refugees hit home

mandrews · Sep 3, 2005

Secretary at works daughter has an admin job at walmart and she told us her daughter said walmart was contacted and asked to donate some big refrigerated trucks for them to use to get the dead bodies in the Gulf. Well they can't because they use the trucks to haul food, but walmart told them they would find the refrigerated trucks for them.

Sapphy, BSN, RN · Sep 3, 2005

The Salvation Army is not all it is cracked up to be either... I don't think any "charity" is. We had a family here in Pennsylvania who lost everything in a fire and they were told by the Salvation Army that they would gladly sell them anything they needed. Nothing is free I guess, even when you're devastated.

sandiLa · Sep 18, 2005

My family and I left Bogalusa, LA two days after the storm hit because there was nothing here, no food, water or gas to drive anywhere. My town is about an hour northeast of New Orleans and once the storm hit land in Buras, LA it started turning east. We got the west side of the eye and I can't even describe what it looks like around here. While we didn't get the major flooding it looks like a war zone. There are armed military walking the streets and guarding every business. They are even walking around in the local Wal-mart with guns strapped on their backs. I'm very gratefull that they are all here because the looting had started on about the 2nd or 3rd day after the storm. The Red Cross was no where in site. We had no communications by phone with anyone outside of our city. No one knew how bad we got hit. We stayed in Jackson, MS with my Dad for a little over a week. I called FEMA and registered with them. I was told by FEMA to go to the nearest RC shelter and they would give us food vouchers and emergency cash. We found the closest shelter and there were two teenagers sitting at the table outside the gym at this church. When I told them why we were there they had no idea what I was talking about and called the head of the shelter who came out and told me the shelter was full, they had no vouchers, and they never ever gave out cash money. She said they had food but couldn't give any to us because it was for the people staying at the shelter and of course it was full. I went back and called FEMA again to tell them this information. They said that is what they'd been told to tell everyone who was registering. Our government down here doesn't have a clue. It seems no one knew what to do. Later in that week we hear on the TV that the RC is now handing out food vouchers to people who are staying in shelters. Well that didn't make sense to me since they had food to feed the people in the shelters, why not give the food to people who had to stay with relatives or in hotels?

We got to come back home last Friday. We got electricity to our house because we live 3 blocks from the hospital. The sad part is I was scheduled to start orientation at that hospital this past Monday. Well with everything that is going on it has been pushed forward to sometime in October. Since I'm a new nurse with no floor experience per say I can't go and work anywhere right now. I tried to get a job to help support my family while in MS but when I got the application it asked for all kinds of information that I didn't have access to (ie, transcripts from my school which was closed, a $60 fee to apply, which we didn't have at the time, etc.). The lady there did tell me that if I wanted to volunteer I could get a temporary liscense to work in MS right then but if I wanted to be paid I had to go through the process. I knew I'd be back home before that would happen.

It's slowly getting back to normal here in our town. A lot of people still don't have electricity. We have water and the Red Cross finally set up a shelter at the First Baptist Church 2 blocks from our house, that was after the Southern Baptist Convention sent a group of people from IL to cook meals for everyone here. Now the RC Disaster trucks are at least taking these meals out into the communities to people who can't get out and get supplies. It's very sad and depressing to say the least. I'm still having nightmares from staying here during the storm. I'm not sleeping and I'm so tired. I have a lot to be grateful for, I'm not even close to being as bad off as the people of New Orleans, MS and AL are. But it affects different people in different ways. I will never stay here for another storm if I can help it, unless I'm working and I won't abandon my pts. The winds here were recorded at 187 mph which is unbelievable to me. I know at the height of the storm I was in my room on my bed with my son and the bed started shaking and the walls were creaking. Our trees were snapping like toothpicks. I started having panic attacks just from that. I don't think I would have made it if I were in New Orleans.

I have a friend I graduated with that works at West Jefferson General Hospital on the Westbank below the MS. river and she stayed the whole time. She's only been able to come home once and her house has 4 trees on top of it. She told me what they had to do and how bad it was. She's much stronger than I ever will be. But I guess if you're in that situation you go into survival mode and do the best you can. Each person's ability to handle that much stress is different so I don't fault anyone who couldn't stay or handle seeing what they saw. I just hope she will have the opportunity to speak with a grief counseler.

I praise any of you who are working in this area or voluteering right now. You are heros in my eyes. We've had so much support from the Electricity trucks from North Carolina, the police from AL and ARK. and many other places. I know no one here will ever be able to repay all the kindness that everyone has shown us so all I can do is say Thank you and God Bless.....

Sandy

JoBug · Sep 18, 2005

I would like to commend you and your coworkers friends for helping, if one door doesn't open, knock on the next door, my mom always said that, and in fact, I got through nursing school with this saying. Keep going, them people NEED all our help we can offer, and if the Red Cross, or anyone else says no, keep going, SOMEONE NEEDS, NEEDS, these items. I am sure your efforts will pay off for those in need

JoBug

I too, was turned away for my nursing help from the Red Cross, but our job site managed to raise over $5,000 and a GREAT amoundt of clothes and food, given to local churches that were driving down to assist in any way

SusanJean · Sep 18, 2005

My family and I left Bogalusa, LA two days after the storm hit because there was nothing here, no food, water or gas to drive anywhere. My town is about an hour northeast of New Orleans and once the storm hit land in Buras, LA it started turning east. We got the west side of the eye and I can't even describe what it looks like around here. While we didn't get the major flooding it looks like a war zone. There are armed military walking the streets and guarding every business. They are even walking around in the local Wal-mart with guns strapped on their backs. I'm very gratefull that they are all here because the looting had started on about the 2nd or 3rd day after the storm. The Red Cross was no where in site. We had no communications by phone with anyone outside of our city. No one knew how bad we got hit. We stayed in Jackson, MS with my Dad for a little over a week. I called FEMA and registered with them. I was told by FEMA to go to the nearest RC shelter and they would give us food vouchers and emergency cash. We found the closest shelter and there were two teenagers sitting at the table outside the gym at this church. When I told them why we were there they had no idea what I was talking about and called the head of the shelter who came out and told me the shelter was full, they had no vouchers, and they never ever gave out cash money. She said they had food but couldn't give any to us because it was for the people staying at the shelter and of course it was full. I went back and called FEMA again to tell them this information. They said that is what they'd been told to tell everyone who was registering. Our government down here doesn't have a clue. It seems no one knew what to do. Later in that week we hear on the TV that the RC is now handing out food vouchers to people who are staying in shelters. Well that didn't make sense to me since they had food to feed the people in the shelters, why not give the food to people who had to stay with relatives or in hotels?
We got to come back home last Friday. We got electricity to our house because we live 3 blocks from the hospital. The sad part is I was scheduled to start orientation at that hospital this past Monday. Well with everything that is going on it has been pushed forward to sometime in October. Since I'm a new nurse with no floor experience per say I can't go and work anywhere right now. I tried to get a job to help support my family while in MS but when I got the application it asked for all kinds of information that I didn't have access to (ie, transcripts from my school which was closed, a $60 fee to apply, which we didn't have at the time, etc.). The lady there did tell me that if I wanted to volunteer I could get a temporary liscense to work in MS right then but if I wanted to be paid I had to go through the process. I knew I'd be back home before that would happen.
It's slowly getting back to normal here in our town. A lot of people still don't have electricity. We have water and the Red Cross finally set up a shelter at the First Baptist Church 2 blocks from our house, that was after the Southern Baptist Convention sent a group of people from IL to cook meals for everyone here. Now the RC Disaster trucks are at least taking these meals out into the communities to people who can't get out and get supplies. It's very sad and depressing to say the least. I'm still having nightmares from staying here during the storm. I'm not sleeping and I'm so tired. I have a lot to be grateful for, I'm not even close to being as bad off as the people of New Orleans, MS and AL are. But it affects different people in different ways. I will never stay here for another storm if I can help it, unless I'm working and I won't abandon my pts. The winds here were recorded at 187 mph which is unbelievable to me. I know at the height of the storm I was in my room on my bed with my son and the bed started shaking and the walls were creaking. Our trees were snapping like toothpicks. I started having panic attacks just from that. I don't think I would have made it if I were in New Orleans.
I have a friend I graduated with that works at West Jefferson General Hospital on the Westbank below the MS. river and she stayed the whole time. She's only been able to come home once and her house has 4 trees on top of it. She told me what they had to do and how bad it was. She's much stronger than I ever will be. But I guess if you're in that situation you go into survival mode and do the best you can. Each person's ability to handle that much stress is different so I don't fault anyone who couldn't stay or handle seeing what they saw. I just hope she will have the opportunity to speak with a grief counseler.
I praise any of you who are working in this area or voluteering right now. You are heros in my eyes. We've had so much support from the Electricity trucks from North Carolina, the police from AL and ARK. and many other places. I know no one here will ever be able to repay all the kindness that everyone has shown us so all I can do is say Thank you and God Bless.....
Sandy

Sandy,

Thank you for sharing your experience w/ us.

You have been through a very tramatic time. Please continue to talk about it, don't hold it in.

SJ

Juan Ortiz · Sep 18, 2005

This has been really traumatic for this country and for countless families. I too have most of my family downthere and was very hard not knowing how they were and wether they were still alive or not. Luckely they are fine and scattered in texas right now, some of them are coming to stay with me.

I am glad you are still here to share this experience and understand that it is hard to talk about since it's a life changing catastophe. Keep sharing this as it can only heal those wounds that have left in your soul!

laurakoko · Sep 19, 2005

I am from the New Orleans area.........people here aren't picky. Send anything you can. I am going to try a to find an address for a donation center, locally. People that have lost everything, as MANY of my family members, staying with me, don't really care if they are used...........

some things FLOOR me.......... I'll get back with the address.