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CNN Live At Daybreak
President Bush Plans Return Trip to Gulf Coast Region
Aired September 05, 2005 - 06:29 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANNOUNCER: From the Time Warner center in New York, this is DAYBREAK with Carol Costello and Chad Myers.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning to you. Thank you for waking up with us.
The NAACP has an idea to help victims of Hurricane Katrina to get back on their feet.
Also coming up this half-hour, signs of fatigue for the New Orleans Police Department with sometimes tragic consequences.
And Louisiana parishes struggle to get back to business.
But first, "Now in the News."
President Bush plans a return trip to the Gulf Coast region. The president plans to review relief efforts in both Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and Poplarville, Mississippi.
The body of Chief Justice William Rehnquist will lie in repose for two days at the Supreme Court. Rehnquist, who died Saturday, will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery on Wednesday afternoon.
Dozens are feared dead after a passenger plane crashed into a residential area in Indonesia. There were 117 passengers and crew on board the Mandela Airlines plane.
To the forecast center now.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Mission critical. Here's a quick look at the latest in the hurricane zone. Police in New Orleans have been stretched to the limit. The city's mayor says he's looking for a way to rotate officers out of the city after two of them committed suicide.
Hundreds of thousands of meals have already been given out at Louisiana distribution centers. They've also passed out more than 600,000 bottles of water.
In Mississippi, a group of about 100 doctors and paramedics are looking for a place to go. One of the doctors from North Carolina says the government hasn't been able to decide where to send them.
A rescue helicopter crashed while patrolling New Orleans. There were no evacuees on board, and no one was injured in the crash. Four planeloads of hurricane victims have landed on Phoenix, Arizona. They were given food and water before being sent to a shelter set up at Veterans Memorial Coliseum.
And progress is being made on repairing the levees. Two pump stations in New Orleans may start draining the city as early as today.
In the meantime, police shot and killed several gunmen who fired on a group of contractors who were working on those levees.
Desperate hurricane survivors in Mississippi are finally getting shipments of relief aid, and the cleanup effort is slogging forward.
CNN's Chris Huntington joins us from hard-hit Biloxi, Mississippi, on what's going on there this morning.
Hello -- Chris.
CHRIS HUNTINGTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol.
Well, I'm standing in front of what used to be a hotel and a casino. More on that in just a second.
Let me just give you an update on some of the details here in coastal Mississippi.
Hailey Barbour, the governor of Mississippi, is now putting the official death toll at 167. There certainly will be more, local officials say. That they're continuing what they're call search and rescue, but they concede that that is essentially an effort to find those that may still be trapped and likely deceased in the rubble that remains particularly west of here.
I'm in Biloxi, which is about the middle of the coast or the eastern sector of the coast. You go a bit west from here and the damage is considerably worse.
Folks are getting food, ice, water, basic supplies. Much of that coming in by the way of donations from people all over America. We've heard about convoys of relief goods, organized by church groups coming down here, and that is good news for the folks here.
The streets are being cleared. Power is beginning to be restored. Mississippi Power says that they believe they have restored power to about 24 percent, so about a quarter of the customers right along the coast. That is good news.
The military presence here is, frankly, impressive. Just down the beach from us here, there's an amphibious Navy unit.
The good thing about this, frankly, is that it calms people down. Every extra bit of law enforcement and military presence on the streets is restoring order, and it's just getting people to, frankly, chill out, as one officer put it. And that is good news.
Increasing checkpoints, though, do make travel up and down the coast a bit more difficult.
Now, it's Labor Day, time to celebrate work. Well, that's a sore question here in coastal Mississippi, which is an area that depends largely on the casino industry, which has been absolutely completely wiped out. It is a huge contributor to the state coffers here in Mississippi. Conservatively, about $100 million a year go to state tax revenues from the casino business. Then you get into the ancillary businesses of hotels and restaurants, and all of that for 75 miles has been wiped clean.
There's a big debate here in Mississippi about whether you even rebuild the casino business on the coast, because it will be vulnerable again. A huge debate about whether you go land-based, and that means do you allow casinos across the state. That's the talk in the streets right now, because most of the folks in Biloxi either worked for the casino industry or worked in an industry that feeds off of the casino industry.
So, that's the chatter on the streets here today -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Chris Huntington reporting live from Biloxi, Mississippi, this morning.
A week after Hurricane Katrina slammed into the Gulf Coast, people are still shaking their heads in disbelief, still trying to fathom how such a disaster can happen in this country. As one official in the region said, this is our tsunami.
Can such international disasters provide a blueprint for Katrina relief efforts?
Joining us to talk about that is Mark Bartolini, a team coordinator with the International Rescue Committee in Baton Rouge.
Good morning, sir.
MARK BARTOLINI, INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE: Good morning, Carol.
COSTELLO: How many people from the International Red Cross are on the ground?
BARTOLINI: Well, the International Rescue Committee, we have about seven staff currently on the ground.
COSTELLO: And what is their role?
BARTOLINI: Right now, we're working through the Baton Rouge area foundations, providing technical assistance to them. We're bringing in materials on rapid assessments, how we conduct them in the field, and we're also conducting our own assessments.
COSTELLO: You were in Banda Aceh when the tsunami hit, right?
BARTOLINI: Our organization was, yes.
COSTELLO: How does this compare to what's happened in the Gulf Coast of America?
BARTOLINI: Well, there certainly are some parallels in terms of the loss that people have suffered, the trauma that they've gone though, and the scale of this as compared to what happened in Banda Aceh. The numbers are very hard to nail down right now, but it's clear that there's well over a million people that have been displaced from their homes.
What separates it is the infrastructure and the assets that at hand to deal with the problem.
COSTELLO: In other words, you're saying at least we have better shelters to go to...
BARTOLINI: I think we have better support networks that are set up. The problem right now is one of coordination and information. There is a lack of both. And that's made marshaling those assets (INAUDIBLE) difficult.
COSTELLO: Well, let's talk about that, because a lot of people have said that things were a lot more organized after the tsunami hit than after the hurricane hit in the United States. What is your assessment?
BARTOLINI: I think that's true. There are international -- there are structures that are created in every international crisis that have a lot of time to develop over many crises. But those are with international organizations. And with the national organizations here in the U.S., I don't think as much thought was put into how to create that quickly. I'm sure it will be developed over time, but it taking -- it is going fairly slowly.
Having said that, with all of the chaos that's going on right now, no one can expect that it's going to be managed well quickly, and it will take time.
COSTELLO: But shouldn't such a plan have been formulated before such -- I mean, shouldn't a plan be in place for this sort of catastrophic disaster?
BARTOLINI: Well, I don't think anybody is going to argue the point, given the images we've seen on TV and what I'm seeing here on the ground that much more could have been done on that front. But I still think there's an urgency to get this done quickly, and it's unclear how quickly these structures will be put in place.
COSTELLO: But you are managing to still help people even though the structures are not in place as of yet.
BARTOLINI: That's correct. But I don't think we're being as effective as we could be without that critical information that all responders need.
COSTELLO: Mark Bartolini from the International Rescue Committee joining us live this morning from Baton Rouge. Thanks so much. Still to come on DAYBREAK, the NAACP sees similarities between the victims of Hurricane Katrina and the families of 9/11. We'll examine that.
And some Louisiana parishes are trying to get the government's attention. It's not just New Orleans that's suffering. Some insights a little later.
But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Monday.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Wall Street is closed for the Labor Day holiday, but international markets are trading. Tokyo's Nikkei up 34 points, the London FTSE up just a little, almost 2 points, the German DAX up 30.
Your news, money, weather and sports. It's 6:43 Eastern. Here's what's all new this morning.
The body of Chief Justice William Rehnquist will lie in repose for two days at the Supreme Court. Rehnquist, who died on Saturday, will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery.
In money news, a subsidiary of Halliburton has a contract to fix several military facilities damaged by Hurricane Katrina. Kellogg, Brown & Root Services will get around $17 million to make repairs. The company was awarded the natural disaster cleanup contract in July.
In culture, a stamp honoring reclusive film star Greta Garbo will be released later this month. It's a joint effort between the Swedish and U.S. Postal Services. And in case you're wondering, the 37 cent stamp will cost you 2.7 Swedish croners (ph).
In sports, the New Orleans Saints will not be back to the battered Superdome anytime soon. They moved their September 18 home opener against the Giants to Giant Stadium in New Jersey. Baton Rouge and San Antonio are among the many cities being discussed as future venues.
To the forecast center.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: That's a look at the latest headlines.
The NAACP is calling for a compensation fund for Hurricane Katrina victims. The NAACP's president, Bruce Gordon, says the Katrina relief effort should be held up to the same standards of the 9/11 recovery.
The Reverend Jesse Jackson echoed similar sentiments. He argues the storm victims are not only a casualty of the hurricane, but of inadequate preparation by the government.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) REV. JESSE JACKSON, CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVIST: We don't have a federal emergency plan to coordinate communications. And so, we've separated mothers from fathers from parents, the sick from the well, the old from the young. It still really is a rather chaotic situation. There has been some movement in the last two days. But use 9/11 as a benchmark. We have no victims' relief fund, which would help these victims as we did on 9/11. We have no -- we have not asked UNICEF for help, and they could help.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Now, just to put things into perspective, here's an idea of a compensation fund for 9/11 victims. Justice Department figures show, death claims range from a quarter-million dollars to $7 million. Personal injury claims went from a half-million dollars to more than $8.5 million. The average settlement was a little more than $1 million.
We've been asking you the DAYBREAK e-mail question of the morning on whether you agree with Jesse Jackson. Hopefully, we'll get to more of your responses a little later in the show.
Coming up, Louisiana's hard-hit parishes struggle to get back to business. How much longer must residents wait? Some insights when we return.
You're watching DAYBREAK for Monday.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Along the Gulf Coast, relief is mixed with anger. Relief over the help that finally arrived, but anger over the time it took to coordinate the federal response. The New Orleans "Times- Picayune" ran a scathing editorial. It not only criticized the federal response, it demanded that FEMA officials be fired, specifically Director Michael Brown.
It says: "We're angry, Mr. President, and we'll be angry long after our beloved city and surrounding parishes have been pumped dry. Our people deserved rescuing. Many who could have been were not. That's to the government's shame."
That sentiment was echoed by Jefferson parish President Aaron Broussard, as he explained how a colleague's mother waited days to be rescued.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
AARON BROUSSARD, PRES., JEFFERSON PARISH, LOUISIANA: The guy who runs this building I'm in, the emergency management, he's responsible for everything, his mother was trapped in Saint Bernard Nursing Home. And every day she called him and said, "Are you coming, son? Is somebody coming?" And he said, "Yes, mama, somebody is coming to get you. Somebody is coming to get you on Tuesday. Somebody is coming to get you on Wednesday. Somebody is coming to get you on Thursday. Somebody is coming to get you on Friday." And she drowned on Friday night! She drowned on Friday night.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. President...
BROUSSARD: Nobody is coming to get us. Nobody is coming to get us. The secretary has promised. Everybody has promised. They've had press conferences. I'm -- I'm sick of the press conferences. For God sakes, shut up and send us somebody!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: And it's difficult to watch, but you can see that kind of despair all over southern Louisiana. Jefferson parish is letting its evacuated residents back in this morning. That's a bit of good news.
But in nearby St. Tammany parish, people are still being told to stay out.
Joining us now is Captain James Hartman of the St. Tammany Sheriff's Office.
Good morning, sir.
CAPT. JAMES HARTMAN, ST. TAMMANY'S PARISH SHERIFF'S OFFICE: Good morning.
COSTELLO: Did you hear Mr. Broussard?
HARTMAN: I did.
COSTELLO: Are there similar stories where you are?
HARTMAN: I think there are similar stories everywhere in the affected area. You know, I can point to difficulties we've had here with slow response. I'm not, however, focusing on that at this point. Right now, we're still consolidating our efforts here.
I will say that the local response here orchestrated by the parish president and the sheriff, my boss, along with the municipal government, has been faster, more effective and generally better handled than what we've received from the federal government.
COSTELLO: How have you managed to do that?
HARTMAN: Well, every time a tropical storm has entered the Gulf of Mexico in the last few years, the parish president has activated this emergency operation center. We've had extensive drilling here. And that has prepared us well to respond to these things. And we have essentially a war room set up with liaisons from everything from hospitals to utility providers.
So, I really am proud of the way we've been able to respond. Naturally, we want to move faster. Everybody wants us to move faster. And, yes, we are still asking people to stay away.
The southeast corner of our parish -- our parish is 900 square miles north of New Orleans. The southeast corner was devastated by catastrophic flooding. Thousands and thousands of homes gone. And the rest of the parish was severely damaged by wind and fallen trees and power lines. It's no exaggeration to say that, you know, in the immediate aftermath of this storm, there were trees and power lines down on literally every street in the parish.
So, we've been practically begging our residents who evacuated to stay away. And the parish president even last week urged people who are here who can leave to do so.
COSTELLO: Are there...
HARTMAN: As a sign of how bad it is, the superintendent of schools is telling evacuees to enroll their children wherever they are.
COSTELLO: Oh. Are there still people there waiting to be rescued?
HARTMAN: Rescue was affected very quickly. We have a large fleet of watercraft here in this parish operated by the sheriff. And we were able to affect the rescue of hundreds of people in the first few days after the storm who were either stranded on their rooftops or in upper stories of their house or simply trapped in their neighborhoods and unable to leave. But we pulled hundreds of people out of the water.
And as recently as Friday, we were recovering people in Lake Pontchartrain who had gotten on boats in St. Bernard parish or Plaquemines parish and had essentially paddled this direction.
COSTELLO: You make it seem like the morale is very good in your parish. We've heard of the problems that the New Orleans Police Department -- two have committed suicide, 200 have not shown up for work for various reasons. What's the morale like at the Sheriff's Department? And if it's better, why do you think that is?
HARTMAN: Well, the morale here is certainly better than what they're facing in South Shore, because we don't -- we're not having the crime problem that they are having. Our citizens have responded very well to this. Most citizens obeyed the evacuation order issued prior to the storm. Citizens who remained have been patient and appreciative of the response they've received. And they know we're all working around the clock, you know, hardly resting at all to make sure their needs are met. And that's fine. That's not a complaint. That's what we do.
COSTELLO: But most people -- is it fair to say that most people where you are were able to evacuate? They had the means.
HARTMAN: Probably most people in the mandatory evacuation area were able to evacuate, yes. And many simply chose not to.
COSTELLO: Captain James Hartman, I wish we could continue. Hopefully, you will join us again. Thank you very much for joining DAYBREAK this morning. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: "Now in the News."
President Bush heads back to the Gulf Coast this morning to see how hurricane relief operations are going. It will be his second visit to the region in four days.
The body of Chief Justice William Rehnquist will lie in repose at the Supreme Court tomorrow and Wednesday. And he'll be buried Wednesday in Arlington National Cemetery. Rehnquist died Saturday. He was 80.
An Indonesian jetliner crashed into a residential neighborhood during takeoff today on the island of Sumatra; 117 people were on board that plane. There are reports at least six survived, but it's feared an unknown number of people on the ground were killed.
International oil prices have started to come down to near pre- Katrina levels. That's in reaction to a decision by the world leaders to release 60 million barrels of emergency oil stocks to ease the fuel crisis in the United States. Oil is now at just over $64 a barrel.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: From the Time Warner center in New York, I'm Carol Costello. "AMERICAN MORNING" starts right now.
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