Sorry if any redundancy.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x4610871
FEMA stops a rescue convoy of 500 boats - Unbelievable
http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/357
This was posted on a Clark blog and it has some good
information so I wanted to pass it on.
Just to give you a sense of just how badly FEMA has f*cked up.
Posted by Clark Warner on September 3, 2005 - 1:23pm.
This is beyond my comprehension and after spending two
frustrating days trying to just get someone to let us help
we've FINNALLY been told we can conduct "renegade"
boat rescues via the just concluded press conference that Gov.
Blanco just held.
Why is this JUST NOW being allowed? Well let's start from the
very beginning.
On Wednesday morning a group of approximately 1,000 citizens
pulling 500 boats left the Acadiana Mall in Lafayette in the
early morning and headed to New Orleans with a police escort
from the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Department. The flotillia
of trucks pulling boats stretched over FIVE miles. This
citizen rescue group was organized by La. State Senator, Nick
Gautreaux from Vermilion Parish. The group was comprised of
experienced boaters, licensed fishermen and hunters, people
who have spent their entire adult life and teenage years on
the waterways of Louisiana.
The State Police waved the flotillia of trucks/boats through
the barricades in LaPlace and we sped into New Orleans via
I-10 until past the airport and near the Clearview exit. At
that time we were stopped by agents of the FEMA controlled La.
Dept. of Wildlife & Fisheries. A young DWF agent strolled
through the boats and told approximately half of the citizens
that their boats were too large because the water had dropped
during the night and that they should turn around and go home.
They were pulling a large (24ft) shallow draft aluminum boat
that can safely carry 12 passengers and had ramp access which
would allow the elderly and infirm to have easier access to
the boat. They then politely informed the DWF agent that the
local and national media had consistently reported that the
water level had risen during the night which contradicted his
statement to them that the water was dropping and no boat over
16ft. in length would be allowed to participate in rescue
operations.
They then specifically asked the DWF agent that they (and
other citizens in the flotillia) be allowed to go to the
hospitals and help evacuate the sick and the doctors and
nurses stranded there. They offered to bring these people back
to Lafayette, in our own vehicles, in order to ensure that
they received proper and prompt medical care.
The DWF agent did not want to hear this and ordered them home
-- ALL FIVE HUNDRED BOATS. They complied with the DWF agent's
orders, turned around and headed back to Lafayette along with
half of the flotillia. However, two friends were pulling a
smaller 15ft alumaweld with a 25 hp. The DWF agents let them
through to proceed to the rescue operation launch site.
They were allowed to drive to the launch site where the FEMA
controlled La. Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries were launching
their rescue operations (via boat). They reported to me that
there were over 200 DWF agents just standing around and doing
nothing. They were kept there for approximately 3 hours.
During that time they observed a large number of DWF agents
doing absolutely nothing. Why? Because FEMA would n ot let
them HELP! After three hours had passed they were told that
they were not needed and should go home. They complied with
the DWF's orders and turned around and went home to Lafayette.
Watching CNN later that night, there was a telephone interview
with a Nurse trapped in Charity Hospital in New Orleans. She
said that there were over 1,000 people trapped inside of the
hospital and that the doctors and nurses had zero medical
supplies, no diesel to run the generators and that only three
people had been rescued from the hospital since the Hurricane
hit!
I can't come up with one logical reason why the DWF sent this
large group of 500 boats/1000 men home when we surely could
have rescued most, if not all, of the people trapped in
Charity Hospital. Further, we had the means to immediately
transport these people to hospitals in Southwest Louisiana.
On Tuesday afternoon, August 30, Jefferson Parish Sheriff
Harry Lee asked for all citizens with boats to come to the aid
of Jefferson Parish. A short time later Dwight Landreneau, the
head of the La. Depart. of Wildlife and Fisheries, got on
television and remarked that his agency had things under
control and citizen help was not needed. Apparently, Sheriff
Lee did not agree with that assessment and had one of his
deputies provide the Lafayette flotillia with an escort into
Jefferson Parish.
Sheriff Lee and Senator Gautreaux - 1000 of Louisiana's
citizens responded to the public's pleas for help. They were
prevented from helping by Dwight Landreneau's agency, the
Department of Wildlife and Fisheries which had been taken over
by FEMA. When I learned that Charity Hospital has not been
evacuated and that no one has been there to attempt a rescue,
I became angry.
It was because of this that my friend and I have been trying
launch boats both yesterday and today but to no avail. It
looks like FINALLY the Governor has just said SCREW FEMA, get
those boats in the water and help save my citizens.
So I think we'll be in the water tomorrow to help but for now
I'm immensely frustrated.
If there is anyone on the CCN that is in the Baton Rouge area
we are meeting today at the LA State Dem Party HQ at 2pm CST
to game out tomorrow.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x4610280
I found it: Northern Command waiting for Orders!! Adm. Keating
on CNN
I actually saw this and finally found it at the Salon.com War
Room!!!!
As of 3:14 PM on August 31 (Wed) Northern Commmand was still
waiting for orders!!!!! from the Gov of LA and BUSH.
Which gets us into that whole mess of what did Blanco
request...saw a Dem rep on Nightline last night getting
crapped on by Koppel about how someone "didn't ask."
This Congressman (a man, starts with an M?) said the proper
procedures had been followed...he was thoroughly
exasperated...
Permalink <15:14 EDT, August 31, 2005[br
/>http://www.salon.com/politics/war_room/index.html?blog=/politics/war_room/2005/08/31/bush/index.html
Google cache
http://64.233.187.104/search?q=cache:yhyzZk9QeT0J:www.salon.com/politics/war_room/+Bush+orders+Northern+Command&hl=en
Bush is back
The cable networks have just carried a live feed of Air Force
One landing at Andrews Air Force Base. The president strode
smartly down the steps of plane, saluting a couple of military
officers with one hand while holding his Scottish terrier in
the other.
The commander in chief is back in command, and not a minute
too soon. The mayor of New Orleans just said that the death
toll in his city is "minimum, hundreds," and
"mostly likely, thousands." He said that there are a
"significant number of dead bodies in the water,"
and that New Orleans will not be "functional" for a
matter of months.
What will the president do now that he's back in Washington?
He'll give a televised speech from the White House at 5 p.m.,
and he may contemplate sending active-duty U.S. soldiers to
New Orleans to help stop looting there. Appearing on CNN, Adm.
Timothy Keating, the chief of the U.S. Northern Command, said
he's awaiting a request from the governor of Louisiana and an
order from the president of the United States.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x2058654
(BBC Report)- "Northern Command WAITED on GREEN LIGHT
from Bush" !!!
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=104&topic_id=4605183&mesg_id=4605183
Here is the thread that discusses the BBC report interviewing
a Lieutenant at Northcom.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
A: Now I'm sure you're aware of the criticism that the
authorities have been slow to respond to this. When did you
get the order to start relief work?
K: NorthCom started planning before the storm even hit. We
were ready for the storm when it hit Florida because, as you
remember, it crossed the bottom part of Florida, and then we
were plaining, you know, once it was pointed towards the Gulf
Coast. So what we did was we activated what we call defense
coordinating officers to work with the state to say okay, what
do you think you'll need, and we set up staging bases that
could be started. We had the USS Baton sailing almost behind
the hurricane so that after the hurricane made landfall it's
search and rescue helicopters would be available almost
immediately. So we had things ready. The only caveat is, we
have to wait until the President authorizes us to do so. The
laws of the United States say that the military can't just act
in this fashion, we have to wait for the President to give us
permission.
----------------------------------------------------
They COULD NOT go in without Bush's approval.
So either Bush screwed up -- or he waited.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x1750979
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/03/AR2005090301680.html
WP, A01: White House Shifts Blame
Tens of thousands of people spent a fifth day awaiting
evacuation from this ruined city, as Bush administration
officials blamed state and local authorities for what leaders
at all levels have called a failure of the country's emergency
management.
....
Behind the scenes, a power struggle emerged, as federal
officials tried to wrest authority from Louisiana Gov.
Kathleen Babineaux Blanco (D). Shortly before midnight Friday,
the Bush administration sent her a proposed legal memorandum
asking her to request a federal takeover of the evacuation of
New Orleans, a source within the state's emergency operations
center said Saturday.
The administration had sought control over National Guard
units, normally under control of the governor. Louisiana
officials rejected the request, noting that such a move would
be comparable to a federal declaration of martial law. State
authorities suspected a political motive behind the request.
"Quite frankly, if they'd been able to pull off taking it
away from the locals, they then could have blamed everything
on the locals," said the source, who is an adviser and
does not have the authority to speak publicly.
Blanco made two moves Saturday that protected her independence
from the federal government: She created a philanthropic fund
for the state's victims and hired James Lee Witt, Federal
Emergency Management Agency director in the Clinton
administration, to advise her on the relief effort.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x2060550
Debunking the WaPo: Blanco Requested Fed Aid on 8/28!
Debunking the WaPo: Gov. Blanco Requested Federal Aid from
Bush on Sunday, August 28th - 2 Days Before Katrina Struck
In a well detailed letter to President Bush, Governor Kathleen
Blanco requested that Bush declare an “expedited state of
disaster for the State of Louisiana… beginning on August 28,
2005 and continuing.”
It appears there is some confusion over at the White House
about when Governor Blanco requested aid and for that matter
when she declared a State of Emergency for the State of
Louisiana.
According to the WaPo, “As of Saturday, Blanco still had not
declared a state of emergency, the senior Bush official said.”
That’s rather curious because the letter from Governor Blanco
to President Bush clearly states that she declared a State of
Emergency on August 26, 2005.
Perhaps the two journalists for the WaPo don’t frequent DU,
but they should, if they did they might have seen the link to
the letter. And a quick visit to Gov.Louisiana.gov would have
turned up the link to this: STATE OF EMERGENCY - HURRICANE
KATRINA - August 26, 2005. The State of Emergeny Order clearly
states that “The state of emergency extends from Friday,
August 26, 2005, through Sunday, September 25, 2005, unless
terminated sooner.”
It seems that these two documents do create a bit of sticky
situation for the lies of the Bush administration, perpetuated
by the WaPo in this story — Many Evacuated, but Thousands
Still Waiting, White House Shifts Blame to State and Local
Officials.
Behind the scenes, a power struggle emerged, as federal
officials tried to wrest authority from Louisiana Gov.
Kathleen Babineaux Blanco (D). Shortly before midnight Friday,
the Bush administration sent her a proposed legal memorandum
asking her to request a federal takeover of the evacuation of
New Orleans, a source within the state’s emergency operations
center said Saturday.
The administration sought unified control over all local
police and state National Guard units reporting to the
governor. Louisiana officials rejected the request after talks
throughout the night, concerned that such a move would be
comparable to a federal declaration of martial law. Some
officials in the state suspected a political motive behind the
request. “Quite frankly, if they’d been able to pull off
taking it away from the locals, they then could have blamed
everything on the locals,” said the source, who does not have
the authority to speak publicly.
A senior administration official said that Bush has clear
legal authority to federalize National Guard units to quell
civil disturbances under the Insurrection Act and will
continue to try to unify the chains of command that are split
among the president, the Louisiana governor and the New
Orleans mayor.
Louisiana did not reach out to a multi-state mutual aid
compact for assistance until Wednesday, three state and
federal officials said. As of Saturday, Blanco still had not
declared a state of emergency, the senior Bush official said.
“The federal government stands ready to work with state and
local officials to secure New Orleans and the state of
Louisiana,” White House spokesman Dan Bartlett said. “The
president will not let any form of bureaucracy get in the way
of protecting the citizens of Louisiana.”
Blanco made two moves Saturday that protected her independence
from the federal government: She created a philanthropic fund
for the state’s victims and hired James Lee Witt, Federal
Emergency Management Agency director in the Clinton
administration, to advise her on the relief effort.
Clearly the WaPo could have done a better job with a bit of
investigative journalism. They chose the easy way out and let
the claims of the Bush administration stand as a statement of
their headline, rather than refute the Bush administration’s
claims, as I have above.
MORE & LINKS - http://blog.thedemocraticdaily.com/?p=431
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