Katrina - So many families on the move |
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September 13th, 2005 - 12:00AM |
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Lisa's mom, Betty (far left), with (from l. to r.) Anita, Jasmine and Kevin, evacuees from New Orleans who are staying with Lisa's parents in Church Point, Louisiana. Photo: Lisa David/IRC Day 1 – Friday, September 2 My name is Lisa David. I am the regional director of the International Rescue Committee’s resettlement office located in Dallas, Texas. A native of Church Point, Louisiana (a small rural community approximately 20 miles northwest of Lafayette and 50 miles inland from the Gulf of Mexico), I have weathered a number of hurricanes in my lifetime. It was with growing anticipation that I watched Hurricane Katrina grow in strength over the last several days and finally strike my home state. Most Louisianans know that the city of New Orleans actually sits below sea level. A series of levees (think large earthen barricades) surround most of the city to keep the surrounding bodies of water (the Mississippi River to the South and Lake Pontchartrain to the North) from flooding the city. After the brunt of the storm had passed on Monday (Aug. 29), I breathed a small sigh of relief. It appeared the hurricane had brushed just to the east of New Orleans and the “worst case scenario” of a levee break had been spared. Unfortunately, this feeling didn’t last long – late Monday, media reported the first of what would eventually be three major levee breaks that allowed water to pour into the city. Like so many, I watched with growing horror as the week went on as the conditions rapidly deteriorated, the sheer scope of the devastation and the massive human displacement that had occurred and would continue began to dawn on me. I was asked just yesterday to be part of an assessment team that IRC will be sending into Louisiana at the request of the Baton Rouge Area Foundation. While IRC does not typically respond to natural disasters, we have when they impact the areas in which we work – and over the last few days it has become very evident that the impact of Hurricane Katrina on the Gulf Coast and the resulting displacement of nearly 1.5 million people will impact our offices across the United States. Tonight, I drove from Dallas, Texas to my hometown of Church Point. I was barely out of Dallas when I saw my first convoy of school buses of evacuees from Louisiana. For some reason, this really drives the point home to me – this isn’t something happening “far away” on the news, but is very real. During my drive east on Interstate 20, I see another five or six bus convoys by the time I reach the state line (about 180 miles east of Dallas). At the Texas/Louisiana state line, a normally quiet Texas Welcome Center for those traveling in the opposite direction is packed and cars line the highway nearby. I see a number of temporary tents set up and they appear to be distributing snacks and water. A few ambulances are standing by. I begin to realize there are numerous evacuees moving of their own accord and in their own vehicles, not just those being bussed out of New Orleans. In Shreveport, I turn onto Interstate 49 and start heading south. On I-49, the bus convoys became much more frequent. I also start to see convoys of ambulances as well as groups of police cars lining the sides of the road. By the time I reach Alexandria (in central Louisiana), the buses are non-stop. I’ve seen so many I’ve lost count and can’t begin to guess how many evacuees have passed me by. During the last hour and a half of my drive, I don’t think I went more than two minutes without seeing a bus. The tremendous scope of this really begins to sink in and I can’t help but wonder, “Where are all these people going?” I arrive in Church Point a little before midnight and get to spend a little time with my family (all of whom were lucky enough to be unaffected by the hurricane), and get to meet a New Orleans family that my parents have taken in. Anita and her two children (Jasmine, 16 and Kevin, 20) fled before the storm hit and ended up at an area hotel. When they realized there would be no quick return, they called a friend in the area that works with my mother and my parents agreed they could take them in. I understand that Anita’s father stayed behind in New Orleans and they have had no contact with him since Monday. They fear the worst. Posted By: Kathleen Sands | Hurricane Katrina Permalink |
