

When it comes to disasters, the governor is always in charge. At any point, he or she can call in their state’s National Guard, and/or ask other governors for their help in augmenting response efforts with their national guard or other resources. If a governor is worried things are getting out of control, they ask the President to provide help through FEMA at any point before or after the incident. FEMA is then in charge of coordinating the resources of the federal government to support the governor and the state. In a sense, when FEMA is working properly—as it did under Clinton—when the FEMA director tells another Federal agency to do something, it’s as if the President is calling. The government agency is expected to deliver and cut through red tape to make things happen and happen fast.

There is no allowance or legal authority for the Department of Defense to take any sort of control or command in this scenario. In a hurricane, DoD, like Human Services, Transportation, etc, all work for FEMA and the governor of the impacted state.

...

Perhaps the state governments need help. Perhaps FEMA is not up to the job. Perhaps the Bush Administration simply wants a uniform on camera, and this way of doing things is preferable to things happening the way that they should (a process, by the way, that WORKED before Bush screwed it up).

NORTHCOM taking the lead in public relations is a clear indication that nothing has been fixed in DHS and FEMA since Katrina. As a result, there is no confidence in FEMA’s ability to respond to this hurricane. With NORTHCOM at the helm, the Bush Administration either doesn’t care if, or doesn’t want, the systems to work. This Administration has issued a lot of reports since Katrina (none of which suggest the military should take control, incidentially), but no one has been held accountable and the lessons have not been learned. The priority is still on preventing embarrassment, not keeping people safe.

The other thing to remember here is that this is not a mission the military wants. Sure, they can ride in on a white horse and do what they can, but their job is to fight wars, not deal with disasters. Governors need their national guards to make this a priority (but most are in Iraq) but DoD needs to worry about the rest of the world. By dumping this on them, the Bush Administration is reinforcing the idea that the military is the only government agency that people can trust and continues to burden them with missions for which they are not trained. MORE

Via

jonquil and firedoglake, We Could Be Famous, Daily Kos, Shakesville.

There was this:

And now there is this: Gustav now Category Four

Even forecasters at the center were surprised at how quickly Gustav gained strength as it charged over Cuba. It went from a tropical storm to a Category 4 in about 24 hours, and was likely to become a Category 5 — with sustained winds of 156 mph or more — by Sunday.
"This is a little more than what we had in mind in such a short time," said Richard Knabb, a senior specialist at the center.
...

The state has a $7 million contract for more than 700 buses to carry an estimated 30,000 people to shelters.
Unlike Katrina, when thousands took refuge inside the Superdome, there will be no "last resort" shelter, and those who stay behind accept "all responsibility for themselves and their loved ones," said the city's emergency preparedness director, Jerry Sneed.
....
Those among New Orleans' estimated 310,000 to 340,000 residents who ignore orders to leave accept "all responsibility for themselves and their loved ones," the city's emergency preparedness director, Jerry Sneed, has warned.

One hopes that the fervour with which the prayers for teh soaking of the Denver Convention went up, will be applied to the miraculous snuffing a storm which New Orleans and the surrounding areas are COMPLETELY unprepared for.

Three years ago, Hurricane Katrina hit on August 29. You remember what happened.

And they are so far from being recovered that its laughable

45,000. Fewer children enrolled in Medicaid in New Orleans than pre-Katrina.

46,000. Fewer African American voters in New Orleans in 2007 gubernatorial election than 2003 gubernatorial election, according to a report in the Times-Picayune in April 2008.

55,000. Fewer houses receiving mail than before Katrina.

62,000. Fewer people in New Orleans enrolled in Medicaid than pre-Katrina.

71,657. Vacant, ruined, unoccupied houses in New Orleans today.

124,000. Fewer people working in metropolitan New Orleans than pre-Katrina.

132,000. Fewer people in New Orleans than before Katrina, according to the City of New Orleans current population estimate of 321,000 in New Orleans, according to reporting in the Times-Picayune in July 2008.

214,000. Fewer people in New Orleans than before Katrina, according to the U.S. Census Bureau current population estimate of 239,000 in New Orleans, according to reporting in the Times-Picayune in July 2008.

453,726. Population of New Orleans before Katrina.

320 million. The number trees destroyed in Louisiana and Mississippi by Katrina.

368 million. Dollar losses of five major metro New Orleans hospitals since Katrina through 2007. In 2008, hospitals expect another $103 million in losses.

1.9 billion. FEMA dollars that are supposed to be available to metro New Orleans for Katrina damages that have not yet been delivered.

2.6 billion. FEMA dollars that are supposed to be available to State of Louisiana for Katrina damages that have not yet been delivered. MORE

And now?

State scrambles to find buses for evacuation: Original contractor reneged, Jindal says

BATON ROUGE -- The private contractor the state hired to provide buses for hurricane evacuations has not come through with enough vehicles in a timely manner, causing officials to look elsewhere to meet the state's timeline for moving people out of New Orleans and other areas prior to the arrival of Hurricane Gustav, Gov. Bobby Jindal said Friday.

The state contracted for 700 buses with drivers to be made available in an emergency but has "run into challenges" with the primary bus contractor, the governor said during a news conference in Baton Rouge.

"The contractor is not necessarily doing what they promised to do," Jindal said.
State officials later identified the company as Landstar System Inc., a Jacksonville, Fla., company whose shares trade on the Nasdaq stock market. MORE

Public evacuation system might rely on school buses

Up to 400 school buses are en route to the state's staging area for public evacuation, indicating that the system might run out of charter buses to take evacuees without their own transportation to shelters across the state.
Rusty Costanza / The Times-PicayuneSchool buses line up in the parking lot at Zephyr Field in Metairie Saturday to be fueled and supplied with food and water. Up to four hundred school buses were expected to be in place for evacuation of the New Orleans metro area
About 250 yellow buses were parked at Zephyr Field this afternoon, with more arriving, according to the Louisiana National Guard. The staging area is not open to the public. Evacuees who need transportation must go to one of the 17 pick-up sites in New Orleans and two in Jefferson Parish. MORE

Blackwater heads back to New Orleans

Really disturbing announcement, courtesy of Blackwater's newsletter, the Blackwater Tactical Weekly. Looks like Blackwater is on its way back to Blackwater NOLA. Emailed to me by my very alert friend Nick.

Security for Hurricane Gustav

Blackwater is compiling a list of qualified security personnel for possible deployment into areas affected by Hurricane Gustav.

Applicants must meet all items listed under the respective Officer posting and be US citizens. Contract length is TBD.MORE

Why do I have the nasty feeling that we are going to find ourselves in trouble once again?

EDIT:GOP COnvention May be cancelled

John McCain said the Republican National Convention may be postponed as federal officials said Hurricane Gustav was gathering to a devastating Category 5 as it headed toward star-crossed New Orleans.

“It just wouldn't be appropriate to have a festive occasion while a near-tragedy or a terrible challenge is presented in the form of a natural disaster,” McCain told Chris Wallace of “Fox News Sunday” in an interview taped for Sunday. “So we're monitoring it from day to day and I'm saying a few prayers, too.”

McCain also said: “I'm afraid, Chris, that we may have to look at that situation and we'll try to monitor it. I've been talking to Govs. Jindal, Barbour, Riley. Chris, I've been talking to all of them.”

Officials at the convention, which is to open Monday in St. Paul, Minn., tell Politico they are figuring out how to handle the formal business of nominating McCain even if some delegations are not able to attend.

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What the fuck is this???

(no subject)

Uh? Why in the world is NORTHCOM in command of the public relations of the hurricane disaster area?

Hurricane Gustav

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