Print

Email story

Comment

Email editor

Heat, crowd make FEMA close relief center early

By wire services
Published September 29, 2005

HOUSTON - Saying they were caught off guard by the number of people in need, FEMA officials closed a relief center early on Wednesday after some of the hundreds of hurricane victims in line began fainting in triple-digit heat.

The midday closing of the Houston disaster relief center came as officials in areas hit hardest by Hurricane Rita criticized FEMA's response to the storm, with one calling for a commission to examine the emergency response.

Across southeastern Texas, the Federal Emergency Management Agency delivered ice, water and packaged meals to residents who rode out last week's hurricane, which blew ashore at Sabine Pass in East Texas early Saturday.

But the agency was not ready for the roughly 1,500 people displaced by Hurricanes Rita and Katrina who sought help at the center when it reopened Wednesday.

The center, offering help from a variety government and private organizations, initially opened for Katrina refugees. It closed last week when Houston was evacuated before Rita.

WASHINGTON - Former FEMA director Michael Brown was warned weeks before Hurricane Katrina hit that his agency's backlogged computer systems could delay supplies and put personnel at risk during an emergency, according to an audit released Wednesday.

An internal review of FEMA's information-sharing system shows it was overwhelmed during the 2004 hurricane season. The audit was released a day after Brown defended the government's dismal response to Katrina, instead blaming state and local officials for poor planning and chaos during the Aug. 29 storm and subsequent flooding.

The review by Homeland Security Department acting Inspector General Richard L. Skinner examined FEMA's response to four major hurricanes and a tropical storm that hit Florida and the Gulf Coast in August and September 2004.

Congress, White House disagree over medical care for victims

- The White House called unnecessary a congressional effort to give low-income storm victims expanded access to health care under Medicaid.

Gulf Coast governors pressed for action Wednesday amid reports that hundreds in Louisiana had been denied Medicaid benefits. "We've got people who have needs today," said Gov. Kathleen Blanco.

The cost of the legislation, which includes other measures, is estimated at $9-billion.

The White House says the legislation is unnecessary because the government has created a fund for when health care providers treat uninsured storm victims.

[Last modified September 29, 2005, 01:20:09]