A survivor of Hurricane Katrina, from New Orleans, La., told me last week that after the hurricane hit, she called the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s hotline (1 800 621-FEMA) daily, and every day, the FEMA workers would ask her for news, and give her an update on the red tape her disaster aid request was tied up in.
This appears to have been an all-too-common occurrence for hurricane victims, which led someone affected by Hurricane Rita in Texas to express the opinion that…
Seen outside a house on highway 96 between Jasper and Beaumont, Texas.
(Photo credit: Charles Stricklin)
Have you had a bad experience with FEMA? Tell us about it.
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Rose Red
Oct 16, 2005
My parents are both registered nurses. When the OKC bombing happened, my dad was there within hours, putting himself at the disposal of the Red Cross. He just showed up, said “what do you need me to do”. They needed someone to feed the workers. He never complained. He flipped hamburgers for 36 hours straight before going back home to get some sleep, then came back and did it again. He didn’t say “I’M A NURSE! I CAN DO MORE THAN FLIP HAMBURGERS!” He said “what do you need” and then he did it. (They _did_ know that he was a nurse, but as the news reported many times, every nurse and many, many doctors, in that area of Oklahoma showed up to help damn near before the fire trucks were even there.)
So when the New Orleans disaster happened, my dad stepped up. Or tried to. He was told by the Red Cross that “they would call him”. They never called. FEMA? Same reply. “We’ll call you.” Same with every aid association he tried to help.
The really troubling thing about this is, he’s NOT the only one that this happened to. Our local newspaper is filled with letters to the editor relating similar responses to their offers of help.
With so many willing to help, why were they all turned away?
Yes, FEMA is a joke. They took able bodies and helping hands and turned them away. I am sure the people who lost their homes, loved ones, all of their possessions, their pets, and their lives, would have been so pleased.
Rebecca
Oct 27, 2005
We were told that if your home owners insurance would not cover damage caused by Hurricane Rita or if your home owners insurance did not cover it all they would cover the gap. What a lie! Our request for assistance was denied and we were told to apply for a load from the SBA even though we are homeowners. If I could afford a loan, I would have borrowed money from the bank.
Allison
Nov 15, 2005
We got plenty of damage from Rita when she she tore through Beaumont Texas. We lost half of our roof, our couch was destroyed, we got mold on the walls,ceilings,destroyed the computer desk, a few of the baby items we had for the baby, we had to get rid of the carpet because we had mold growing in every room. I am due to go into labor any day and then I get a letter from FEMA saying we didn’t get enough damage for help. Thats BS!! We still have mold behind our walls because we can’t clean behind them and I have had 2 asthma attacks because of this. We have no choice but to live here because there are no homes that we can afford and no housing is available. We had to drive back and forth from Beaumont to Huntingon Texas every other day just so we could cealn it as best as we could so we could live in it until we could repair it. How can you bring a newborn baby into a house with mold? Yes, a great bunch of people we have running the country. The man who came out and looked at the house only took a picture pf the roof. He didn’t include all of our furniture we had to throw away because of the mold growing on it and the many trips I made driving back and forth to repair my house. I’m not the only one who is pretty upset with the way we are getting thrown to the side. No one asked to be put into this situation and it’s really unfair how we are being treated.
Jan 04, 2006
Chertoff: I’m “retooling FEMA” - Homeland Security or Homeland Stupidity
Jun 05, 2006
What’s an essential government service? - Homeland Stupidity
chris childs
Jan 19, 2007
WHEN YOUR LEADERS PUT FEMA UNDER HOMELAND SECURITY
THEY TOOK THE CASH AND RAN ……LOL
HOW CAN ANYONE WORK WITH EMPTY POCKETS
WAKE UP AMERICA YOUR GOVERMNET DOES NOT CARE ANYMORE
ITS UP TO ALL OF US TO HELP EACH OTHER>………
Feb 14, 2007
FEMA goes on hiring spree - Homeland Stupidity
May 11, 2007
Bureaucrat Appreciation Week - Homeland Stupidity
Zeitgeist
Sep 19, 2007
google the movie zeitgeist, it explains everything and opens your eyes to how the govt is run by the world bank and federal reserve system! all they want is more money because money = power, so putting FEMA in control of these situations takes your eye off the people who SHOULD be helping out their country and focuses all the blame on an inept system we like to call FEMA!
Greg
Oct 26, 2007
FEMA is a joke. Regardless of the disaster the aid is never distributed as it should be. Part of a mountain slid off into our back yard a few years back due to heavy rains. It messed up our grass and some of the vinyl siding on our house. FEMA stepped in to help and they only paid for the clean up, not to the damage done to our yard, house, or to secure the mountain so it wouldn’t slip again. Other people were given MORE than enough to fix their property. Today, 5 years later that mountain still sits there wit no braces holding it up and is beginning to slide out from under the roadway. The funny thing is, the mountain slipped in the first place because the drain pipe was damaged by the government earlier in the year by a heavy equipment operator cleaning it out.