Katrina relief - news from friends

Some are now saying that the hurricane relief effort may be bigger in terms of money and donations than the 9/11 relief effort. I would venture a guess that it's going to end up being FAR bigger. It's only been a couple of weeks since the disaster transpired, but it seems that private citizens are organizing donation drives and even taking it upon themselves to caravan down to the Gulf to help rebuild and offer assistance in any way they can. Ham radio operators, cooks, communications technicians, you name it, they're volunteering their time and treasure, going down there and making personal sacrifices to get and stay in the thick of things and do what they can. I don't recall anything on a scale like this after 9/11. I remember a lot of people sending stuff, but I don't remember people actually going to NYC in droves to personally help out and bring supplies with them. Do you?

Two people I know have become directly involved in the efforts. One hosted a donations drive/pool party at his apartment complex this past Saturday, and although he expected it to be a bust, 200 people showed up with all kinds of items to donate, more than he and his friends literally know what to do with. The second fellow actually went along with family and friends on a caravan down to Bayou La Batre, AL.

From his email sent to me last Sunday:

"Family, friends and people in the community donated canned goods, sodas, bags of rice, diapers, baby wipes, pet food, gallons upon gallons of Clorox, cleaning products and a host of other items. We had literally around a ton of food for our three car caravan. We headed to small city called Bayou La Batre on the Gulf Coast of AL. People may remember this area from the movie Forrest Gump, where some of the movie was filmed and the home of Pvt. Benjamin Buford 'Bubba' Blue played by Mykelti Williamson. Condoleezza Rice made a stop there as part of her visit to hurricane-stricken areas.

On our way down we passed others who were heading down to the gulf to help. We passed other caravans, Red Cross officials, military caravans, electrical trucks, campers, RVs, and a host of people just heading down to help. From our ham radio to handheld radios, most of what was talked about was where people were going and what areas they were headed to. We talked to people from as far as Ohio. The Ohio caravan was going down to set up ham radio communications in Mississippi. I know what it was like for me when I was watching this on TV, but being there, seeing the people, seeing FEMA and seeing the devastation, this was beyond even the scope of what you have seen from the media.

I hope these pictures will give you a bit of an idea of what we experienced.

Getting started at 6am, our first stop at Burger King.
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Arriving at the FEMA center (Bayou La Batre Community Center), they were completely full of donations and evacuees. They directed us to the local First United Methodist church across the street, but they were only accepting food and cleaning products. They directed us to World Hope International church, who was accepting the clothing.
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The devastation in La Batre.
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We met up with [our caravan leader's friend], whose home was completely demolished. In the pictures you’ll see the homes along the coast about 300 feet from the sea wall. The locals said the sea surge was anywhere from 20 to 40 feet. It washed away entire homes and deposited a 2nd story of another house as well as a semi trailer.
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A shrimp boat anchor in the yard where their house used to be.
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The trip back.
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You're more than welcome to use the information I sent. Just a few things to pass along to those that want to go down there ... this may be different for each area, so just take this as a FYI.

There are a lot of people that are giving, the problem is where to deliver it. I know Eddie [the caravan leader] and possibly my dad will be heading down again in a few weeks, I don't know exactly when.

If anyone is going to drive to a certain location, be sure they get as much "detailed" information as they can. When we showed up at FEMA they didn't really know where we could deliver the food or clothing, even though the church driveway was less than 25 feet away from the first person we asked.

I asked another FEMA person and a Red Cross person, but they were more focused on helping the people that were there than really knowing where [items should] go, it was the AL State Patrol that had a lot more information. So if anyone is going down, they may want to contact the local authorities or check some of the hurricane disaster web sites.

They can still use stuff down in Bayou La Batre, so if anyone wants to take some stuff down I can give them some contacts. Just let me know.

The media in their typical manner aren't really helping matters with their inciting of blame, race and Bush-bashing. It wouldn't have mattered if the US combined with the whole world had a plan, the devastation is so extensive and so widespread - 90, 000 square miles - that no one could have reached most of the areas with any type of immediate efficiency.

People down there aren't concerned about race, blame, or what could have been done better. All they are concerned about right now is staying alive. Sadly most of the animals were too sick to eat or drink so they had to put them down. The elderly who are dependent on machines simply died during transport into the helicopters. Without their machines they simply died in the 1 minute airlift.

If there is any additional information you need, I'll be happy to answer any questions.

Ronnie

The military gittin-r-done

This is a forward I received this afternoon from a Marine friend based in Florida.
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You won't get this news on ABC or CNN ...

Thought you might be interested in a couple unfiltered spot reports from the front. USS IWO JIMA (LHD 7) is one of the "L" ships in the Gulf assisting Katrina rescue/recovery efforts. Capt. Rich Callas commanding. This is what happens when the Gators git-r-done ...

SUBJ: IWO UPDATE - 6 SEPT 05

Hello All;

Since I took over IWO JIMA over a year ago, I felt as though I had control of the destiny of the ship. I thought I lost it today, the first time ever, and that we were merely reacting to events rather than controlling them.

Within the first 24 hours after arriving pierside in New Orleans, IWO JIMA has become many things. We are one of the few full service airports in the area and have been operating aircraft on and off our deck for almost 15 hours each day. We are also one of the only air conditioned facilities within a ten mile radius and though we have had problems making water from the polluted Mississippi, we are also the only hot shower within miles. All day long we have been accommodating local policemen, firemen, state troopers, national guard, 82nd Airborne division personnel with hot showers and hot food. I met an ambulance team from Minnesota who just drove straight to New Orleans when they heard of the tragedy and have been supporting hospitals free of charge for the last week. They hadn't had a hot meal in over a week and were grateful to have the opportunity to have lunch onboard. The Deputy Commander of the RI National Guard reported to me that he had guardsmen who were whipped, but after a hot shower and an IWO JIMA breakfast were ready to hit the patrols again. Rarely have I seen so many smiling, happy faces than on these people. After two weeks in the trenches sleeping on concrete floors, no shower, and eating MREs, good ship IWO JIMA has been a Godsend. I had an opportunity to talk to the Director of Homeland Security for a few minutes in my cabin. I asked him if there was anything more I could do for him, he asked if he could get a shower. I was glad to turnover my cabin to him. The local FEMA coordinator and his logistics and security teams were on my quarterdeck this afternoon asking permission to set up their command center on the pier next to the ship. While they had sophisticated command and control equipment, they had no place to berth their 250 FEMA members. We were glad to give them a home. Contrary to the press, all the FEMA people I met had been on station since last Sunday (before the Hurricane hit), never left the area, and have been in the field ever since. The command duty officer was told that one state trooper had driven 80 miles to get to the ship. He said that the word was out: Come to IWO JIMA. We expect that the flood gates will open on us.

Early this morning we received our first medical emergency: an elderly woman with stroke-like symptoms. Throughout the day we received about a dozen medical emergencies, the most serious was an elderly man who was stabbed in the chest and was bleeding to death. The doctors performed surgery on him and saved his life. I toured the hospital ward; all our charges were elderly and disadvantaged individuals. As with Hotel IWO JIMA, we expect to see many more casualties tomorrow.

Our curse appears to be our flight deck and our extraordinary command and control capabilities. Our challenge today was the tidal wave of Flag and General Officers that flooded onboard, 17 total, virtually all without notice. I couldn't believe there were so many involved in this effort and they all wanted to come here. They poured onto the flight deck in one helicopter after another in order to meet with General Honore, the Joint Task Force Commander. The majority showed up around the same time and all wanted to leave at the same time, making it a nightmare for our flight deck team to control and coordinate flights on and off the ship for all these admirals and generals while supporting the humanitarian effort. I spent most of the day running around the ship getting these people off and on helicopters and in and out of the meetings and command spaces. It was like herding cats. But the ship performed superbly and "flexed" to meet the challenge. Regretfully, we expect nearly 20 admirals and generals onboard tomorrow for more meetings. To add to the challenges, virtually all of these commands are sending liaison staffs to help coordinate issues, and already a number of admirals and generals have "permanently" embarked. The Inn is full.

I talked to one of the FEMA team members who had also worked the disaster relief for 9/11. I asked him how much more difficult was the Katrina relief effort compared to 9/11. He said it was without measure: thousand of times worse than 9/11. He couldn't articulate the magnitude of the destruction.

Despite all the challenges, I think we regained control by the end of the day. We are forearmed for tomorrow's onslaught. At our evening Dept Head meeting, I asked all my principals to tell me what the stupidest thing they heard or saw today. The list was enormous. But the most absurd item was when my Tactical Action Officer, who runs our 24 hour command center (CIC) got a phone call from the Director of the New Orleans Zoo. Apparently, there was a large fire near the zoo. It was so intense that the fire department had to abandon the cause, but military helos were heavily engaged in scooping up giant buckets of water and dumping in on the blaze in an effort to put it out. The director complained to us that the noise from the helos was disturbing the animals, especially the elephants, which he was most concerned about, and asked us to stop. The TAO thanked him for his interest in national defense.

It is inspiring to meet and talk to such a huge number of individuals who are doing the Lord's work to recover this city. They have had little sleep, little food, no showers, working 16-18 hours a day, and in some cases no pay, and they are thanking ME for a hot meal! Only in America. We have turned the corner. It will take an awful long time, but we have turned the corner.

All the best,

RSC [Capt. Callas]


SUBJ: IWO UPDATE - 7 SEPT 05

Hello All;

We finally had a chance to have Captain's Call this morning. The ship has been running at full speed for 8 days straight with a myriad of changing missions and requirements piled on top of us. I thought it best to tell the crew where I thought this was going and what impact we have made. I told them that as with any contingency operations there is that initial surge of energy and inspiration that often times gives way to frustration and tedium; I did not want them to underestimate the magnitude of what they were accomplishing each day by their hard work on the flight deck, the galley, the well deck, CIC, Radio Central (JMC), on the pier, and in the engineering spaces to support this great undertaking. Every job on the ship is important and the contribution of IWO JIMA has already been enormous.

Our contributions have been growing. Today, we opened out doors to 900-1,200 Army, National Guard, and local law enforcement personnel to take showers and get hot meals. We were getting overwhelmed. There was a steady stream of 60 to 100 every hour on the quarterdeck asking to come onboard and get refreshed. The word has obviously gotten out. One Army Captain told the Command Master Chief that his unit of 60 soldiers had come from 60 miles away because his general told him to "go to IWO JIMA and they'll take care of you." We couldn't say no.

Not satisfied with the record-setting flight operations yesterday, the flight deck team nearly doubled the number of aircraft hits. At one point the team was bringing in Army Blackhawks two at a time, one group after another in perfect sequence. It was an impressive sight to behold. Medical casualties continued to come onboard the ship, some by stretcher and ambulance, others by air or boat. After yesterday, the Medical folks reworked their procedures, so today everything flowed smoothly. Supply department has served up thousands of meals; the mess line never closes. Deck department got back to their roots and conducted boat operations and a sterngate marriage with TORTUGA's LCM-8 landing craft, moving more supplies to our sister ship. But lest we forget, the bedrock of IWO JIMA's strength lies in three simple things: electricity, air conditioning, hot water - all provided by the uncomplaining engineers.

But of all the manifold capabilities of good ship IWO JIMA, medical, logistic, and air support, our command and control capabilities have moved to the forefront. It almost sounds surreal but IWO JIMA has literally become the headquarters, the "center of the universe" for all Federal recovery efforts - DoD as well as civilian. It is on this ship that the myriad efforts have all come together. Yesterday, for the first time ever, some 17 admirals and generals got together with the Joint Task Force Commander, General Honore, face to face to coordinate the numerous and ever growing military recovery and support efforts. Today, the same cadre of admirals and generals were back onboard but this time accompanied by the civilian side. FEMA has now established their headquarters on the pier along side (and onboard IWO JIMA) to better coordinate their efforts with us. But with this has come an ever growing number of staff members embarking on the ship. Our population has grown from a crew of some 1,200 to nearly 2,500 (including several hundred guardsmen and soldiers living onboard) with all the detachments, augments, and now senior staffs. I think we are now up to one three-star, one two-star, and four one-stars embarked good ship IWO JIMA. We are bursting at the seams. We have spent the vast majority of our days taking care of and chasing down the myriad staff members. It is like herding cats, except these cats fly on and off our flight deck periodically.

I had a chance to meet Governor Blanco of Louisiana and her Lieutenant Governor today when she came onboard for the giant 1200 briefing with General Honore and were later joined by Admiral Nathman and Vice Admiral Fitzgerald. The ships Ready Room was bursting at the seams with senior officers and high officials - you had to step outside just to change your mind. I had seen the Governor on TV many times. She looked different in person: tired and worn out. She told me that she was averaging about 4 hours of sleep a night, but smiled, "I guess that's about what you get in the military." You could see the severe strain of the past weeks events. I quoted her the famous line from Churchill the night he became Prime Minister of wartime Britain, "that it was as if I were walking with Destiny, and that all of my past life had been but preparation for this moment and this trial." The recovery from the damage of Hurricane Katrina is an unprecedented trial for the Governor and many, many others. My observation is that America, throughtout her history, has always been slow to respond, but once that powerful engine gets into gear it is massive and unstoppable. I suspect this will also be the case for the Gulf Coast.It has become our tradition at the evening department head meeting to go around the room and have each person list the stupidest or silliest thing they heard or saw during the day. As you can imagine, the log book is overflowing with accounts. Yesterday it was the helos and the elephants at the zoo. Today it was me. I have been inundated with doing interviews: CNN, Pentagon press, Regina Mobley and Channel 13 news, the Boston Globe, Carla McCabe and the Army Times, and finally Greta Van Susteren. We did a spot with Greta on the pier this morning with the massive bow of IWO JIMA in the background and helos flying on and off the ship with great noise - an impressive backdrop for this puffed up officer. As I was being interviewed by Greta, a pair of Blackhawks swooped onto the flight deck sending up a great wind which blew off my ball cap. I instinctively scrambled after it before it blew into the water. When I turned around the FOX News photographer looked at me and smiled, "I got that on film."

Look for me chasing my hat down the pier on the next FOX News spot.

All the best,

RSC [Capt. Callas]

So they aren't refugees?

The Rev. Jesse Jackson, commenting last Monday at the Houston Astrodome on those affected by the disaster, asserted that it was "racist to call American citizens refugees." This sentiment is being echoed by many people in the African-American community. Even President George W. Bush has weighed in, in agreement. Way to go, Dubya. GRRRR!

As a translator and word maven, it comes as complete news to me that the word "refugee" has any racist, classist or other derogatory or denigrating connotations whatsoever.

With all due respect, when's the last time any of these people cracked open a dictionary? I humbly submit the Merriam Webster Online entry for "refugee" for their consideration:

Main Entry: ref·u·gee
Pronunciation: "re-fyu-'jE, 're-fyu-"
Function: noun
Etymology: French réfugié, past participle of (se) réfugier, to take refuge, from Latin refugium: one that flees; especially [Nota bene - BUT NOT LIMITED TO]: a person who flees to a foreign country or power to escape danger or persecution.

Does any of this sound racist to you? Thought so. The people who well, fled the destruction of NOLA and the Gulf Coast in the wake of the disaster are, well, refugees. End of story. Cheese and rice! Stop the race-baiting and move on, people!

Think of the children ...

No, really, I'm serious. As people funnel unprecedented amounts of money, time and treasure into relief for those affected by Hurricane Katrina, I would strongly encourage them to focus their efforts not so much on taking care of the adults, but on taking care of the children. Adults can always make their own choices and may deal with what life hands them in whatever way they choose to, but unfortunately, children don't have that same choice. Their well-being and their very lives depend utterly and completely on the good - or bad - decisions of the adults around them.

There are plenty of little ones whose lives will be affected in a much more profound and permanent manner than any grown adult who has been affected by the Katrina disaster, kids who are crying themselves to sleep every night on a strange bed in a strange city, not knowing anybody, wondering if they'll ever see their mommy or daddy again. One great thing that community shelters across the Southeast are doing, is that they are taking photos of the lone displaced kids that come in and are posting them to Missingkids.com so that family members can locate them and reunite. Missingkids.com is also encouraging families missing their kids to post as well. Many organizations involved in the relief efforts are running sub-projects focused specifically on helping kids with school placement, school supplies, and much more. If you're donating to a particular charity or organization, you can specify that you want your money to go to these things.

Wouldn't it be nice if politicians just stopped posturing and our libbie friends stopped putting down the blame finger for just a few moments and channeled more of that energy into helping the children they always chide us for not thinking of?

Blame game, no. Preparedness, yes.

The much-publicized blame game for Hurricane Katrina is one of the biggest exercises in futility and wasted energy I have ever seen in my life. You may point the finger at any figure or figures you like, but the bottom line is that much of the pain and suffering was caused by a plain and simple lack of preparedness from a lot of different quarters - and could have been alleviated more quickly or avoided entirely if people were better prepared.

Though these days people have been conditioned to turn to the government to take care of more and more of their basic needs and necessities (and we are seeing the ultimate consequences of this mentality rearing their ugly head in New Orleans), let's face it, local, state and national governments can only do so much for people caught in a disaster - even under the best of circumstances when aid can reach those who need it, law and order are practiced and enforced, and optimal efficiency, coordination, and organization are in place. It is incumbent on each of us as individuals to assume personal responsibility for our own safety and well-being, take the initiative, and prepare so that we can take care of ourselves and one another and be okay when disaster strikes.

This guide has a lot of practical tips and suggestions that everybody out there can adopt, regardless of their race, ethnicity, income bracket or socioeconomic background. Preparedness, or the lack thereof, isn't a black thing. It isn't a white thing. It's a HUMAN thing. And it's time we all recognized this and acted accordingly.

Put together a plan. Memorize it. And be ready and able to implement it when the time comes. I say when, not if, because even though there probably won't be another natural weather-related disaster on the same scale as Katrina in our lifetime, there WILL be other hurricanes, as well as tornadoes, floods and fires, a major quake in southern California at some point in the future, and terrorist attacks.

None of which will give a damn what color their victims are, by the way. The levees and the flooding didn't care what color(s) the people of New Orleans were. To assert that NOLA wasn't saved because it's a black town, is simply ridiculous. No one in their rational mind can argue, given New Orleans' rich, complex history and heritage, its economic value as a huge tourism draw and the Gulf region's largest and most critical shipping port, its strategic value as the location for most major American petroleum and chemical refineries, etc. etc. that the federal government and all the people outside of NOLA who were watching this tragedy unfold were thinking "Oh, my stars. These great black unwashed and their silly, silly antics. Pish-tosh! A glass of Veuve, my good man, to wet my privileged white whistle as I fiddle while Rome burns!!" To say that the NOLA disaster was a black thing is just plain race-baiting, and vastly oversimplifies the situation and diverts the focus from what the real problem is. How about taking a look at the corrupt officials who figuratively stood dithering in the highway for days, never implemented their own damn evac plan and basically told the victims "Screw you, yer on yer own" before and after they issued the initial evac order and the levees broke. The disaster, although huge proportions of blacks engaged in all areas of human activity were involved because it's a mostly black town demographically speaking, was NOT a RACISM thing. It was an INEPTITUDE, UNPREPAREDNESS, and STUPIDITY (stupidity on the part of politicians at all levels, that is) thing.