Families may find hurricane dead in New Orleans

[UpInArms]

http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=globalNews&storyID=2005-10-06T231155Z_01_YUE683500_RTRUKOC_0_US-HURRICANES-DEATHS.xml

BATON ROUGE, Louisiana (Reuters) - Since federal and state search missions have been called off, it is families returning home who may discover the dead bodies that Hurricane Katrina left behind in New Orleans.

"It looks like they are leaving the citizens to go into their homes and find their loved ones themselves," New Orleans' coroner Dr. Frank Minyard told reporters on Thursday.

<snip>

In mid-September, Louisiana hired Kenyon International Emergency Services at a cost of almost $119,000 a day to recover, document and handle the bodies of Katrina victims over the course of two months.

But the state halted searches even in New Orleans' worst-hit neighborhood, the mostly poor and black Lower Ninth Ward, which is still off-limits to residents.

If people find bodies, they are told to call the police. Minyard said the coroner's office still has a refrigerator truck acting as a morgue outside the city convention center.

...much more...

[dchill]

1. Boy, they really don't want...

that death count to rise, do they? Can't count what you haven't found...

[Junkdrawer]

2. Sorry NOLA, that $62 billion has already been figured into Haliburton's...

bottom line - stolen fair and square. We'd love to help, but you're on your own now.

[The Backlash Cometh]

25. No kidding. We want our money back!

[NorthernSpy]

3. left to drown, then left to rot

I always suspected that all that "United We Stand" stuff was horseshit. A country that leaves its most vulnerable people to drown, and then leaves their bodies to rot is hardly "standing united".

Disgusting.

[EFerrari]

4. I really hate these people.

Next time someone calls me a Bush hater, I'm just going to nod and say, "You betcha."

[fooj]

31. With pride!!!

Peace.

[EFerrari]

47. fooj. So good to see your voice.

:hug:

[DoYouEverWonder]

5. Even Saddam treated the dead

better then this.

[booksenkatz]

6. On the other hand...

My jaw dropped when I read this article. Then it occurred to me that I think I'd rather find my loved one myself, no matter how horrifying it would be to do so, because at least then I would KNOW, rather than have to settle for government lies for the rest of my life. The authorities are quite happy to live with 10,000 "unknown." At least I could find my loved one(s) and file official death papers and get his/her/their number(s) included in the official tally. That 900 number is utter ratshit.

Our country treats the stuff on the bottom of its shoe better than it treats its dead, its children, its elderly, its needy, its animals (both wild and domesticated), its environment... sickening.

[pitohui]

18. no because they are seizing the dead

when the families find the dead, they are still being seized and not being released back to the families

there was a big article on this a few days ago

you can have all the horror of finding grandpa's rotted corpse and still not get the closure of a funeral, some ppl are giving up & just having a memorial w.out any funeral service since they can't get the bodies back

[booksenkatz]

45. So really the "best" thing to do would be to

bury your own dead, just as people did in the old days. Have a funeral first, bury your loved one(s), and THEN tell the lying bastards in the government to add another number (or 5) to the official count? Sounds to me like asking the govt. to handle your loved one(s) in any way, shape or form is a horrible mistake.

God, I need to go cry somewhere.

[mike923]

21. Agreed...

the last thing i would want is some person breaking into my house to search in every last room. 99% of the homes are going to be empty anyhow. Those that know loved ones were left behind probably have been able to tell officials where to look.

[pitohui]

23. wow

might i suggest if you know nothing abt a situation, you refrain from comment?


this has got to be one of the most expletive-deleted ignorant quotes i've seen on this site or any site all week--

Those that know loved ones were left behind probably have been able to tell officials where to look.


i'm delighted you've never been in a natural disaster but catch a clue train, we were not able to get anyone on the phone for weeks, in some areas, service is STILL out or spotty

in one case, i had to drive 600 miles one way to locate a friend in a rural area & find out if she was safe

i could say a lot more describing the reality of trying to get ANYONE on the phone during the first weeks of this disaster, much less busy "officials" but maybe if you apply even a tiny shred of logic and EMPATHY you might one day figure out why your careless tossed-off remark was stupid, cruel, unfeeling, and proof you don't know anything abt what we are going thru down here

you think maybe any ppl in this house might have an issue calling for help--



or check this out, they couldn't even get to this house to condemn it, they have the "order to condemn" tag on the damn truck, now what are the odds that these ppl in the 9th ward as so rich they can afford to leave truck and boat behind when they evacuate, you think maybe not so much?



ahhhh, sorry for the rant, but i wish ppl were not quite so uncaring as they can seem to be on the internet

there is too much loss of life for me to handle the way it's being swept under the rug

this is NOT okay, this is NOT right

[mike923]

24. I understand what you are saying....

i guess i just wouldn't want someone who i didn't authorize to go through what's left of my house.

[booksenkatz]

46. That wasn't my point at all

My point was how it's just damned sad and unbelievable that I can't trust this government... THIS government... to do what any decent government should do: go to EVERY house and look in EVERY nook and handle EVERY body with respect and to count EVERY body.

But since I don't trust this government, sounds like it's best for me to bury my own dead. That's what we've come to, if this doesn't show that we're a third world country now, I don't know what does.

THAT was my point.

[Inland]

29. I would ask someone else to go in first.

I would be looking at something worst than a dead loved one, after a week, after a few days in tepid water.

Even the strongest should ask someone else to look first.

[malaise]

39. As offensive as it is to have neglected these citizens

I agree with you. I'd rather find my family dead and be able to give them a decent burial rather than have their bodies disappear in some unknown dump. Not knowing what happened to them would kill me anyway.
We already know the government is more rotten than any corpse.

[booksenkatz]

41. I think you understand what I'm trying to say

I just don't trust this government at all. They've abandoned the living and the dead. They're lying about the number of dead. I'm trying to see something "positive" (:puke:) in this nightmarish scenario. And as God is my witness, I wouldn't want this government to so much as TOUCH my dead loved one. Hell, I'm waiting to be convinced as to whether or not decomposed body parts can fit through the pumps that lead out into the lake.

I can't begin to express how sickened I am just having to participate in this thread at all, I cannot believe this is America. I just cannot.

[malaise]

44. Yes I do

but I am also beyond disgusted at the treatment meted out the the citizens of NOLA, Biloxi and Gulfport. The dead deserve respect.

[Skittles]

7. THIS IS JUST COMPLETELY F***ING UNACCEPTABLE

IT IS INHUMANE; IT IS SICK

[ZigSteenine]

8. Reading Comprehension.........

is necessary..

"But the state halted searches even in New Orleans' worst-hit neighborhood, the mostly poor and black Lower Ninth Ward, which is still off-limits to residents."

[Skittles]

9. what is that supposed to mean????

WHY HAVEN'T THEY RECOVERED THE BODIES YET ???? WHY HAVE THE SEARCHES BEEN HALTED ??? WOULD THEY DO THIS IN A WEALTHY NEIGHBORHOOD ??

[ZigSteenine]

12. That comment was not directed at you skittles.

It was meant to emphasize that Blanco has halted the recovery.

[nini]

22. I don't see just Blanco's name here..

actually I don't see her name at all in this article.

the article states 'state and FEDERAL'


Ok, Let's talk about reading comprehension again :eyes:


on edit: the search should not have been halted by any branch of govt

[ZigSteenine]

30. But read further

"But the state halted searches even in New Orleans' worst-hit neighborhood, ......."

[expatriot]

32. I think this has to do more with Kenyon than Blanco directly

I am not one to say that the only person to blame is BUsh and Bush's cronies, I am not saying that Blanco is pure but there is something more complicated than her just saying "oh, let's stop the searches today." Remember she intervened when the contract negotiations stalled between Kenyon Disaster Services and FEMA and signed the contract instead. that contract was SUPPOSED to continue until November 31st.

The real story here is what happened to that contract and who, if anyone, breeched it.

[readmoreoften]

10. What a homecoming!

My house is damaged beyond repair. The photo albums are destroyed. Oh, look, but the rotted corpses of my infant child and my parents are in the living room.

Can't wait to get back to work and pull myself up by my bootstraps!!! (And I'll have to because my husband is still missing.)

KICKED & RECOMMENDED.


******

Envision a government that respectfully removes the dead bodies from your home, regretfully notifies you so that you can identify them, and helps you rebuild your life after tragedy. (I'm a dreamer.)

[annabanana]

11. we knew this was going to happen

When the whole recovery effort went corporate and secret.......

[Theres-a]

13. Yes

It's still very hard to take.So shameful.Gives me a chill to read "Only in America"-type propaganda.I got your "Only in America" right here!Profits over people-the American way?:patriot: :sarcasm:

[AirmensMom]

14. Just when you thought they couldn't go any lower.

:kick:

[NorthernSpy]

15. at the World Trade Center, the search for remains lasted about 11 months

How long did the search for bodies in New Orleans last -- just three weeks, or something like that?



Why?

[Pirate Smile]

16. I know. I just don't get it.

:wtf:

[pitohui]

19. oh i get it all right

we are not considered real ppl worthy of equal treatment in these "united" states because we live in the south

that's it, no getting around the ugly truth

they are shitting on white ppl in lakeview and jefferson just as much as they are shitting on black ppl in the ninth ward, it is not race, it is this gov't does not give a shit abt ANY of us, rich or poor, black or white

[Virginian]

28. Agree, kind of...

It may not be because you are Southern, although I strongly feel there is regional discrimination against the South and Southerners. I think the land is desirable to the wealthy.

Chris Matthews was calling the Gulf Coast the "Redneck Riviera." There are rich corporations that can get even richer with that land, and if they can run you off, they can get it cheaper. Just like the way they gentrify the inner cities.

The GOP is in charge, it is all about the money. Money talks. If big business wants something, the GOP will give it to them without regard to how many humans object. After all, big business is where the campaign funds come from.

[Theres-a]

34. Heartbreaking

[booksenkatz]

42. They sifted thru WTC asbestos for wedding rings and teeth *nt*

[daleo]

17. The search is not longer cost efficient.

Poor families will have to take responsibility for their own search. Do they think the government can do everything for them?:sarcasm:

[pitohui]

20. they're not searching rich areas either

it's an equal opportunity hate and cruelty

i v. strongly suspect the state has run out of $$$ to pay kenyon, & the feds are stabbing us in the back & not paying for body recovery & identity

our whole state is smashed up and broke, and the *co has decided to turn aside

warning -- rant -- aimed at a certain attitude in this country & NOT at DU or any DUer -- read at yr own peril

frankly, unless i see this country rise up to say something abt this disgrace, i've abt had it w. the sick attitude the rest of this country has toward the south, let 'em drill their own damn oil, apparently we're good enough to do the hard dirty work of this nation of drilling & shipping...but we are not good enough to be buried w. respect

let 'em drill offshore california & florida then, let them tear down the rockies & convert it to oil shale

you don't care abt me, i don't care abt you

i am over the lies abt "united we stand," or "united states," talk is cheap

end rant

[Pirate Smile]

27. Have you seen Mary Landrieu speaking on the Senate floor for the past few

days? She actually said what you did about the United States of American. She said (paraphrasing) "This is supposed to be the United States of America - 'united', it doesn't seem like it anymore" (something to that effect).

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x4987641

She has been fighting but we don't control anything. Vitter stood up and bashed her (he is a slimeball).

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x2141000#2142119

I can't believe what they are doing. I was shocked in the weeks following Katrina and I continue to be shocked at the ruthless, cruel way BushCo and the Feds are treating Louisiana.

A New Barrage On Storm Response
Contracts Draw Bipartisan Queries

By Jonathan Weisman and Griff Witte
Washington Post Staff Writers
Friday, October 7, 2005; Page A01

Lawmakers from both parties sharply questioned nearly every aspect of the Bush administration's response to Hurricane Katrina yesterday, focusing their discontent on suspect contracts and eliciting a pledge that hundreds of millions of dollars in deals awarded with no competition would soon be put up for bid.

Nine House and Senate panels held hearings on hurricane relief, with a sense of frustration frequently bursting to the surface. Several members chastised administration officials, citing tales of small businesses in the Gulf states losing work to giants such as Halliburton Co. Others challenged administration stances on tax breaks and health care for the displaced.

-snip-
The day's events indicated the administration has yet to regain its footing since its slow response to the hurricane's initial onslaught more than a month ago.

-snip-
Members of both parties raised doubts that President Bush's proposed business tax breaks would lure employers and employees back to the Gulf Coast. Meanwhile, a continuing dispute over health care for Katrina evacuees led Senate Finance Committee Chairman Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa) to sharply rebuke Treasury Secretary John W. Snow. For weeks, the administration has blocked legislation that would temporarily expand Medicaid eligibility rules and raise federal health care reimbursement rates to states affected by the hurricane.

"Tell the White House to back off our bill," Grassley told Snow. "There are people hurting down there, and we want to get them help."

-snip-
Sen. Carl M. Levin (D-Mich.) said union maintenance workers at New Orleans's Superdome and convention center have been replaced with out-of-state workers earning lower wages without benefits. And he charged that a Mississippi modular classroom maker was rebuffed in its bid to supply 300 classrooms when the Army Corps of Engineers turned to an Alaska firm charging more than twice the price.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x1833619

edit to add - My Mom said the same thing last night when we were discussing the difference between how they searched for people after 9/11 v. searching for people after Katrina. She, like you, said it is because they don't value the people in the South as much. It shocks me because it is just so wrong but that doesn't mean it isn't true.

[daleo]

36. My guess is that really rich areas have been searched pretty well by now

But of course, I don't know for sure. As far as the middle class goes, Bush probably doesn't really care any more about them than the poor.

Here are some other thoughts that the article inspired:

"Of the 747 people whose bodies had been processed by the morgue by several days ago, 41 percent were black and 35 percent were white, although no race information was given in 23 percent of cases."

If we disregard the 23 percent with no race information (perhaps decomposition was too advanced to make a determination?), that would leave the percentages as 54% black, 46% white. From what I understand of the demographic makeup of New Orleans, the proportion of blacks was over 60%, so this evidence would seem to indicate a disproportionate number of whites died in the flood. This is highly unlikely, given the geographical facts - i.e. the racial makeup of populations in the most badly flooded areas was primarily African American. So, to me it looks like they quit looking before a lot of the black (and poor) fatalities were located.

This evidence isn't conclusive, but anything that Bushco is involved in makes me suspect the worst.

[Gregorian]

26. The country is geared toward punishment and war. Not helping.

I recall a time when cops were aiming infrared guns at houses and helicopters flew over our backyards. All in the name of cannibis. A substance debatably no more harmful than coffee. And when a bust meant turning someone's house upside down. And when one solitary single seed meant forteiture of property. I remember these things. I remember Pete Wilson's little shit scheme of "smoke a joint, lose your license".

But when it comes to helping people with those same tax dollars, FORGET IT.

War is money. Helping is a big waste of time. In a republican America, that's the way it works.

But you already knew that.

[expatriot]

33. I can see it now....

"Hundreds and hundreds of blacks have brought in a crapload of bones all crying and all out of place about something or another, but it will never be determined the identity of these human remains nor how they died or if they were victims of Katrina at all."

[lildreamer316]

35. No, really?

I had no idea they did such a thing.:sarcasm:

[Old Vet]

37. How do I post pics from NO, Thanks

[lildreamer316]

38. Here

save them to your computer (right click; click save picture) Make sure you know WHERE you saved them to! Then go to photobucket.com and create a free acct. (only takes a few min.)It will direct you to upload pics (push the browse button; it should open the place on your computer where you saved the pics to) and then when they appear on the photobucket page; highlight the bottom box ( IMG ); right click & press copy; then come here and reply /start thread. Then just paste that into your post!
Hope that wasn't too complicated to follow. It is very simple; really.

[Bravo411]

40. That's one way to keep the body count low ...

just stop looking for them and counting them.

I've hear some stories on the net that people have gone back into homes that have been searched and found bodies even though the house was tagged as empty.

This is the most corrupt and inept administration ever.

Posted by bravo411
http://bravo411.blogspot.com

[superconnected]

43. would you guys lighten up, these are poor black folk were talking about

here. Who cares if they come home and find grandma rotting on the carpet.

They ARE POOR and BLACK.

The billions going to New Orleans neesd to be re-directed to defense contractors for the rebuliding, we can't afford to even spend body bags on this.

Oh yeah, TAX cuts for the rich in New Orleans please. They need it more than ever. Raise the poor taxes for it. They didn't own homes that need rebuilding anyway. :sarcasm:

[Freedomfried]

48. Has anyone here ever smelled a rotting corpse?

Its not like they're easy to overlook, one whiff inside a window or door would tell a person if there was one in anywhere in the house.

To leave IT UP TO THE FAMILY to find a relative or loved one decomposing is COMPLETELY UNACCEPTABLE.

[booksenkatz]

49. True, however....

I always thought they should go through the homes thoroughly to find the elderly, the hard-of-hearing, the unconscious, the injured, or those who were merely sleeping... but they didn't even bother to do too much of THAT type of searching the first week. If you didn't happen to hear the knock, for whatever reason, you missed your chance. As it stands, anyone who didn't happen to hear the knock is, indeed, a rotting corpse.
:cry:

[uppityperson]

54. Have you smelled the overall smell in (flooded) NO?

The whole place reeks. And now, weeks later, the corpse may not be entirely together. So, it may be easy to overlook, especially if covered with sludge under something. Will need intensive searches.

The city reeks. And it is not up to the family to find bodies. I have not understood this from the beginning, how can the whole city be searched? It would take a huge number of people to do this and the administration just doesn't care enough to make it a priority and this is wrong.

[Maraya1969]

50. That is CRUEL!

[bettyellen]

51. kicked.......

[CountAllVotes]

52. probably thousands will never be accounted for

Just think of how many drowned in the water or were eaten alive in the bayous! Countless!

Whatever happened to the 2,000 postal workers missing btw? Does anyone even CARE?

:kick:

[SoCalDem]

53. Isn't that "special"

:puke:

Kenyon took the money, but didn't finish the job.. How republican of them:(