Katrina Live Thread, Part XIII

Various ^ | 1 September 2005 | Various

[NautiNurse]

28,000 National Guard troops are deployed to the disaster areas in Mississippi, Alabama, and to Louisiana, where SWAT teams are working to combat the looters and shooters in New Orleans. Additional 1400 National Guard troops are being deployed daily.

Shootings reported at a New Orleans hospital, rescue boats, and a military helicopter, while conditions continue to deteriorate at the SuperDome amid refugee deaths and chaos. Evacuation of New Orleans continues.

House Speaker Dennis Hastert has voiced serious doubts about rebuilding New Orleans with federal funds, while assuring the people of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida that the United States Congress stands ready to help them in their time of need. New Orleans Mayor C. Ray Nagin issued a "desperate SOS."

Doctors at two desperately crippled hospitals in New Orleans called The Associated Press Thursday morning pleading for rescue, "We have been trying to call the mayor's office, we have been trying to call the governor's office ... we have tried to use any inside pressure we can. We are turning to you. Please help us," said Dr. Norman McSwain, chief of trauma surgery at Charity Hospital, the largest of two public hospitals.

The Port of New Orleans is now open to shallow draft vessels. Congress is reconvening in an emergency session. International offers to assist the U.S. have been received from Russia, Japan, Canada, France, Honduras, Germany, Venezuela, Jamaica, Australia, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Greece, Hungary, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Mexico, China, South Korea, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, NATO and the Organization of American States.

Jesse Jackson has arrived in Louisiana...

Links to various news, local and state government websites:

WLOX TV Biloxi, Gulfport, Pascagula has link to locate family and friends
2theAdvocate - Baton Rouge Includes Slidell, St. John Parish, St. Bernard Parish updates, and other locations.
NOLA.com
Inside Houma Today includes shelter and volunteer updates
WLBT.com Jackson MS
WALA Channel 4 Mobile, AL Includes links to distribution centers, Emergency Ops, etc.
Sun-Herald Gulfport MS Includes link to town by town reports
Gulfport News via Topix.net
WAFB Baton Rouge
Mobile Register via al.com
Mississippi updates via Jackson Ledger
Lafayette LA Daily Advertiser
Pensacola News Journal
St Bernard Local Government
Alabama Homeland Security Volunteers can sign up online
Alabama DOT
Alabama.gov
Louisiana Homeland Security
Louisiana State Police road closure info
State of Mississippi Website has traffic alerts, emergency contact numbers

Streaming Video:

WWL-TV (via CBS): WWLTV via CBS
WWL-TV Now via WFAA Dallas **NEW LINK**: http://www.wwltv.com/cgi-bin/bi/video/makeadplaylist.pl?title=beloint_wfaa&live=yes
WDSU-TV: http://mfile.akamai.com/12912/live/reflector:38843.asx
WPMI-TV: http://www.wpmi.com/mediacenter/default.aspx?videoId=113739
WKRG-TV: mms://wmbcast.mgeneral.speedera.net/wmbcast.mgeneral/wmbcast_mgeneral_aug262005_1435_95518
WTOK-TV Temporarily Not Live Streaming (follow the link on the home page): http://www.wtok.com/
WJTV-TV: mms://wmbcast.mgeneral.speedera.net/wmbcast.mgeneral/wmbcast_mgeneral_aug262005_1435_95563
Louisiana Statewide Katrina Network (WJBO-AM Baton Rouge): http://ccri.eonstreams.com/ccri_la_batonrouge_wjbo_am.asf
Gulf Coast Storm Network (radio): http://www.stormalert.net/main.html#
Louisiana Scanner

Related FR Threads:

FYI: Hurricane Katrina Freeper SIGN IN Thread FReeper Check In thread
Discussion Thread - Hurricane Katrina - What Went Wrong?!?
Post Hurricane Katrina IMAGES Here
Looting Begins In New Orleans
Hurricane Katrina HOUSING Thread
Martial Law Declared in New Orleans

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/

Previous Threads:
Katrina Live Thread, Party XII
Katrina Live Thread, Part XI
Katrina Live Thread, Part X
Katrina Live Thread, Part IX
Hurricane Katrina Live Thread, Part VIII
Hurricane Katrina Live Thread, Part VII
Hurricane Katrina Live Thread, Part VI
Hurricane Katrina Live Thread, Part V
Hurricane Katrina, Live Thread, Part IV
Hurricane Katrina Live Thread, Part III
Katrina Live Thread, Part II
Hurricane Katrina Live Thread, Part I
Tropical Storm 12

[steveegg]

I wonder what exactly (besides bloviating) ABC is doing.

[tortoise]

I would be beyond thrilled to get an MRE in this sort of situation they're in.

Absolutely. I do not think they are that bad generally; they are a godsend in a situation like this.

I just find it appalling that people are so soft that they are whining about perfectly good food that the military eats all the time in a situation when many people are going hungry. Hell, those things are currency in Asia -- Asians love MREs.

[plain talk]

Right. It was an Act of God and I'm not trashing or blaming the victims. I lived there for 20 years FCOL. It was a great city and I have many friends there who I am worried about. My brother still lives there and evacuated.

But the residents chose to live there (as did I) knowing the risks, they elected these local politicians, they could have pushed for building stronger levees and they certainly could have all evacuated as I did in 1969 for Camille. That's all I meant. I'm just saying it's not just a case of blaming a few politicians. The whole city knowingly took a calculated risk.

[tcrlaf]

Shoutcast has a tactical Net of some kind up...

I THINK it's State Police Troop B?

[Howlin]

I just LOVE this post:

France lost hundreds of folks because it was hot. BECAUSE IT WAS HOT.

[HoHoeHeaux]

Sorry I had a computer blip. If anyone reads, please insert fragments in the appropo place (o:

[Alberta's Child]

That story about the orderly conduct of the Japanese victims of the Kobe earthquake does not surprise me. The Japanese have always had a reputation for their orderly, disciplined public conduct.

Any soccer fans out there might remember the Japanese fans who cheered their team on at the World Cup a few years back. They stayed around at the end of the game and picked up all their trash from the stands before leaving.

[MMkennedy]

"I do, but they're still there, and so are you.
For now."

And, having violate no rules, I will continue to be.

[CindyDawg]

I'm glad they had their young grandma with them. 3 days in a shelter with 5 little ones. I bet she was tired. I hope the kids moma and daddy's aren't dead.

[WoodstockCat]

Not enough emphasis from the ground on how hard the terrain there is with the number of trees down.
How did the reporters get there? What roads? flown in? In since the storm?
You can't just "poof" move supplies through an area where trees and electrical lines litter your path.
The complete lack of education and facts within reporting today is staggering.

[CFC__VRWC]

Just condemn the properties and bring in the bulldozers to scrape the slums away. You could probably use a lot of the rubble to double the width and height of the levees. Come to think of it, that would also be a good way to dispose of those huge slabs of concrete that used to be the bridge across Lake Ponchatrain!

That's about all those properties will be any good for anyway, after sitting for months in river water filling up with all sorts of putrid sediments. The molds and fungi alone would make them uninhabitable, and you'd never get rid of it all even if you stripped the buildings to the frames. Using the concrete rubble from the bridge and buildings as riprap on the levees is probably the best thing that could be done.

Like it or not, New Orleans will probably be rebuilt right where it is (maybe this time some genius will figure out that the pump stations that were supposed to be used to prevent this from happening need to be elevated so they're not submerged and unuseable when the water comes in!). Maybe they'll throw in a little bit of fill to raise some of the really low areas, but probably not, and then the city will go on until the next Cat 5 hurricane comes, or until the Mississippi finally gets around to changing course and flooding out the Atchafalaya basin, leaving New Orleans in the middle of a salt marsh.

[dawn53]

Well, Bubba put the CNN newsbabe in her place this afternoon when she tried to pull the Blame Bush line on him.

And Harry Reid saying he supports the President.

May be more of the Howard Dean side talking point, but I don't think it's a entire Dem party talking point, and this is why.

If they get this situation in hand quickly, and are successful at moving folks out and setting up refugee homes, etc., then Bush will also get the credit.

Once you blame a situation on someone that can come back around to bite you in the rear end because if they were to blame for the bad, then they will be seen as the solution maker when things go well.

[PhiKapMom]

Night -- I am calling it a night too -- early this time! Nice to end on a high note for a change! :)

[jbstrick]

Anyone see the report on the Plaquerman (sic) Parish Sheriff??

It was amazing. He put roadblocks into the county and instructed his deputies to 'shoot to kill' anyone who tries to get in. He said that garbage going on in New Orleans will not happen in his parish.

Things are calm and orderly in his parish.

[ARealMothersSonForever]

>>in my best Stewie voice<< Victory is mine! World domination!
Serously, your points with respect to states rights are spot on. The proud Texan in me still says that an annexation is in order........

[tomkat]

Hope ya have better luck w/it as a regular post than it enjoyed as a headliner   

[buickmackane]

KALB's 10 pm newscast has a very encouraging update about the evacuation of ill people from New Orleans. In addition to a fleet of mini-buses, there are 70 Blackhawk helicopters being used to transport patients to such hospitals as Cabrini in Alexandria. The helicopters will land at the parking lot of the Alexandria Mall and at Buhlow Lake in Pineville.

This rescue effort is separate from the huge motorcade of school buses from Rapides, Grant and Natchitoches Parishes now lined up on the highway ready to leave for New Orleans. The kids get to stay home from school, but the school employees are still required to report to work. The Catholic schools in Rapides Parish have also decided to close on Friday. It's a welcome extension to the Labor Day weekend!

KALB's telethon has raised $70,000 for the CenLa Chapter of the American Red Cross so far. If you want to be sure that your charitable donation reaches the thousands of refugee families in Central Louisiana, this is a good way to help. Call (318) 447-2542 or (318) 447-2531 if you would like to make a donation that will stay here. They plan to stay on the air tonight until they reach $100,000.

If you have a strong preference for the Salvation Army over the Red Cross, you can mail your donations to their homeless shelter at 620 Beauregard Street, Alexandria, LA 71301. They also have a Salvation Army Thrift Shop way across town on Lee Street in Alexandria in case anyone would like to ship cartons of clothing there. Shelter guests are given a clothing voucher to take over to the thrift store which is good for 10 free items of clothing per family member. The voucher cannot be used for school uniforms, unfortunately, but the Salvation Army store is nevertheless drastically cheaper than the two Goodwill Industries stores in Alexandria/Pineville.

The newscast also showed a group of refugees at the Alexandria unemployment office applying for benefits and already searching for work in this area. This is going to create competition for jobs needed by people who already live here. Uh-oh...

I'm glad I don't have to get up early tomorrow morning to take my little one to school. In a scary situation like this, I am just happy to spend some quality time with her. It also means I get to surf all night, hee-hee-hee...

I'll let you know if there are any updates tonight.

[Peach]

I just got home; what's going on with the Astrodome?

[Petronski]

Attention all:


The excellent documentary "Isaac's Storm," about the Galveston Hurricane, will reair in 25 minutes on the History Channel.

Also, Tuesday at 8am and 2pm eastern.

[tortoise]

Like the guy who was picked up by the boat and told them he was waiting for a helicopter. No lie.

Makes me sick. That is the essence of an entitlement mentality, and everything that is wrong with America today.