Katrina Live Threads, Part XV

U.S. commercial air carriers continue transporting tens of thousands of evacuees from the New Orleans airport to destinations throughout the nation.

Rooftop air rescue efforts continue. One rescue chopper crashed late today. Crew members are reported safe. Gunmen who fired upon bridge repair contractors were killed by law enforcement.

To date, an estimated 70 countries and U.S. businesses have pledged hundreds of millions of dollars, supplies, food and equipment to assist the United States' efforts in Katrina's aftermath. Lt. General Honore described the damage to Mississippi today, "all infrastructure south of Jackson, MS is either damaged or destroyed." Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice visited the devastated areas, and attended Sunday church services in Mobile, Alabama.

Elsewhere, Sean Penn's rescue boat, sans plug and full of his personal entourage,reportedly sank during launch in New Orleans. Senator Mary Landrieu (D-LA) threatened to punch President Bush, and Jefferson Parish President Broussard decried that the bureaucracy of FEMA has committed murder.

New Orleans Emergency Operations Center - is now open:
504-463-1000
504-463-1001
504-463-1002

All information is subject to change. Many stations are relying on their corporate parents to configure and maintain Internet streaming. Because of the intense interest in the feeds, they may be unavailable at times because of network congestion or a problem feeding the video to the streaming servers.

WWL-TV New Orleans - WWL-TV is operating from studios at Louisiana Public Broadcasting. CBS has a relay during the morning and afternoon. When available, use the CBS relay first as they have greater streaming capacity. They have a secondary stream from Yahoo. WWL-TV is also offering a special low-bandwidth audio-only stream for dial-up users.

WDSU-TV New Orleans - The news staff has started to return to temporary news studios near New Orleans. However, expect evening coverage from Hearst-Argyle sister stations WAPT Jackson and WESH Orlando when the New Orleans staff needs to take a break.

WGNO-TV New Orleans - New Orleans' ABC affiliate has returned to the air with WBRZ-TV and launched video streaming with continuous Katrina coverage.

WPMI-TV Mobile, AL - WPMI is webcasting from 5:30am - 10:30pm CDT. When off air, you can view pre-recorded reports on demand. This feed is often unreliable.

WKRG-TV Mobile, AL - This station is providing good coverage of the situation to the east in Mississippi and Alabama. However, the station is now signing off at around 10:30pm CDT like WWL and WPMI.

WJTV-TV Jackson, MS - The CBS affiliate in Jackson is providing live coverage for both the Jackson area and south Mississippi (knowing a lot of media in that area is off the air).

WFAA-TV Dallas, TX - WFAA-TV is here because Dallas is one of the evacuation cities.

United Radio From New Orleans: WWL-AM, WNOE-FM, "KISS-FM," WRNO-FM, WYLD-FM, and WJBO-AM (Clear Channel & Entercom) who have joined forces as United Radio From New Orleans, and they are streaming.

Gulf Coast Storm Network (Clear Channel Radio) - Clear Channel offers radio listeners across the gulf coast access to a simulcast emergency radio service. This service seems primarily focused on Alabama and Mississippi, but does cover Louisiana to some degree.

Due to the number of requests to assist, the following list of some charities is provided.
This is not intended as an endorsement for any of the charities.

www.redcross.org or 1-800 HELP NOW - note: website is slow, and lines are busy
Salvation Army - 1-800-SAL-ARMY or Salvation Army currently looking for in-state volunteers - (888)363-2769
Operation Blessing: (800) 436-6348.
America's Second Harvest: (800) 344-8070.
Catholic Charities USA: (800) 919-9338, or www.catholiccharitiesusa.org.
Christian Reformed World Relief Committee: (800) 848-5818.
Church World Service: (800) 297-1516 or online at www.churchworldservice. org.
Lutheran Disaster Response: (800) 638-3522.
Nazarene Disaster Response: (888) 256-5886.
Presbyterian Disaster Assistance: (800) 872-3283.
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is accepting donations at its 3,800 stores and Web site, www.walmart.com.
National Black Home Educators Resource Association http://www.nbhera.org/ Southern Baptist: NAMB - http://www.namb.net/
Samaritan's Purse - http://www.samaritanspurse.org/

I just heard from amom. She has been assigned to a small shelter outside BRLA, about 400 misplaced folks. All are helping with food cooking, serving, unloading of trucks, sorting goods received, cleaning etc.

I was able to tell her the 17th street levy has been fixed and the city is slowly being drained. I conveyed the information given at the police press conference to her to share with others. The main statement was NO is destroyed and for all to spread across America, but there will be a time to rebuild.

amom did not get to see President Bush, but all are aware that he and Mrs. Bush were there. amom is letting all know who is at fault for this, NO local officials.

The shelter she is at is a Red Cross Shelter, however, NO has still not set up any locally, and some are without food or water in surrounding Parrish's.

Yesterday, amom relayed information I sadly neglected to pass on. Many military convoys passed them on the way to BRLA. amom and crew would give a thumbs up and the soldiers would smile and wave, honk horns etc. Many. many rented trucks and trailers full of supplies passed them too.

amom said most folks are very hopeful and things are going good. Most local families are housing 2 or more families in their homes, many of which sustained wind damage from Katrina. BRLA is still cleaning up themselves, but are caring for double their population at the moment.

I will call her back later to let her know that over 40 countries have sent pumps to help deflood NO.

Ping me for any questions or offers you might have.

Howlin, could you make a ping list please! It has been years since I have done this, and ping list are new to me.

Press Releases

Date: 9/5/2005

Contact: Denise Bottcher or Roderick Hawkins at 225-342-9037

Governor Blanco's Letter Regarding Joint Economic Task Force on Louisiana Economic Recovery

September 5, 2005

President George W. Bush
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500

Dear President Bush,

I write to ask you to work with me in developing a long term plan for the rebuilding of the Louisiana economy. I specifically ask that you join me in appointing a combined federal, state, local, private business and philanthropic council to support the economic revitalization of Louisiana in
the wake of Hurricane Katrina.

We should and must jointly make a commitment to rebuild infrastructure, address environmental damage, and to restore the cultural fabric of the impacted region of our state in order to re-establish Louisiana as a global leader in energy production, shipping, tourism and technology industries.
Our citizens, our most valuable asset, have been forced to take shelter across the country, but Louisiana will not fully recover until those displaced by this storm can rejoin their communities.

To accomplish the goal of rebuilding Louisiana, there are four prerequisites to an effective rebuilding effort:

Restoring and enhancing infrastructural integrity of the impacted areas. We must rebuild and enhance our communities, while at the same time preserve the cultural uniqueness of our state. First and foremost among the infrastructure improvements are the levees. Restoring and enhancing the levee system and assuring its structural safety and permanence are essential to any economic restoration. We can not expect businesses and individuals to invest in a city that could be catastrophically flooded during another hurricane. Nor can one expect that anyone will insure these kinds of investments, or make loans against them, if they cannot be secured from the risk of flooding. A major effort to secure the levee system is a precondition to any of these other goals. Federal funding would be the appropriate source for funding this endeavor.

Preserving the unique culture of Louisiana. Louisiana is unique among the 50 state in its origins, influences and traditions. People travel from across the globe to experience all that Louisiana has to offer. Generations of Americans have made the pilgrimage to taste the cuisine and experience the flavor of Louisiana. But most of all our sons and daughters are what really make Louisiana special. We must insure that we provide our citizens with prompt opportunity to return to their home state.

Restoring America's Wetland and committing to a thorough environmental cleanup. Long known as the Sportsman's Paradise, Louisiana has a proud tradition of environmental and conservation heritage. Environmental cleanup must be a top priority in order to enable renewed investment in tourism. A unified effort must be made between federal, state and local government agencies to restore the integrity of Louisiana's environmental image. Once again, it would seem appropriate that the majority of funding for this initiative come from federal sources.

Reestablishing Louisiana's medical services. Restoring, reinvigorating and supporting our medical community are paramount. We must continue the commitment to our people that I believe is necessary and have worked hard to achieve. I will not be deterred in my commitment to strengthening our healthcare system. We must restore the facilities, the technology and the intellectual capital to provide Louisianans with the high-quality health care they deserve.

These four goals must serve as the foundation for our state's economic recovery. In addition, we must pay special attention to four specific segments of Louisiana's economy:

Tourism

Rebuilding our tourism and related convention business will involve more than just restoring damaged assets. It will require rebuilding public trust in Louisiana. We must work to re-establish the hospitable atmosphere tourists and conventioneers have traditionally found in Louisiana. An economic revitalization campaign must not only work to restore the physical assets, but also aim to restore the customs and traditions that make Louisiana special.

Energy

Energy will have its own dynamic, because the energy business generally locates where the energy assets are - in this case, the Gulf of Mexico. A major aspect of any economic recovery plan must focus on restoring and repairing the offshore and onshore assets that are so vital to this region's economy. A potential risk to the area is that the onshore assets will migrate to other locations because of the hurricane and the disruption it has caused. Any recovery program must try to prevent this because, once lost, those assets will be hard to get back.

Transportation and Ports

To restore the port and related shipping, the federal government or others must restore damaged infrastructure, both for the port itself and for the transportation mechanisms that support the port. Those would include rail, road and barge systems, as well as warehouses and other logistic assets that are essential to a functioning port. A recovery plan must address these precious assets.

Manufacturing

The underpinning of all successful economies, manufacturing serves to produce a wide variety of consumables whether for the military, government, or private citizens. Manufacturing provides quality, good-paying jobs for our people, as well as the stability drives growth in other industries. Louisiana has a proud manufacturing history, and it is important that it
maintain its place in our economy in the future.

Technology

In addition to the specific sectors mentioned above, a vibrant and healthy business community requires technological investment and innovation. We must maintain a healthy traditional service economy, encourage strong financial institutions and support the service companies that provide the economic foundation for our state. It is integral that we remain at the forefront of innovation by cultivating emerging technologies such as nanotechnology and biotechnology, and fostering the efficient and effective use of information technology to best serve the citizens of Louisiana. An example of this is Louisiana's burgeoning film and digital media industry.

Mr. President, I ask that this issue be treated as a national priority and ask you to work with me to appoint a council to oversee these efforts. I thank you again for your commitment to the people of Louisiana during our time of need, and will continue to work tirelessly alongside you to respond in the wake of this disaster.

Sincerely,

Kathleen Babineaux Blanco

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