2,700 Gustav evacuees sheltered without plumbing
Christine Romans
CNN Correspondent
Officials at the LSU AG Center shelter in Alexandria, LA just told the 2700 evacuees that the plumbing is not functioning. No showers or toilet flushing. Initial reaction is calm among evacuees, many of whom are bunking down for the night. Details from Dr. John Barnett, head of the facilities at this building:
- Building is now on generator power
- Generator power is not reaching the plumbing system
- No on site to fix it
- Porta Johns not practical now in high winds, maybe in a few hours
- another option to bus people to nearby college
Heavy winds and rain at the moment. Not much to do about it right now.
No panic. Just no plumbing and 2700 evacuees, and 600 volunteers and EMTs.
|
|
Filed under: Christine Romans • Hurricane Gustav |
About this Show:
Anderson Cooper goes beyond the headlines to tell stories from many points of view, so you can make up your own mind about the news. Tune in weeknights at 8 and 10 ET on CNN.
Questions or comments? Send an email
Want to know more? Go behind the scenes with AC361°
Subscribe to the podcast
On Twitter
Search the AC360 blog
All these blogs are great. One thing though. Could we make sure the evacuees read them. I hate that these storms like Katrina and Gustav affect so many lives in a negative way. But someone please tell me why so many want something (everything) for nothing? All volunteers and shelters should be praised, thanked, and honored, not condemned and berated by evacuees. Yes things could always be better, but please be thankful for the help recieved. the same people who owe you nothing are unselfishly giving you much.
Please be a VOLUNTEER!
Please make contributions to the Red Cross and other charities to help give some relief to the situation such as outlined in this article, the focus of all of us should be on those in most NEED !!
by the way Jim Hatsfeeld, if you had spent any time at all in the area of South Lousiana or the New Orleans area you would know, that Senator Obama's pronunciation of the name of the city of Wasilla was spot on, and that would make the childish person, . . . you, yeah !!
Why won't the politicians let the people back in to start work on their own spaces? That's how things get cleaned for the city workers to do their work! This was not a major disaster, just a brush.
People in the N.O. area live a lot without electricity – almost every storm. They survive.
Kids need school. Schools need teachers. Work places need workers. Workers need jobs. People need to feel some control on their own property. The politicians are holding hostages out of LA & those who used their own judgement & stayed. They are not allowed out of their homes. Why? How can healing start without the people?
Please prevail on the politicians to free the people of LA.
Did anyone else notice that Fox News Channel's team was virtually willing for Gustav to turn into a real Katrina scale disaster? They continuously wanted to dramatize the events and you could virtually see the craving for something really bad to happen in most of their roving reporters eyes!!! They really wanted the big story. The lesser scale event which was a relief to every sane and sensible person was just a huge disappointment to them.
That guy Gerarldo is the biggest drama queen I have ever seen in my life. Absolutely out of control and he actually believes he "served with the troops" in Iraq. Delusional and dangerous. Journalists aren't supposed to believe that they are the story (someone should tell Fox)!! I was almost waiting to hear the "Spiderman" theme music in the background.
By contrast the CNN crew were extremely balanced in their commentary and genuinely appeared happy (as normal people would) on the subsidence of the storm and the fact that the levies (by and large) held.
As a side comment whoever thought that 2011 was an acceptable timeframe to get these levies fixed needs to be fired. There you go, someone had to say it, and, whilst we're on the subject, put the contract out to tender to professional construction firms (preferably the guys who built the Dutch sea barriers) so we know they are constructed to withstand a hundred year storm, not cobbled together with sticky tape based on a hundred year (old) model and thereafter proceed to cross your fingers, your arms, your legs and anything else crossable!! Before any one says hold on a minute the levies the engineer corp. replaced (so far) largely held up, reflect on the fact that the next hurricane may actually, straight on, hit New Orleans. MacP
This would be laughable if it weren't so pathetic.
actually,thank Gov Bobby Jindal , each other and our regional neighbors for pulling together .
Well,the electricity supply for 800,000 Louisianians out and it is HOT HOT HOT,everyone's bone tired,just worn out from the stress of running from the storm,folk will wait till plumbing gets addressed, hurricane region/tornado alley residents know how to make do and manage with(personal sized plastic bags and baby wipes) with what we have on hand.Thank goodness y'all are safe,now we clean up,repair and make ready for Hanna.
Let us be thankful for our government and the volunteers and the way they have responded. Let's appreciate what we've been blessed to have, and show the volunteers that they are much appreciated, WHY? It goes a long way and it'll keep more help coming.
3 years in the planning. (What plan?) Keeping them honest? Good job, goverment! Geez.. Still, god bless all evacuess and the volunteers, having to go thru that must be torment..
Why is the Mississippi Gulf Coast never mentioned? The Gulf Coast was devastated after Katrina - but never mentioned. Sad.
I fear that such a large number of evacuees in one place without plumbing, will lead to illness.
You're in the middle of a natural disaster, not a ride at Disneyland ... By definition, Natural Disasters bring hardship and inconvenience ... buck up ...
Since Anderson just had O. interview possibly when Anderson is finished taping he could get a plumber to Dr. John Barnett or possibly
Anderson coould use his CNN satil. to get to each Sec of Homeland
Security or Dr,. Barnett at LSU
Just any one of you 3 would be great to help 2700 Evacueesa and
600 toilets and the EMT's!
Kist jave Amderspm handle it. Once again he is the only person
who can get anything down in a disaster.
Thanks Anderson for caring for your Dad's hometown and honoring
his memory as well as your and your all's family times there every summer. AC rocks NYC and NOLA.!
How often are we going to do this? Every two years, twice a year,..? Why does the country feel like they are responsible for the safe evacuation of the people in the Gulf Coast? Here's my advice, have Mayor "Mother of all Storms", personally hand out flyers to those who just don't get it. The flyers could go something like this: You are living on soil that is susceptible to flooding on a VERY regular basis. If you decide to live here and want to enjoy the culture of this area, please realize Hurricanes do happen and they can kill.
P.S. You are completely responsible for getting your butt out of harms way in the event of a Hurricane. It is the general consensus of the American people that we can't keep giving you handouts as it is drawing resources away more important matters.
By the way, Senator Obama is a jerk with his little snide mispronunciation of Wasilla;...Wasilly...how childish...do we really want a President who plays these kind of games? I personally don't need anyone with a name so close to Osama..Obama!
I have a lot of family in Alex.,La. Are the evacuees from Alex or from the surrounding cities?
Are there any news personal in Alexandria?
If not, will there be in the immediate future with live coverage?
I appreciate the coverage CNN gives the world.
Cynthia in California
One would think given the debacle at the Superdome and Civic Center during Katrina, that in doing emergency planning and logicstics for possible shelter sites, they would have looked at plumbing that could function in such a situation as this as a must-have.