FEMA head not prepared for violence (moved from ATSNN)

In an interview Friday the head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency responded to critisism of the agencys handling the the New Orleans disaster relief effort.



I can understand how FEMA was not expecting to have the type of responce they have gotten from some of the people still in New Orleans. I myself can't remember ever hearing of a situation where the victims turned on the rescuers (at least not in the states).

My posting of this article is not an endorsement of the way FEMA has handled the situation. I do think it is a point that many are glossing over though. This is not your typical relief effort. It is a massive undertaking, with many of the victims choosing to take up arms and loot rather than help their fellow man.

Related News Links:
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[edit on 9/2/2005 by yadboy]

I can understand how FEMA was not expecting to have the type of responce they have gotten from some of the people still in New Orleans. I myself can't remember ever hearing of a situation where the victims turned on the rescuers (at least not in the states).

The victims haven't turned on FEMA. This is a handful (or less) of freaked punks, and as Mayor Nagin stated, most likely drug addicts with guns.

It's this blending of the extremely small numbers of bad people doing bad things with the huge numbers of victims needing rescue that is painting a skewed picture of the situation. I believe this interview is an incompetent man's last ditch effort to save his own ass. He needs to talk a lot less into the mic, and do a lot more. Worthless bureaucrat.

The victims haven't turned on FEMA. This is a handful (or less) of freaked punks, and as Mayor Nagin stated, most likely drug addicts with guns.

You may be right, but you can't know the number of "punks" in this group. There's no doubt that anything this man says should be treated with a huge grain the salt, but until you've been on the ground in NO, you can't say what's really going on.

I work with a guy who has a close family friend that lives in NO. The guy was going around in a boat helping people off their roofs and getting them to dry land. From the number of times he was shot at, it sounded like quite a bit more than a few drug addicts w/ guns.

Police outnumbered and outgunned

Overnight, police snipers were stationed on the roof of their precinct, trying to protect it from gunmen roaming through the city, CNN's Chris Lawrence reported.

One New Orleans police sergeant compared the situation to Somalia and said officers were outnumbered and outgunned by gangs in trucks.

"It's a war zone, and they're not treating it like one," he said, referring to the federal government. (Watch the video report on explosions and gunfire -- 2:12)

The officer hitched a ride to Baton Rouge Friday morning, after working 60 hours straight in the flooded city. He has not decided whether he will return.

He broke down in tears when he described the deaths of his fellow officers, saying many had drowned doing their jobs. Other officers have turned in their badges as the situation continues to deteriorate.

In one incident, the sergeant said gunmen fired rifles and AK-47s at the helicopters flying overhead.

He said he saw bodies riddled with bullet holes, and the top of one man's head completely shot off.

Lt. Gen Steven Blum of the National Guard said that as many as 2,600 National Guard troops were expected to arrive in Louisiana Friday to join the nearly 2,000 who went in Thursday.

www.cnn.com...

[edit on 9/2/2005 by yadboy]