Katrina Records Contain A Gap
Missing: Homeland Security Conference Call As Levees Failed
February 15, 2006
By DAVID LIGHTMAN, Washington Bureau Chief WASHINGTON --
The Department of Homeland Security has not been able to find any recording of a crucial conference call five hours after Hurricane Katrina made landfall - though it has transcripts of other key discussions recorded in the days before and after the storm struck.
Senate investigators want to know who conferred and what they said on a 40-minute call that began at noon Aug. 29, as levees were being breached in New Orleans and government relief efforts were overwhelmed by the enormity of the storm.
The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee wants the transcript for its investigation of why the response was bungled. The public phase of that probe is scheduled to end today with the appearance of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, who in recent days has become the critics' favorite target.
Chertoff, whose testimony Tuesday was postponed because of Senate votes, will spend only two hours on the witness stand, citing previous commitments.
http://www.courant.com/news/politics/hc-chertoff0215.artfeb15,0,2622813.story?coll=hc-headlines-politics