They Don’t Want to Go
Posted on | September 7, 2005 |
Okay, I have to admit that I’m just a little stumped. FEMA’s plan to relocate some of the hurricane survivors to cruise ships has been put on hold because many of those people don’t want to leave the various shelters they currently find themselves in. Personally I thought they would jump at the chance to have a little privacy as opposed to living like sardines in the Astrodome but I guess I’m wrong.
But people being housed at the Astrodome and Houston’s other shelters balked at the idea of leaving their temporary homes.But some storm survivors said they had forged friendships in the Houston shelters, while others still were trying to reconnect with family and some were seeking a sense of normalcy and routine after their lives were so brutally disrupted.
FEMA’s RANDY WELCH ON CRUISE SHIPS“
They can immediately provide good accommodations for people who need it.
“Some were unwilling to take up residence in another city vulnerable to hurricanes.
“The dome is home to them,” said Lt. Joe Leonard of the U.S. Coast Guard. “For residents, another immediate relocation is simply too much, too soon.”
Randy Welch, a spokesman for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, said many of the evacuees destined for island cruise ships were elderly and most traumatized by the storm.
“They’re the ones most cautious about making another move,” Welch said. “At the same time, they’re building a community of friends in the Dome; it may seem odd to you and me, but it’s a comfortable and safe place to stabilize.”
I absolutely understand that people were traumatized. Another reason cited by these folk is that they just went through the process of having medications, pension cheques etc redirected to their current address and didn’t want to have to go through all of that red tape again. I can also understand that.
What I don’t understand is why can’t they just round up another 4,000 people? Are they trying to tell me that of the tens of thousands of people currently living in shelters they can’t find 4,000 that would prefer a cruise ship? Mothers and their children perhaps?
In other news the order to forcibly remove hold-outs in New Orleans was finally given.
New Orleans’ mayor has ordered law enforcement agencies to remove everyone from the city who is not involved in cleaning up after Hurricane Katrina, whether they want to go or not.Mayor Ray Nagin instructed all public safety officers “to compel the evacuation of all persons … regardless of whether such persons are on private property or do not desire to leave,” according to a written statement from his office.
This is long overdue. The flood water is contaminated with everything from rotting corpses to feces to fuels to god knows what kind of chemicals that were stored in various warehouses. Diseases such as cholera, dysentery and typhoid among others may break out at any time. The people who refuse to leave probably don’t understand the scope of the damage having been cutoff from the outside world for so long. But they are not only putting their own safety at risk but the safety of the rescue workers as well. The sooner these folk are removed from the equation the better.
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