Aaron Broussard, President of Jefferson Parrish, appeared this Sunday on Meet the Press. He made some extremely serious charges that officials at FEMA had actively interfered in assistance efforts in his Parrish. Responding to host Tim Russert’s questions on local and state-level accountability, he said:
Let me give you just three quick examples. We had Wal-Mart deliver three trucks of water, trailer trucks of water. FEMA turned them back. They said we didn't need them. This was a week ago. FEMA--we had 1,000 gallons of diesel fuel on a Coast Guard vessel docked in my parish. The Coast Guard said, "Come get the fuel right away." When we got there with our trucks, they got a word. "FEMA says don't give you the fuel." Yesterday--yesterday--FEMA comes in and cuts all of our emergency communication lines. They cut them without notice. Our sheriff, Harry Lee, goes back in, he reconnects the line. He posts armed guards on our line and says, "No one is getting near these lines." Sheriff Harry Lee said that if America--American government would have responded like Wal-Mart has responded, we wouldn't be in this crisis
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9179790/FEMA cut the communication lines in Jefferson Parish 1 day before the Hurricane hit and the sherriff had to reconnect them and put armed guards to prevent FEMA from trying to cut the lines again. Wal-Mart had food and water ready to take to the victims before the aftermath and FEMA stopped them before they reached Jefferson Parish.
http://forums.officer.com/forums/showthread.php?t=35819WASHINGTON -- The government's disaster chief waited until hours after Hurricane Katrina already had struck the Gulf Coast before asking his boss to dispatch 1,000 Homeland Security employees to the region -- and gave them two days to arrive, according to internal documents.
Michael Brown, director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, sought the approval from Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff roughly five hours after Katrina made landfall on the morning of Aug. 29. Brown said that among duties of these employees was to "convey a positive image" about the government's response for victims.
The same day he wrote Chertoff, Brown also urged local fire and rescue departments outside Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi not to send trucks or emergency workers into disaster areas without an explicit request for help from state or local governments. Brown said it was vital to coordinate fire and rescue efforts.
Meanwhile, the airline industry said the government's request for help evacuating storm victims didn't come until late Thursday afternoon. The president of the Air Transport Association, James May, said the Homeland Security Department called then to ask if the group could participate in an airlift for refugees. Wednesday, September 07, 2005 BY TED BRIDIS Associated Press
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