From Bishop Charles Jenkins of the Episcopal Diocese of Louisiana:
Saturday, September 06, 2008
A Quick Reflection on Evacuation (Saturday, September 6, 2008)
Nell Bolton, the Canons and I toured a bit of the Southwest Deanery on Friday, The Bridge on Hwy. 315 was broken and the Falgout Canal road flooded so we could not get to Bayou du Large. The devastation and need in Terrebonne Parish is huge.
As I drove back to my personal home in Slidell, La., I passed convoys of trucks bringing power workers into the region. I also passed convoys of buses bringing home those who had needed assistance to evacuate. The stream of autos returning to New Orleans has been heavy for three days. I congratulate the Governor of Louisiana and the Mayor of New Orleans on the evacuation effort for Gustav. I have been quick to criticize; my congratulations are genuine.
A lot of us will not be able to willing to go next time. Should IKE threaten, many of us will just try to hunker down. The infantile pleas of grossly inarticulate leaders will likely fall upon deaf ears. The Gustav evacuation demonstrated even to those of us who have some means, the frustration of not being able to meet our basic needs when nothing is available for purchase. We have now an experience, albeit it miniscule, of being poor. For example, even the rich are poor in Houma today. There is no electricity; there is little clean water, if any. I hope we learn from this experience.
A deep sadness of the Gustav evacuation was hearing the telephone calls on WWL radio of the poor who had evacuated and then been turned out of their hotels for lack of resources. Some who self evacuated did not have the means to purchase fuel for the trip home. I assume that those of us who rely solely upon a monthly check will get those funds when the power comes on. In the meantime, we have nothing to live on except the generosity of others. Many of us will not have the means, financially or emotionally, to go again. Some have said it is better to die here than elsewhere.
None of this should be considered an excuse to stay put if an evacuation is ordered. If we are called to go again, we must go!
It is joked that in New Orleans a common wedding present is an axe to put in the attic of your home. An axe in the attic is needed to cut through the roof if you must evacuate vertically. I am off to the Home Depot to replenish my hurricane supplies and to purchase an axe.
Bishop Jenkins
I probably would have been one of those who did not leave if Ike had come our way. Not because of a lack of resources, but because I did not want to go through the whole evacuation process again. I know that's not a good decision, but I believe that I would not have left.
ReplyDeleteGrandmère, That is one of our worst fears at Red Cross--that this one was not that bad for many folks in the New Orleans area, so they will decided to hunker down and ride the next one out when the next one might be a killer like Katrina. If it looks like it is headed your way, get out of there!
ReplyDeleteNone of us at the Cross has had a day off since August 25, so I have not been able to keep up with you, even though you have been in my daily office. I am relieved to see that you are okay and not in need of a blue tarp.
As for the evacuees, we had shelter space for those who were evicted from their hotels and we fed three meals per day for anyone who needed them, not just those we were sheltering. That was a coordinated effort that included such groups as the Salvation Army, the Compassionate Coalition that organized cook teams from area churches and other interested groups. The Realtors Association put together "goodie bags" of non-perishable items (crackers, granola bars, cookies, etc. and bottled water) for the evacuees to take with them on the return trip. Locally, Catholic Charities in conjunction with an oil distributor and several other churches, filled-up empty tanks to help people return home. The massive volunteer effort at our end was awe-inspiring.
Boocat, I know that the Red Cross and many faith-based organizations did mighty work in feeding and housing evacuees. I also know that you're right in your advice about heading out, but it's just too soon. I left for Katrina, but not for Rita. I need a break from evacuating.
ReplyDeleteMeanwhile, in the Caribbean, there is already an immense amount of damage from the cumulative effects of Gustav and Ike.
ReplyDelete80 percent of the homes in Turks and Caicos were either destroyed or damaged to the point of being uninhabitable.
Gustav destroyed an estimated 100,000 homes in Cuba, with accompany destruction of important agricultural areas, and now Ike is making it worse, with collapsing buildings in Havana and unknown damages in the rest of the island.
The flooding may return for a reprise in Haiti because of Ike; the flooding caused by Gustav and earlier storms may have caused over 300 deaths.
Which is why I'm posting this link. Obviously, not everything would be applicable to people outside Florida--we are much more local so canned goods drives make sense here, but not elsewhere.
Also note that the US embargo may make it difficult to for Americans to give effective aid to the Cuban people (not to mention the cut the Castro regime routinely takes for itself out of any money that is sent by relatives or friends to people in Cuba).
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/southflorida/sfl-flbhaitibox0910sbsep10,0,943171.story
Just to give you an idea of the area involved with Ike--throughout the day yesterday we in Fort Lauderdale and Miami were experience gale force winds and squalls that formed the outersmost edges of Ike as it passed over Cuba; it has now died down to merely blustery. (We were also blessed with the outer bands of Gustav and Hannah, and of course had a seriously close encounter with Faye.) So, Mimi.you may experience some bad weather anyway, depending on exactly how far away from the point of landfall you end up being.
Kishnevi, thanks for the information on Cuba and Haiti and for the links, too. We really didn't know how bad things were there, since we had only a wind-up and battery powered radio and, on occasion, one snowy Baton Rouge TV channel connected to the generator.
ReplyDeleteThe people of south Louisiana have discovered that evacuation is a heavy emotional and financial burden. It harms especially the poor, and there are many who would rather risk death than go through it again.
ReplyDeleteOrmonde, absolutely. We had it relatively easy. We are comfortably settled in our undamaged home. Maybe I'm a weak sister, but I have still not settled down. The adrenalin is still pumping.
ReplyDeletePlease, everyone, as big a pain and as fatiguing as evacuation can be and is, take no chances. Your lives are too prescious to too many people for you to gamble with them. With the stakes so high, if it looks as if the big one is headed your way--get out of there!
ReplyDeleteBoocat, you are right. I know you are right. I'm talking about the reality of what will happen if another hurricane comes our way soon. YOU ARE RIGHT! We should leave.
ReplyDelete