Storm Victims Leave Hotels for Sofas, Cars (Katrina evacuees)

[Wordie]

Storm Victims Leave Hotels for Sofas, Cars

By RUKMINI CALLIMACHI, Associated Press Writers 27 minutes ago

NEW ORLEANS - About 12,000 families made homeless by last year's hurricanes began checking out of their federally funded hotel rooms around the country Monday after a federal judge let FEMA stop paying directly for their stays.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency promised the evacuees from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita that they will still receive federal rent assistance that they can put toward hotel stays or other housing. But the agency will no longer pay for their hotel rooms directly.

Earlier in the day, attorneys for the evacuees pleaded with U.S. District Judge Stanwood Duval for a last-minute reprieve, saying the rent assistance will not be enough for decent living accommodations or continued hotel stays.

"These people are going to be homeless. We've heard from a lot of people who are going to be sleeping in their cars," said Bill Quigley, a lawyer for the evacuees.

The request was denied by Duval.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060214/ap_on_re_us/katrina_evacuees_hotels;_ylt=As2r0uVtDC6bceHmFLzH7_xvzwcF;_ylu=X3oDMTA5aHJvMDdwBHNlYwN5bmNhdA--

[hopeisaplace]

1. The media needs to put these homeless families front and center

on the news. There ya go Anderson Cooper - there's your next story.
It's outrageous when there are empty trailers in Arkansas. My gawd.
Shameful.

[Wordie]

4. Good idea...email this story to Anderson Cooper! Here's the link:

Here's his email address: [e-mail]

[rodeodance]

5. come on-all need to email to cooper and others NOW.

[Wordie]

6. You can even email this whole thread to him...

by using the "email this thread to a friend" link (it's near the bookmark link on the thread...up at the left top of the OP). I just did!

[hopeisaplace]

15. Great idea, glad you did this...:) thanks

[WinkyDink]

43. I e-mailed!

Asked if he could bring this to all our attention.

[aaronbees]

11. empty trailers...

There are about 13,000 trailers and mobile homes sitting in SW Arkansas and NE Texas where I'm at right now. It's incredible to me they're not being moved out en masse and pronto.

[Wordie]

14. I heard someplace that there are laws against placing them in floodplains

which is obviously what NO is. They don't stand up in a flood or hurricane very well. So if they put them in NO, and put people in them, they would just have a whole new problem when hurricane season rolls around again.

I wonder who in FEMA had the bright idea to purchase them and spend all that money to store them, if that is the case. And what they're gonna do with them now.

[aaronbees]

17. You're correct...

per FEMA regulations that's true. Our U.S. Rep. Mike Ross made that point last week -- and then suggested those regulations be amended to make way for the use of manufactured homes as temporary housing on the Gulf Coast. Not sure what I think of that ... I imagine in a couple years these homes won't have moved and will still be sitting there ... then put up for sale on the cheap.

[Wordie]

20. Somebody's wallet got fattened with the FEMA contract for the the trailers

...business as usual for the Bush administration.

:(

[orleans]

40. WTF?? compare and contrast: (they are CRIMINAL!!!)

fema director (assh*le) paulison: "I just gave approval to purchase 10,000 more travel trailers."
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060214/ap_on_re_us/katrina_evacuees_hotels;_ylt=As2r0uVtDC6bceHmFLzH7_xvzwcF;_ylu=X3oDMTA5aHJvMDdwBHNlYwN5bmNhdA--

article in LA TIMES:
snip:
"The Land of 10,770 Empty FEMA Trailers
Far from the victims of Katrina for whom they are meant, the furnished shelters crowd an airport, benefiting only the town of Hope, Ark."
snip:
""It just boggles the mind in this day and time," said Mark Keith, director of the Hope-Hempstead County Chamber of Commerce. "There are 10,770 trailers at Hope Airport. That's one for every man, woman and child in Hope"
snip:
"All of us think it's not right for them to be sitting out there and not where families need them," said Janice Skipworth, general manager of the Super 8 Motel, which filled with Katrina evacuees after the storm. "I stand behind my government no matter what, but this is kind of wrong."
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-na-trailers10feb10,0,3366834.story?coll=la-news-a_section

[Wordie]

44. Good catch, orleans! Why are they buying MORE trailers???. nt

[orleans]

48. exactly. they don't use them. who's getting kicked back on

the trailers?

maybe no one. maybe they're just gonna do it because they can and the repukes can say: "they're helping! they're buying more trailers!"

(like more they'll never use. what shits!)

[Wordie]

49. You ought to send that to Anderson Cooper. I'm hoping he's going to

do more follow ups on NO, and this is just another example of the incompetence with which the recovery has been handled by the feds, which I hope he'll mention on air.

I posted his address earlier, but here it is again: [e-mail]

[orleans]

54. good idea. i just emailed it to him. thanks. n/t

[Dont_Bogart_the_Pretzel]

27. Hi neighbor!

I noticed my drive thru Fulton yesterday the mobile homes on the lot were gone. Probably moved out of site...

[pokercat999]

29. True about NO but

couldn't we find a few other safe places to put them and at least give these folks some shelter? What kind of fucking country is this....ok, I forgot I was time transported to Germany circa 1933 a few years ago.

[Coastie for Truth]

32. The ones in Hope Arkansas are stored in mud fields

and are slowly sinking. If not used soon they may become unusable.

[classics]

2. And now they disappear from Bushes Amerika.

In alleyways, culverts and snow covered fields. Many of the women will get raped living in the streets, many children die of exposure sleeping in fields and the old will likely starve rather than beg in the cities.

God love America, the greatest country in the world.

[MissWaverly]

12. And those FEMA trailers are sinking into stagnant water empy

in Arkansas, Heckuva Job, Bush!

[Wordie]

33. NYT (Tuesday) has article on this...link here:

(Thanks Coastie for Truth, who posted this in the Editorials Forum)
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=103x190853

[Maddy McCall]

3. Many people staying in hotels have received extension codes...

which will allow them to stay until March 2.

Thank goodness--many people were fortunate enough to receive those codes. Sadly, though, some people didn't get extension codes.

[Wordie]

7. Some in the article said they were being forced to *leave* NO, in order to

find some place to live! That's terrible!

It also said this: Last week, the occupants of roughly 4,500 rooms lost FEMA funding after failing to ask the agency for extensions. Very sad. Was that because the FEMA rules are just so confusing or complicated that they didn't know that they had a deadline, I wonder?

[MadMaddie]

19. Also reported was the rents have doubled in the available...

housing. So now there is more price gouging and no accountability.

Folks this is only the beginnning, the * administration is not ready for the next big catastrophe. They have proven themselves incompetent at every level, they refuse to take responsiblity for any of their failings so there can be no true evaluation of what went wrong and how to fix it.

This country is in for some rough times and we have only seen the tip of the iceberg:grr:

[Mnemosyne]

8. But that is only a couple of extra weeks!

Is this America at all anymore? :cry:

Damn it.:grr:

[ninkasi]

9. After all

The haves and have mores are Bush's base. The have little and have nothings are not going to vote for him, so to hell with them, right?sarcasm: How much could we do to help these victims with the money spent in one week in Iraq? Bush and his administration are abominations.

[Wordie]

13. Today there was also a report that Bush spent $1.6 billion on PR!!!

...and that was taxpayer money. How far would just that have gone in helping Katrina survivors?

Here's the thread on it:
"Bush Admin. spent over $1.6 Billion on advertising and P.R. since 2003"
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x2105571

[gimama]

10. 3,4 months till the Storms come again..we still don't have an accounting

maybe fema/bush admin will get the fema trailers set up on the Coast,by the next time the Hurricanes come thru. THIS is so wrong. In the time & expense for 1,000's a trailers to be sitting in HOPE ARK..,SURVIVORS could have had modest but sound cinder block houses built down there.

I received an email regarding a Tribe(Texas-LA region), whose membership of 15,000 have reported some 3,000 MISSING Tribe members. This Community has never seen the red cross. They're living in tents, if they're lucky.
PLEASE send some Good Energy to all our Neighbors affected, & help if You can.

[cantstandbush]

16. In this racist society it won't be easy for most of these victims to get

other housing. Many have been redlined out of certain districts and denied housing in the states where they were staying.

[Art_from_Ark]

18. Meanwhile in Japan

The Niigata Earthquake of October 2004 forced more than 100,000 people out of their homes. A significant number of these people were allowed to return to their homes after it was determined that they could be repaired to building standards. Some of the remaining evacuees moved in with relatives, and about 3600 families moved into prefab houses or private rental apartments that were paid for by the national or prefectural (state) government. Evacuees can live in this type of housing for up to two years rent-free, with just utilities to pay. They were also able to receive up to about $5000 from the national government, and/or $9000 from the prefectural government, to make emergency repairs to their homes.

[Wordie]

50. Wow...what a difference, huh? Why can't our gov't do as well as Japan? nt

[Art_from_Ark]

52. And you know another thing?

Japan actually had QUALIFIED people to head the disaster relief efforts, rather than incompetent political hacks who were more concerned about their clothes than about the victims.

[babylonsister]

21. The request was denied by Duval.

Remember that name - Duval. :mad:

[DeltaLady]

22. I'm at wits end.

I can't imagine what other horrors are in store for us, the people of the storm. I hurt for those who are now homeless, and only wish I could help in some way. Personally I had good news today; I actually got a phone call about a trailer! The bad new accompanying it came from here:
http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/frontpage/index.ssf?/base/news-5/1139851504244790.xml

Although it sounds good at first pass, we now have to sweat out the next several weeks or months to find out if our neighborhoods are considered "viable." More time to sit on our hands and ponder how very much we are at the mercy and whims of the politicians. Since I'm not in a very trusting state of mind, I also wonder if those decisions will truly be fair or be slanted to in some way benefit someone other than homeowners...like developers...I also worry about what the pretender and his lackey (Powell) will have to say; they could very well reject the entire proposal out of hand.

Calgon, take me far far far away!

[Wordie]

23. Welcome to DU, DeltaLady!

:hi:

I really feel for you. What a horrible thing to be left up in the air for so long. My deep wishes for a quick resolution.

The plan that Nagin has come up with does sound like a good plan, and with the parish presidents backing it, it has more hope of success. I hope it gets the green light from the White House and the others who need to sign off on it. And it's good that Nagin appears to be ruling out any eminent domain steps, which means those neighborhoods should be safer from developers buying up large tracts.

You know, that article you linked is really important. Are you able to start a new thread yet? It might be something that lots more DUers would be interested in reading, if you would want to post it as its own thread.

[DeltaLady]

24. Alas, I am unable to start a new thread.

However, I heartily invite you to post it if it's not too much trouble.:hi:

[Wordie]

25. OK...I did...

Here's the link to it:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x2107387

[NVMojo]

26. Amerika, a third world nation ...little pink rusted cars for you and me!

If there is a hell, may the Bush family burn.

[Trevelyan]

28. Anderson had a great story on the trailers and the total lack of progress

in NOLA...I wrote him to thank him today and asked that he keep up the coverage and the pressure on the WH.

ANDERSON COOPER 360 DEGREES

New Orleans: The Missing; Mobile Homes Not Reaching Victims; Owners Reuniting With Pets Months Later, While Many Are Still Missing; Fugitives Missing; Insurance Problems

Aired February 10, 2006 - 23:00 ET


ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Here, where I am, in this house, an empty damaged home. Just one of the many parts of a vibrant city that are still missing.

ANNOUNCER: Five months have passed. August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina slams New Orleans in the Gulf Coast. Hundreds of thousands of lives, unimaginably changed forever.

And now, tonight, no one would have guessed it could still be so bad, that so much and so many people would still be missing. Housing, medical care, businesses, loved ones -- so much still missing, so many promises still not delivered.

COOPER: And good evening. I'm standing at 5801 Bancroft Drive, near Lake Pontratrain. Inside, what was once somebody's home. A place that was so heavily damaged by the floods after Hurricane Katrina, no one will ever live here again. This place was once part of the vibrant New Orleans. Tonight, it's a symbol of the void left after the storm. A void that remains.

In this special edition of 360, we're going to explore all that is missing in this city, even the things that should be here by now -- and there is much that should be here. It should be an eye opener to people who may see some of the better spots of New Orleans and think that everything is OK...

[intheflow]

30. Given rental assistance but there's no places to rent!

There is NO affordable housing anywhere on the coast. If it was cheap rent before the storm and the structure is still standing, it's not cheap any more and/or it's already rented. The churches where people the homeless would have lived before the storm are all either blown down or filled to the rafters with volunteers. It's a bad scene all around. :(

[Catherine Vincent]

31. Shouldn't these people automatically get trailers?

[lilbigman]

34. Reality Check

Hate to be the voice of decent here, but I gotta tell you folks, there is an issue here. It's been, what? 5-6 months since Katrina? Some will say this is a lack of compassion, but oh well... It's been a long time. Plenty of time for the majority of folks to go out, get jobs or arrange for other means of income and housing.

Yes, I know they haven't set up those trailers and that's a serious issue, but the notion that these folks should just be able to sit up in these hotels indefinitely on the taxpayer's dime is not a reasonable thought. They've had plenty of time to find somewhere else to be, even if it means relocating.

[kineneb]

35. that rather assumes that they are mentally healthy

which many were not to begin with. Trust me, moving is traumatic, more so if you have absolutely no internal resources or money. To get an apartment, you need an income, but to get a job, you need a permanent address. Most employers won't hire the homeless, no matter how they became homeless. I agree that putting them up in hotels is expensive, but no one is helping them find housing or employment. Never mind that they are competing against others also looking for jobs that are not there.

Just imagine if you had lost Everything. No ID, no records, nothing to prove who you are. And the courthouse which held your info is a mess or gone.

[DallasBoy]

36. Reality

The gov't needs to be doing something with the resources they already have, that's for sure. Otherwise all that taxpayer money was just wasted. But, how long can these people be supported is a different question. One problem is that a lot of these people were homeless to begin with, or barely getting by. Short of simply buying them a new house somewhere (where?) and just giving them a job, it's a hard problem to solve.

[oscar111]

39. NO JOBS.. see oscar reply about ten down this thread.. nt

zzz

[pitohui]

41. there are lots of jobs going begging even for completely unskilled

i've never seen a jump in wages, benefits, and bonuses like this, not in louisiana which was completely left out of the dot-com boom and the clinton prosperity

even the kfc today had a sign, bonuses paid daily

today, at walmart, a man told me of another worker who just signed on there, he has not worked one day, because he is going straight to medical leave for a hernia operation, THEN he will start on the job

could he have negotiated such a deal on august 28, a grocery store stocker at walmart, i don't think so, ya'll

the shoe is on the other foot now, and the employees have the upper hand in this job market


if you don't have a job in this economy of employee shortages then it's because there is some severe issue and with the public health system destroyed it would be better for the elderly and others w. severe health issues to stay in their new locations

people who are permanently disabled for whatever reason, whether it's mental health or physical health, i just don't know what to say, they could not have reasonably expected to be house in hotels forever, the rooms are needed to bring back the economy and even if they weren't, the state is broke, we can't afford to pay the bill FEMA is running up for us

keep in mind FEMA is billing louisiana 25 percent of all money spent here, this state simply doesn't have it, new york wouldn't be able to pay such a bill, much less louisiana

the new shelter is in shreveport which stinks, who would trade new orleans for shreveport, but the reality is that they have a functioning city w. hospitals and social services for the poorest of the poor, and orleans doesn't

i have no good answers, except to say the federal gov't and this nation needs to step up to the plate, they want our oil, our port, our refinery, but they want to go cheap on us in exchange

another thread, someone said the tourists should stay in tents, this just shows the complete ignorance of the size of the catastrophe, all tent sites and campgrounds are completely occupied by functioning displaced families or workers, we even have trailers in the parking lot at walmart

if the feds won't help, we have no choice but to do it ourselves, and the tourist industry, even if it be casinos and disaster tours, is one way

[oscar111]

51. NO JOBS, said local caller talkradio, and bush's own DEPT of LABOR

He said even brick carriers jobs were all taken by mex illegals.

the DOL site... link below... surveys job openings nationwide, says onle three mill total, and sevennteen mill are looking.

[KamaAina]

37. Just in time for Mardi Gras...

parade season starts Saturday. Yikes. This is not what is generally meant by "thousands in the streets" during Carnival. "Throw me somethin' to eat, mister!" :eyes:

The last thing the city needs right now is another highly visible breakdown of social order much like we saw in the days immediately following Katrina. Just watch. The media that has been largely silent the past few months -- even NBC has given up in order to go 24/7 Olympics -- would be all over it "like a duck on a June bug".

[oscar111]

38. WPA needed.. Jobs for All site has details

for the mentally or physically disab, sheltered workshops or grants

Now, fourteen million is the job shortage, contrary to the solution proffered by.. was it Illib somewhere up this thread?

many refugees can neve get a job if this shortage continues, as it has for two centuries.

PS US wealth is over a hundred trillion, so hotel rent is no problem, till a bill is passed creating a new WPA, as we had in the 'thirties.

details, see Demopedia Capital page, and footnote hereunder

WPA doesnt const, it pays.. it harnesses the labor poweer of millions now unharnessed and sitting idle .. forced joblessness, forced poverty. Poverty puts downward pressure on ALL wages, the whole wage ladder.. including the middle class.

[pitohui]

42. well that is not a coincidence

there is limited hotel space, you can't throw a spectacle and get people to come if they have nowhere to stay

it is a sad situation all around

i know you follow this story closely, did you happen to see where the new orleans police officers are going to be evicted from the cruise ship on march 1, the day after mardi gras?

the cruise ship had a prior cruise booked apparently

it just never ends

[KamaAina]

46. Sure did. I thought the Bushies were pro-police?

Silly me.

did you happen to see where the new orleans police officers are going to be evicted from the cruise ship on march 1, the day after mardi gras?

I also thought that first responders (including police) had priority for "FEMAnsions". Again, silly me.

It's reached the point where even other repukes are chastising Bush**co and Heckuvajob Brownie for "passivity". Now can something please get done? :shrug:

[nytemare]

45. This is a disgrace.

Along with wounded soldiers having to pay for bloddy body armor that they got bloodied in.

But, those tax cuts to the high income earners seem pretty important.

[PassingFair]

47. Camps.

Americans are living in relocation camps.
Anyone know how many thousands of people
are already residents of these camps?

[antonialee839]

53. Condi needs 75 million for her propaganda machine, the cuts

have to come from somewhere.