Hurricane Damage Up Close
Congressman
Tom Petri
Tom Petri
September 28, 2005
We all know that Hurricane Katrina caused massive damage in Louisiana and Mississippi when it passed through on August 29, but you can't imagine the extent of the tragedy unless you've seen it for yourself. I knew that, as Chairman of the highways and transit subcommittee, I would be asked to support repairs to roads and bridges, so about three weeks after the storm I took an opportunity to tour the region.
Much has been made of the federal government's sluggish response to the storm. Clearly, we must do better, and in fact federal, state and local governments did a great deal better when Hurricane Rita landed in Texas September 24.
There's plenty of blame to go around when considering the first storm, but those who insist on quick and efficient services should see what I saw. If you fly over the Mississippi coast you will be astounded at the power of nature. The hurricane pushed ten- to 20-foot waves ten or more miles inland, sweeping everything before them, planting boats on top of buildings and wiping out bridges and causeways.
Before the hurricane, the experts had estimated that 5,000 to 10,000 people would die if a Category 4 storm hit New Orleans. Right now it appears that the final death toll for the entire region will be closer to 1,500, and for whatever reason, we should consider ourselves remarkably fortunate that so many lives were saved despite the high winds and rain, and the inconvenience, disruption and bad behavior which followed.
Now, the rebuilding is underway, but the going will be slow. Many towns are left without residents. No one has a job, no one is buying goods at the local store, nobody is paying taxes, no one is meeting his or her mortgage obligations.
In Wisconsin we can all be glad that it didn't happen here, but it will certainly affect us. The sun may shine on our state, and the crops may grow, but massive amounts of our trade travels along the Mississippi River, and our farmers especially need that waterway to be functioning efficiently.
New Orleans exists because of the Mississippi. It's the place where our agricultural products are taken off barges and loaded onto ships for sale abroad. But the port is shut down, and the people who made it run are scattered around the country. Fortunately, however, a massive recovery operation is being carried out, largely by private companies working in cooperation with the government to set up emergency housing and electricity generation.
We can be proud of the efforts to help that we have made so far. I encountered three National Guard or Reserve troops in downtown New Orleans eating lunch in front of Hera's Casino. One was a doctor from Reedsburg, WI. Another was from Sheboygan, and the third was a woman who works for UWM. They told me that instantaneously when the military showed up, the looters decided that they had to find better things to do with their time and things quieted right down.
Closer to home, an incomplete survey finds that Mercury Marine donated more than $200,000 in inflatable boats and motors to New Orleans; the City of Ripon adopted Opelousas, La. and sent clothing, food and other necessities; the Wee Care Children's Center in Omro collected toys for the children of Gulfport, MS; the Koenig & Vits company in Manitowoc received roughly 150,000 lbs. of goods for hurricane victims; and all around our area organizations big and small held charity brat fries, donated a day's sale receipts, hauled goods and opened homes to the storm's refugees.
Much has been made of the federal government's sluggish response to the storm. Clearly, we must do better, and in fact federal, state and local governments did a great deal better when Hurricane Rita landed in Texas September 24.
There's plenty of blame to go around when considering the first storm, but those who insist on quick and efficient services should see what I saw. If you fly over the Mississippi coast you will be astounded at the power of nature. The hurricane pushed ten- to 20-foot waves ten or more miles inland, sweeping everything before them, planting boats on top of buildings and wiping out bridges and causeways.
Before the hurricane, the experts had estimated that 5,000 to 10,000 people would die if a Category 4 storm hit New Orleans. Right now it appears that the final death toll for the entire region will be closer to 1,500, and for whatever reason, we should consider ourselves remarkably fortunate that so many lives were saved despite the high winds and rain, and the inconvenience, disruption and bad behavior which followed.
Now, the rebuilding is underway, but the going will be slow. Many towns are left without residents. No one has a job, no one is buying goods at the local store, nobody is paying taxes, no one is meeting his or her mortgage obligations.
In Wisconsin we can all be glad that it didn't happen here, but it will certainly affect us. The sun may shine on our state, and the crops may grow, but massive amounts of our trade travels along the Mississippi River, and our farmers especially need that waterway to be functioning efficiently.
New Orleans exists because of the Mississippi. It's the place where our agricultural products are taken off barges and loaded onto ships for sale abroad. But the port is shut down, and the people who made it run are scattered around the country. Fortunately, however, a massive recovery operation is being carried out, largely by private companies working in cooperation with the government to set up emergency housing and electricity generation.
We can be proud of the efforts to help that we have made so far. I encountered three National Guard or Reserve troops in downtown New Orleans eating lunch in front of Hera's Casino. One was a doctor from Reedsburg, WI. Another was from Sheboygan, and the third was a woman who works for UWM. They told me that instantaneously when the military showed up, the looters decided that they had to find better things to do with their time and things quieted right down.
Closer to home, an incomplete survey finds that Mercury Marine donated more than $200,000 in inflatable boats and motors to New Orleans; the City of Ripon adopted Opelousas, La. and sent clothing, food and other necessities; the Wee Care Children's Center in Omro collected toys for the children of Gulfport, MS; the Koenig & Vits company in Manitowoc received roughly 150,000 lbs. of goods for hurricane victims; and all around our area organizations big and small held charity brat fries, donated a day's sale receipts, hauled goods and opened homes to the storm's refugees.
Print
Email
