Posted on 10/26/2005 9:37:56 PM PDT by blam
Florida governor Bush admits Wilma relief effort weak
Wed Oct 26, 7:20 PM ET
MIAMI (AFP) - Victims of Hurricane Wilma's wrath in Florida pressured officials for relief as they suffered a third day without electricity and scant basic supplies, while Governor Jeb Bush admitted the emergency relief effort "didn't work as it should."
AFP/Getty Images Photo: A mother and daughter leave with relief supplies at the Orange Bowl Stadium after Hurricane...
The White House, meanwhile, announced that President George W. Bush, the governor's brother, would visit the hurricane-damaged region Thursday.
In Mexico, officials estimated damage from the ferocious storm was costing 15 million dollars a day in lost tourism revenue from the glitzy Yucatan peninsula, while in Cuba tourism officials said the sector would be back on its feet in a week.
At least nine people died in Florida in connection with the storm that pummeled much of the Florida peninsula Monday, according to police and local media.
Hurricane damages were estimated between four and eight billion dollars in Florida, California-based risk analysis firm EQECAT said.
Before hitting Florida, Wilma had devastated Mexico's Yucatan peninsula and Cozumel island, leaving at least 10 people dead. Four people died in Cuba during pre-storm evacuations.
In Florida, all along the eastern coast, the same scene of desperation repeated itself. Thousands of people filled the streets in search of water, ice, food and gasoline (petrol) they needed to cope with widespread power outages.
Some six million people were still without electricity. The lack of power made restoring water pressure difficult.
More than 70 distribution points for water, ice and food had been opened in the state, the governor said, and their number should increase to more than 80 in the next few days.
Nevertheless, many of the aid centers did not function as expected Tuesday, and supplies were snapped up Wednesday as people waited in long lines for scarce aid.
The snags sparked criticisms of the state and federal governments, especially the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), still under fire for its slow response to the victims of Hurricane Katrina in late August.
The complex aid system "didn't work as it should yesterday, and I probably raised the bar too high... we did not meet those expectations and I accept responsibility for that," Governor Bush said at a news conference.
Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Alvarez said the provisions sent by FEMA to his county had already run out.
"Everything that the federal government has provided to us has been distributed... we're not holding back anything," he told reporters.
"It's the process and how it's structured, and it's flawed... and I'm not blaming anyone," he said, adding that the delivery of aid to the people had been bogged down for hours in red tape.
Acknowleding that people were "frustrated, disappointed, angry," the mayor said: "I think the system needs to be reviewed."
David Paulison, FEMA's acting director and a former chief of the Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Department, said the long lines seen Tuesday could have been avoided.
"That's why we tell people, have 72 hours of food and water, so you don't have to stand in line," Paulison said. "But regardless, we're going to make sure to increase the supply line."
Good grief! Many of us in the FL panhandle had to wait up to 4 weeks for power after Ivan last year....and libnuts are criticising barely 3 days post-Wilma? Give it a rest...it's not HUMANLY POSSIBLE to put every single person in Florida into a mansion loaded with baubles and cars!
Jeb needs to just do what he's always done...provide leadership and NOT CATER TO THESE SORRY WHINEY LIBNUTS who can't get off their butts. Everyone in the USA knew Wilma was heading to FL for a full week ahead of time.
Geesh!
Basic supplies? Good grief. What a bunch of whiners!
Why wouldn't they be able to get water and crackers before a hurricane?
What??
You don't even have to buy bottled water. Every container in the house can be filled as well as the bath tub to hold water that doesn't require sterilizing. In a pinch, hte water in the toilet tank can also be used, but that wouldn't suit most people.
Last time I was down there, I saw Winn Dixies and Publix's everywhere, as well as several other chain stores and convenience stores. It doesn't cost that much to buy bread, spam and canned goods for a week or longer. Hell, I live in the Pacific Northwest now and keep a pantry with tons of food supplies to last me a few weeks and we rarely have extreme weather.
I saw one apartment down in New Orleans where some enterprising woman had literally filled every single thing in her house with water; when you opened the kitchen cabinets, every single glass was filled with water!
Howlin, I wouldn't call it enterprising so much as relying on good old fashioned common sense. Of course, once you have given over your life to the government, you no longer have any good old fashioned common sense.
"What about those that weren't able to get that stuff? "
Weren't able to get WHAT??? Water into jugs? Basic food staples?? Jeez!!! There no excuse at all for not having basic items on hand for a few days - ESPECIALLY since they had plenty of notice.
These jurks koodant even figger owt how two voat in de las elekchun. LOL
Really? That's news to me. The PSAs I mostly hear or see have to do with AIDS, racial discrimination, and drunk driving.
We have totally allowed the pressure groups and the libs to run amok.
On CNN yesterday, Wolf Blitzer was showing film of the long lines in Fort Lauderdale at the same time a local official said that stores were open for people willing to pay for food and water.
What a crock! Those folks had days to prepare for Wilma -- to fill the bathtubs with water, to freeze jugs of water for ice, to fill the cars and cans with gasoline, to buy batteries and candles, and to stock up on food and medicine. If people knew Uncle Sugar would NOT ride to the rescue, they would be much better prepared.
Precisely correct. If there's anything that works very well after a hurricane, it's power restoration. Those guys are amazingly well-prepared. Still, if you live in a rural area, you should plan to be the last to get your power back.
Yesterday, Wolf Blitzer was bashing FEMA in front of a Broward County official. To the official's credit, she corrected Wolf and said that Florida was directing the efforts -- not FEMA. She also told Wolf that stores were open selling food, ice and water. It was obvious that Wolf was simply trying to be an alarmist.
Are they demanding the $2000 ATM cards yet?
That's why people buy generators. You can't wave a magic wand and expect power to be restored to millions of people. It takes time. I hardly think the government is to blame for downed power lines and transformers. Florida gets hurricanes. Always has and always will and people who live there know that. Prepare for them like officials advise or move to somewhere that doesn't get hurricanes.
Why wouldn't they be able to get provisions before the hurricane?
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