Astrodome now in chaos with refugee crisis

[gldstwmn]

Originally Posted by Mari

I can't believe what I'm reading here.. or the short bits I saw on the news this morning I'm so sorry for all the people who have to go through all this!

Now I heard this newsbit, maybe you can tell me if this is correct: the money that was there to make the levees in NO safer was used instead by the Bush administration for home security and the war in Iraq..

That is correct. I linked to it in one of the other threads.

[Nixxxed]

Originally Posted by reebokandlace

100 miles = 20 mpg (if you drive an SUV) = 5 gallons of gas @ $4.00 a gallon (MAX!) = $20.00 for gas.

I don't mean any disrepect....I know some people have it rough, but...

But what? You have no idea about my living situation, or me for that matter.

If you are so financially well-off that you can make judgments (non-disrespectful ones, of course) about what others can and can't do, then why don't you get your ass on a plane down here and volunteer yourself?

I'd do the math for you, but it seems you have that well under control.

[reebokandlace]

Originally Posted by Nixxxed

But what? You have no idea about my living situation, or me for that matter.

If you are so financially well-off that you can make judgments (non-disrespectful ones, of course) about what others can and can't do, then why don't you get your ass on a plane down here and volunteer yourself?

I'd do the math for you, but it seems you have that well under control.

You are correct, I don't know you or your situation. That was horrible for me to say and I would like to publically apologize. It was insensitive of me.

I am very sorry.

[DavidMn]

I've heard today that Dallas is opening up too now to the refugees. It's about time another city stepped up to help.

[lbelle1214]

I can say personally that the Houston Astrodome has over 25,000 people in there and are trying to take more. There is a shelter here in my hometown in Beaumont, Texas at Ford Park that has taken 7,500, and many more thru the Salvation Army communities, church communities, I've even taken ph#'s of my patients home with me and given them mine for additional help. I'll be leaving you fine people for awhile to serve as a Texas Disaster Relief Nurse...I'll have my lap top, and if there is electricity, I promise to tell you the absolute truth I see, unbiased. If any of you feel the need to help or come with me, you know how to find me. Ya'll KNOW I'm proud to be a TEXAS....but I may go to NOLA, Ms, Ala., wherever needed. I'm SURE you'll miss my OPINIONS and stupid comments. But I must go deliver some babies and show them that the world is going to be a better place and the ones taking care of them will be stronger for their suffering. This may seem inappropriate to you all, but....please, all types of help are needed. Not just money. These people need care givers and emotional support, in many different capacities. Because there has been nothing like this before, let us pull together, put differences aside....we are ALL members of the HUMAN race.
And on second thought....my son made it in safely early this am. Thanks to all who prayed and sent positive thoughts....I've got my baby home. Now it's time to pass it on....because to who much is given....much is expected.
Care about you, all!!!!!

[Dreammms]

Originally Posted by lbelle1214

I can say personally that the Houston Astrodome has over 25,000 people in there and are trying to take more. There is a shelter here in my hometown in Beaumont, Texas at Ford Park that has taken 7,500, and many more thru the Salvation Army communities, church communities, I've even taken ph#'s of my patients home with me and given them mine for additional help. I'll be leaving you fine people for awhile to serve as a Texas Disaster Relief Nurse...I'll have my lap top, and if there is electricity, I promise to tell you the absolute truth I see, unbiased. If any of you feel the need to help or come with me, you know how to find me. Ya'll KNOW I'm proud to be a TEXAS....but I may go to NOLA, Ms, Ala., wherever needed. I'm SURE you'll miss my OPINIONS and stupid comments. But I must go deliver some babies and show them that the world is going to be a better place and the ones taking care of them will be stronger for their suffering. This may seem inappropriate to you all, but....please, all types of help are needed. Not just money. These people need care givers and emotional support, in many different capacities. Because there has been nothing like this before, let us pull together, put differences aside....we are ALL members of the HUMAN race.
And on second thought....my son made it in safely early this am. Thanks to all who prayed and sent positive thoughts....I've got my baby home. Now it's time to pass it on....because to who much is given....much is expected.
Care about you, all!!!!!

That's really great! You are very kind.

I am glad your son made it home okay.

Keep in touch.

[lbelle1214]

Originally Posted by GateandGarden

On the news, they asked us not to donate any more clothes. This was just as I was thinking about all the clothes I have that I could give. We're talking about a lot of people who lost all of their belongings; they need clothes! I heard stories about some shelters having people who didn't even have one entire outfit! It's hard for me to understand why clothes are being turned down.

If you would like to donate your clothes, take them to the closest site where the relocated people are. They are taking clothes, personal hygiene items, etc. If you have small sample shampoos from hotels, box them up and take them to a center or to the red cross. They will be used.

[strandinthewind]

Originally Posted by lbelle1214

If you would like to donate your clothes, take them to the closest site where the relocated people are. They are taking clothes, personal hygiene items, etc. If you have small sample shampoos from hotels, box them up and take them to a center or to the red cross. They will be used.

Good idea Not to mention people other than these evacuees can use this stuff if the evacuees have enough

[GateandGarden]

Originally Posted by lbelle1214

If you would like to donate your clothes, take them to the closest site where the relocated people are. They are taking clothes, personal hygiene items, etc. If you have small sample shampoos from hotels, box them up and take them to a center or to the red cross. They will be used.

Thanks for that. I'm going to see about getting things to people. And Jason's right, I think--there are plenty of other people out there who aren't even evacuees who would also need those things.

[Janet]

But just imagine, after a long, hot bus ride, after losing everything, after being so sweaty, dirty, hungry and tired, you count the seconds before you reach your destination and boom, you can't go in. I'd cry. Those poor people. I just hope many ( meaning people of power) take note and learn a lesson on how to handle these things.

[Nixxxed]

Originally Posted by reebokandlace

You are correct, I don't know you or your situation. That was horrible for me to say and I would like to publically apologize. It was insensitive of me.

I am very sorry.

I'm sorry too. Check yer PMs.

[Nixxxed]

Originally Posted by lbelle1214

I can say personally that the Houston Astrodome has over 25,000 people in there and are trying to take more. There is a shelter here in my hometown in Beaumont, Texas at Ford Park that has taken 7,500, and many more thru the Salvation Army communities, church communities, I've even taken ph#'s of my patients home with me and given them mine for additional help. I'll be leaving you fine people for awhile to serve as a Texas Disaster Relief Nurse...I'll have my lap top, and if there is electricity, I promise to tell you the absolute truth I see, unbiased. If any of you feel the need to help or come with me, you know how to find me. Ya'll KNOW I'm proud to be a TEXAS....but I may go to NOLA, Ms, Ala., wherever needed. I'm SURE you'll miss my OPINIONS and stupid comments. But I must go deliver some babies and show them that the world is going to be a better place and the ones taking care of them will be stronger for their suffering. This may seem inappropriate to you all, but....please, all types of help are needed. Not just money. These people need care givers and emotional support, in many different capacities. Because there has been nothing like this before, let us pull together, put differences aside....we are ALL members of the HUMAN race.
And on second thought....my son made it in safely early this am. Thanks to all who prayed and sent positive thoughts....I've got my baby home. Now it's time to pass it on....because to who much is given....much is expected.
Care about you, all!!!!!

Yes, things are much better here. They've stopped taking people into the Dome itself, but have opened 2 or 3 of the other buildings in the same complex (see the pic I posted in the Katrina thread). The Mayor of Houston also opened the city's main convention center downtown, and cancelled all the conventions scheduled there through the fall. He told the organizers if they didn't like it, they could just sue, and they could fight it out in court later on.

And my town is now holding a food/supply/donation drive, so I'm off to volunteer there thankfully. Apparently our Mayor's office has been swamped with calls all week - many of them by me. There's also talk of us housing evacuees here ... somewhere ... if Houston runs into trouble again.

I only hope I can put on a brave face, which has been very hard this week. The last thing these people need (if they make it here), is some big blubbering queen handing out water and food.

[gldstwmn]

Originally Posted by DavidMn

I've heard today that Dallas is opening up too now to the refugees. It's about time another city stepped up to help.

Well...they were actually ordered to by FEMA. It doesn't exactly sound like they are being welcomed with open arms.
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcont....1cccdfd6.html

Dallas seeks housing help, finds little

12:50 AM CDT on Saturday, September 3, 2005


By JENNIFER EMILY, DAVE LEVINTHAL and JEFF MOSIER / The Dallas Morning News

Even as hurricane evacuees are flooding into the Dallas area, officials are still desperately scrambling to find shelter for all of them.

The decision would be far easier, some officials said, if not for the fact that the shelters would have to be self-sufficient, with little or no help from the Salvation Army or Red Cross.

"If we do make a decision to open a shelter, we have to do so not expecting to receive any assistance from anyone else," Plano Fire Chief Bill Peterson said.

Denton city officials say they turned down a request by Dallas officials to help out because they don't have the resources or personnel to run such an emergency shelter, city spokesman John Cabrales said.

Cheryl Sutterfield-Jones, CEO of the local Red Cross, said the agency does not have enough cots even for those arriving at Reunion Arena, the city's primary evacuee center.

"We are certainly overwhelmed," she said. "We have no resources. If a city wants to open a shelter, we will pay for the food. This is an unprecedented event for our city, our state, for our nation. The focus is on keeping them safe and getting a roof over their head."

She said the relief agency has requested more cots from the National Guard and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. FEMA, which will eventually reimburse cities for the cost of the shelters, did not return several phone calls Friday.

As Dallas officials struggled to prepare for the onslaught of evacuees, Mayor Laura Miller blasted Gov. Rick Perry for visiting Dallas on Thursday but not informing her or City Manager Mary Suhm personally that 25,000 evacuees would soon be on their way.

The state has also failed to make good on its promise of cots and blankets for the city's shelters, Ms. Miller said.

"I'm amazed at the lack of help we're getting," the mayor said. "The state has done zero to help us, the governor has done zero to help us – besides coming here for a photo op."

Ms. Miller also panned other state and federal officials for a lack of communication with Dallas officials. The mayor said she learned from Dallas County Judge Margaret Keliher, not FEMA or the governor's office, that the federal agency ordered Dallas to accept 25,000 evacuees.

Mr. Perry contacted Ms. Keliher because she had participated in a state-sponsored emergency management program and appeared the logical point person for the Dallas area, said Robert Black, the governor's spokesman.

"If the governor neglected, as a courtesy, to call the mayor, he is sorry," Mr. Black said.

On Friday, city officials, in conjunction with their Dallas County counterparts, found themselves pleading with surrounding counties and municipalities for help. Convincing other municipalities to help has not proved easy, however. Dallas possesses only the power of persuasion over its neighbors.

Dallas officials say the city can house only 10,000 in Reunion Arena and the Dallas Convention Center, the city's two primary shelters. Tarrant County agreed to take 4,000.


Collin considers helping

Collin County has asked its five largest cities to take in at least 2,000 evacuees. Plano, Frisco and Wylie were considering setting up shelters.

Denton County Judge Mary Horn said Friday that she had made arrangements with Dallas to move women and children into a couple of county jail barracks in Denton.

She said she requested women and children because the barracks have air conditioning, showers and restrooms but not a lot of privacy.

Fort Worth Mayor Mike Moncrief said that emergency management officials have identified space in the county for 4,000 evacuees.

"That's the capacity we have identified, and I don't want to say we have the capacity to do more until I'm sure," he said. "We only have what we have. The last thing we want to do is put people where they are not comfortable or safe."

In Arlington, Mayor Robert Cluck estimated that his city could house 2,000 or more evacuees, but he said that's a "moving target." Several recreation centers are being converted to temporary housing, and a Salvation Army shelter can hold several hundred more.

The Eastern Star Home, a former fraternal retirement home, and a 200,000-square-foot building owned by Trammell Crow have been offered as shelters for as long as the buildings are needed.

"We know that 25,000 are coming to Dallas, but one city should not have to bear an undue burden," Dr. Cluck said. "We're prepared to take care of as many as we can."

Ms. Miller said North Texas must have a united response to hurricane relief.

"If all the cities would take people, we could handle this well," she said. "I find it astonishing that one would say no. It'd be admirable for these towns to help. We in Dallas have done our job. Everyone has to do their share."

In addition to Reunion Arena and the Convention Center, some evacuees in Dallas will be housed in the Decker Detention Center, county officials said. They said they will move inmates out of Decker, which the county used as a jail from the 1970s until mothballing it in 2002. It has been reopened several times since to handle overflow population from the main jail facilities.

By Friday evening, Dallas County officials offered this breakdown of how incoming evacuees would be distributed: 1,000 at Reunion, about 5,000 at the Convention Center, 2,000 at the Decker center, 4,000 in Tarrant County and 2,000 in Collin County. That left potentially 11,000 more slots to be handled by individual cities.

Ms. Keliher, who said the number of evacuees headed to the Dallas area might not top 20,000, said county commissioners were calling cities in their districts to ask for additional help.

Dallas officials said Friday that no single leader is coordinating preparations for the onslaught of evacuees.

"This is a unified command, as we say in the police department," said Ms. Suhm, Dallas city manager.


Security concerns

Dallas Police Chief David Kunkle said, "We're hoping for the best and preparing for the worst," about the security situation caused by thousands of beleaguered people flocking downtown. "We don't know what kinds of populations we'll be getting on the buses. New Orleans has historically been a violent city. But we will keep the residents of Dallas safe."

Fifty officers per shift will patrol Reunion, while 100 will patrol the Convention Center, Chief Kunkle said.

So far, 50 Texas State Guard members have supplemented Dallas' policing effort, although Chief Kunkle said he hopes more will arrive.

The Mesquite Fire Department provided a depot at Big Town Mall for buses carrying evacuees from New Orleans to Dallas. Officials expected 75 buses Friday evening with an average of 40 people on each bus. Tents and metal detectors were set up in the parking lot.

Dallas County Sheriff's Department spokesman Don Peritz said Friday evening that deputies as well as officers from Garland and Dallas are assisting Mesquite police in giving the evacuees a once-over.

"All evacuees from North Texas come here first," Sgt. Peritz said. "We're letting them have a bathroom break, running them through metal detectors and going through belongings."

He said they've found guns, but the most common contraband by far is liquor.

"Lots of liquor," Sgt. Peritz said. "Mostly beer and wine."

Some experts said the long-term implications of this wave of migration could alter the face of Dallas.

In recent American history there is no precedent for such an influx of people with so many needs, said Dr. Jeff Ferrell a sociology professor at Texas Christian University who has researched urban dynamics. Sociologists have studied other cities that have been wiped out by flooding, but none the size of New Orleans.

"I think it's going to force us to imagine ways of working together and pooling resources that we haven't been forced to do in the past."

[strandinthewind]

Originally Posted by Nixxxed

Yes, things are much better here. They've stopped taking people into the Dome itself, but have opened 2 or 3 of the other buildings in the same complex (see the pic I posted in the Katrina thread). The Mayor of Houston also opened the city's main convention center downtown, and cancelled all the conventions scheduled there through the fall. He told the organizers if they didn't like it, they could just sue, and they could fight it out in court later on.

And my town is now holding a food/supply/donation drive, so I'm off to volunteer there thankfully. Apparently our Mayor's office has been swamped with calls all week - many of them by me. There's also talk of us housing evacuees here ... somewhere ... if Houston runs into trouble again.

I only hope I can put on a brave face, which has been very hard this week. The last thing these people need (if they make it here), is some big blubbering queen handing out water and food.

Other states have offered help too and I slaute them, but Texas gets a 12 gun salute for its apparently unending generosity. God Bless Texas!

[gldstwmn]

Originally Posted by Nixxxed

I only hope I can put on a brave face, which has been very hard this week. The last thing these people need (if they make it here), is some big blubbering queen handing out water and food.

I'm sure they will welcome you with open arms.