St. Bernard Parish residents crowd Capitol for town meeting

[lindisfarne]

http://www.wwltv.com/local/stories/WWL091205stbern.4fc1e488.html
06:37 PM CDT on Monday, September 12, 2005

Associated Press

Thousands of St. Bernard Parish residents who journeyed to the state Capitol, desperate for information about their homes, received only grim news Monday: Every part of the parish was flooded by Hurricane Katrina. Some homes were coated with oil from a nearby refinery. And one official estimated no one would live in the parish until at least summertime.
<snip>
For homes that may have been repairable after the waters receded, an oil spill at Murphy Oil in Meraux may have made them uninhabitable, officials warned.
<snip>
Bodies of the dead still were being collected Monday. Sheriff Jack Stephens said the parish death toll stood at 56 but officials knew of at least 10 more locations where they needed to recover bodies. He said the highest risk areas, where water covered the roofs of houses, hadn't been searched yet.

Boasso said 30,000 homes were completely lost and he's heard estimates that it would take at least four months to clean up the parish that is home to 68,000 residents.

[leftchick]

1. I heard the NPR report on this at 4:00 pm

It was BAD! The locals are pissed at FEMA and bushit**. Some drove for three hours for nothing and were pissed off! The reporter asked if they blamed the local politicians and it was a big No! The people are behind their local leaders 100%!

:wow:

[Jacobin]

2. I've been very worried about that parish

90,000 residents and very low elevation. Lots of shrimpers, fishermen, oystermen, swamp people, all along the lower Mississippi River below New Orleans.

Someone emailed me a bunch of aerial pics of that area, and it is absolutely one big lake for miles and miles. I'd like to post them, but am not server knowledgable...

Very sad. They won't be allowed to move back for ONE YEAR

[leftchick]

3. It was a very sad segment

The folks were angry, disappointed and lost. So many sounded like lost souls who have lost everything. This catastrophe is so much worse than the MSM is even touching,

:cry:

[barb162]

5. I have been wondering about Plaquemine parish; I saw

photos taken by the parish people last week and it looked VERY bad.

[Jacobin]

6. Yep. got some aerials of

Plaquemine parish...Venice, Port Sulphur, Boothville....I love to fish out of Venice. Its just a big sad lake, except for the levee sticking up

[NYC]

7. Upload photographs here.

http://www.photodump.com/passwd.php

Register. It's easy. Upload your photographs, and they will clearly provide you with the URL for posting the picture here.

Ask if you need help.

[AlCzervik]

4. this part here doesn't get much play from the media

Amid the questions and the descriptions of devastation, a bitterness tinged with pride was obvious among both the residents and parish officials, who said they were left to rescue their own as the floodwaters swallowed homes and businesses. State Sen. Walter Boasso, whose business and home were submerged in the flooding, noted Canadian help arrived before the U.S. Army did.

[spuddonna]

9. Yeah... I believe they arrived on horseback...

God my heart breaks for these people... :(

[buzzsaw_23]

8. This report merits many nominations n/t

[ninkasi]

10. So tragic

The aftermath of Katrina keeps getting worse and worse. I know my family is tired of my rants, but it's time NOW to withdraw from Iraq, and take care of getting this country back on it's feet. That we never should have gone to Iraq is another glaring example of how Bush and the whole neocon crowd are willing to cause as much pain and death and misery as necessary to further their own agenda.

There are so many people living in flooded areas that were living lives on the edge anyway, and this is going to push them completely over into hell on earth. These are our fellow citizens. For the flag waving, America first crowd, I say this: America is not just the land we live in, but the people who live here. It is the people of a country who make it great, or not.

If we turn our backs on so many Americans now, when their lives have been torn apart by a hurricane, think about this...if it happens to one of us, will we be able to count on our government, our fellow citizens, to help us, or will we be left stranded, to fend for ourselves?

We have caused so much tragedy in Iraq, our continued presence there just keeps making everything worse. We can't afford to keep pouring money into this idiotic "War on Terra" that has been Chimp's obsession since before the first stolen election. We need to step up and take care of getting this country back on track.

[leftchick]

11. I just saw a video of St. Bernad's Parish on TV

with an oil soaked golden retriever barking to be rescued. :cry:

[nicknameless]

12. That has been the biggest IRONY.

St. Bernard dogs are a universal SYMBOL for rescue.
Yet St. Bernard Parish is where the most stories of animals abuse are coming from.
... the Parish that has most been denied access for animal rescuers.

[barb162]

13. I just can't stand it...these poor animals