Many buses hired for evacuation did not arrive

[kestrel91316]

Source: New Orleans Times-Picayune

Local school systems had to provide more than 400 buses Saturday to make up for a lack of transportation the state had promised to provide for evacuees by using out-of-state contractors.

It was not clear Saturday how many buses the state had secured from Jacksonville, Fla.-based Landmark System Inc.

Gov. Bobby Jindal said only that officials had enough buses by the end of Saturday to provide transportation for those who could not evacuate on their own. Jindal left a late afternoon news briefing before taking questions on the bus contract.

The governor had announced Wednesday that the state Department of Transportation and Development had contracts for 700 buses. He said then that the vehicles would arrive in Louisiana on Thursday.



Read more: http://www.nola.com/hurricane/index.ssf/2008/08/many_buses_hired_for_evacuatio.html

---

OMFG.

Landmark System Inc. Trying to kill off the Katrina survivors, I swear.

Landmark CEO Henry Gerkens - if anybody gets left behind and gets hurt, this man has blood on his hands.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. Great. Deja vu all over again.

:banghead:

[dkf]

2. I'd be interested to know how he got the contract and what his

donation patterns are.

[liberalmuse]

3. Deja Vu??? And they're using contractors again?

Holy shit. If anyone is left behind because of this, and if we see anything resembling the fiasco 3 years ago, I'm fucking taking to the streets.

[tannybogus]

4. They are effing fools.

I'm surprised Halliburton didn't get the contract. or KBR.

[Mari3333]

5. It is Deja Vu and they are the same contractors...

http://southernstudies.org/facingsouth/2006/01/new-investigation-why-didnt-buses-come.asp


MEMPHIS -- The U.S. Department of Transportation may hold the key to one of the biggest unanswered questions from Hurricane Katrina:

Why did it take nearly a week for the Federal Emergency Management Agency to mobilize private buses to evacuate thousands of city residents desperately seeking rescue from the horrific conditions in the Superdome, the Convention Center and the open tarmac of Interstate 10?

Clues to that mystery will come in the form of an audit into a FEMA contract for hurricane evacuation services awarded in 2002 to the Federal Aviation Administration. An initial report on the audit, which was quietly opened last October by the DOT's Office of Inspector General, is nearing completion and will be released to the public soon, a DOT official told Reconstruction Watch.

So far, the IG's office suspects that that the FAA "did not verify that the services were performed," said David Barnes, a public affairs officer in the Office of Inspector General. As a result, the IG "has raised questions about the FAA's internal controls."

The audit is also focused on Landstar Express America Inc. A trucking and logistics company based in Jacksonville, Fla., Landstar is a politically well-connected corporation that's risen to the top of the U.S. transportation industry without actually owning any trucks. Chairman Jeffrey Crowe served until recently as head of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and last April Florida Gov. Jeb Bush appointed him to his Advisory Council on Base Realignment and Closure.
..................................................................................................................

It is Landstar Systems, Inc, same ones as before.

[kestrel91316]

6. They are probably a monopoly. I'm betting there aren't any competitors

with enough buses.

RW heaven.

[HCE SuiGeneris]

7. Another cluster**** courtesy of FEMA and Landmark.

:kick:

[uppityperson]

8. k&r

[orleans]

9. maybe someone is turning the buses around? they did before, remember? n/t

[JCMach1]

10. Gerkens has ties to JEBtm Bush

http://www.soros.org/resources/multimedia/katrina/projects/RebuildingInc/story_Buses_print.php

That's probably all you needed to know.

[Doug.Goodall]

11. Landmark systems is intensionally causing a delay so Bush can make an Executive Order and save the d...

This will give the Main Steam Media a data point they can use to spin the news in favor of the Republicans.

I can see the headline now:

"McCain supports President Bush's efforts in saving the populations of New Orleans. We need more Republicans!"

Meanwhile, back at DU we will all be screaming that this is a setup. The MSM is pulling for the Republicans and will manufacture any lie necessary to influence the election.

[lonestarnot]

12. Oh here we go again! Those fucking pisswad shit for brains mfers!

[all.of.me]

13. Oh my God, here we go again..... kicking

[fasttense]

14. Folks this is going to be another horrible mess up for NOL.

These ignorant neocons can't plan anything and they have no idea what the f*ck they are doing. The poor, who can't get out on their own, are going to be in serous trouble - again.

May God help them because the government sure wont.

[ohio2007]

15. They better have their own school buses ready for hauling people

not swamped out by the hundreds like last time

[tbyg52]

16. That was my first thought

Why not school buses? Do not the drivers need to evacuate too? Would it not be nice to save that millions of dollars worth of equipment? Would it not be less expensive than charter buses?

[barbtries]

17. makes sense to me

why leave the school buses to get flooded? or drive them out empty when so many people need a ride? it just makes sense. something the gw admin is short on.

[bertman]

18. Excellent point. But probably way too simple for them to figure out.

[jberryhill]

21. If they're licensed and insured for that /nt

[tbyg52]

22. That's a point, but there *ought* to be some emergency powers somewhere. nt

[alarimer]

19. 10,000 people were all that was evacuated Saturday.

I don't know about today. Probably the same amount. Which still leaves a lot of people to drown. Once again the Republicans are fucking this up and people will die.

[jberryhill]

20. Oh, that's okay

Why, with a breach of contract claim like that, they can pledge the claim to take out a loan for infrastructure improvements, or maybe sell it to a finance company which can then write it down after the case settles. I'm sure the repugs will get this all sorted out.

[Billy Burnett]

23. Crazy shit. Cuba manages to evacuate however many needed without this kind of crap.

DISASTER PLANNING ESSENTIAL FOR MINIMIZING RISKS

Oxfam America recently studied the experience of Cuba in its development of disaster prevention and mitigation programs. Situated in the Caribbean Sea, Cuba frequently stands in the way of serious hurricanes. While its neighbors are battered, losing lives and property, Cuba is unusually good at withstanding these calamities, and suffers much fewer dead.

Oxfam’s report, entitled Weathering the Storm: Lessons in Risk Reduction in Cuba cites a number of attributes of Cuba’s risk reduction program that can be applied by other countries. Three in particular are transferable to Asia and other regions:

Disaster Preparedness: Cuba was especially good at mobilizing entire communities to develop their own disaster preparations. This involves mapping out vulnerable areas of the community, creating emergency plans, and actually simulating emergencies so people can practice evacuations and other measures designed to save lives. When disaster strikes, people know what to do.

Commitment of Resources: Cuba’s strong central government prioritizes resources for its civil defense department. This helps the country to build up a common understanding of the importance of saving lives, and the citizens trust that their contributions to the government are well used for this purpose. Their collaboration on developing emergency plans helped build confidence in the government, so people trust in the plan they helped develop.

Communications: The communications system for emergencies in Cuba builds on local resources. Using local radio stations and other media to issue warnings on potential hazards also reinforces the disaster preparations. Since the local population is already involved in mapping risks and creating emergency plans, they are more inclined to act on emergency bulletins. Good communications, packaged simply, and built on existing, commonly used resources, is another way to build trust in disaster preparations.

Cuba is a unique example. There is a strong central government committed to protecting all its citizens, even the poorest and most isolated who are typically the most at risk. The most common natural disaster in Cuba is a hurricane, a threat visible for days and even weeks in advance. Yet building a culture of disaster preparedness, and involving local communities in mitigating risks, are strategies that can be applied in many other places, regardless of how rich or poor a country might be.