Houston Day 4
Suggested by personnel at the Astrocity command center, quickly adapted and amplified by the Mayor, County Judge, Governor, and now the President of the United States, we are charged with IMPLEMENTING by Monday morning a plan which is rapidly developing. That is to rapidly add action to the initial hope by combining a distribution plan across the United States, and have Houston being the West Side (Highway 10) receiving and redirection center.
Dozens of cities in Texas and hundreds of cities in other states, such as Utah, Michigan, etc. will set up small dignified shelters, and immediately have a community based job fair, skills training, and economy building programs. It can and will work. I spent several hours on the floor talking to multiple displaced persons today and asked them about their reaction, and they were to a man and woman eager to do it. They stated, "When can we start?" This will require us to move quickly an keep buses moving west, north, etc. after our initial registration, medical screen, bath, blanket, hot meal and tetanus shot, etc. and send on to cities who have developed their own customized programs. The will become a thousand points of hope and rebuilding.
PLEASE JOIN ME AND OTHERS THROUGHOUT THIS COUNTRY IN PROVIDING LEADERSHIP IN YOUR COMMUNITY TO NOW REBUILD AMERICA, So, you do not need to head to Houston, New Orleans, or other places for medical voyeurism, but spend your energies, and those of your eager nurses and medics to be part of this magnificent wave of opportunity.
THIS TRAIN IS MOVING AND ABOUT TO LEAVE THE STATION. Do not be left behind.
Houston Day 6
I have just come out of the floor of our now third huge shelter for displaced persons. I have tears in my eyes at the outpouring of concern and detailed organization to give showers, medical care, new cloths, shoes, toys, education classes, job corps, multi city people distribution and HOPE to people who were in a survival mode 3 days ago. This WILL happen ! I saw smiles, kids laughing and kids playing soccer, full of glee with hot food and cool drink in their tummy
Houston Day 8
Today marks the 105th anniversary of the Great un named hurricane in Galveston! This next Sunday is the anniversary of 9/11 disaster in New York and Washington DC.
I have had additional time to diplomatically express thoughts about today in Houston.
We have reduced the villages in our AstroCity by one today, and at the Astrodome complex had additional 2000 persons placed today, but had 2500 come in (mainly to expedite getting their $2000 FEMA check). At the downtown Convention center we still have only 1400 citizens. UTHSCH manages the health care at that location and they have focused on developing a "multi-specialty clinic". At the Astroworld health clinic, Baylor physicians run this site with a basic community health clinic concept. We are now seeing chronic toothaches, bursitis, etc. The diarrhea rate continues to decrease. CDC is disappointed that we have successfully anticipated, contained and eliminated the epidemic that over more people than I can count. After all this kind of thing is what they live for. Our census is markedly reduced and we are going to scale back and plan to be totally immobilized by September 18.
I have seen a definite change in attitude of the citizens. Two days ago, there was a huge friendliness and twinkle in the eyes and a "tent meeting" kind of enthusiasm to turn ones life around. I was very encouraged. We enrolled all children in school (grades 1-12) today.
Then apparently someone in FEMA and Red Cross decided that rather than our recommended presentation of transition seed money as people left the shelter with a job, they just began to give checks, vouchers, and debit cards. The things this new found money was spent on would not make you proud. At least in some of the people. I certainly hope that many will use this money wisely. However, as word went out, thousands of Louisiana citizens, who are not citizens of the Astrocities shelter, appeared at 8 AM today and for 3 hours we had traffic gridlock around the Reliant stadiums. Remember our initial charge was to receive many people by bus, but the traffic jam was from cars with Louisiana license tags. Something does not compute here. We went on a total lockdown, No one in, no one out.
However, we have last night and today been presented with a NEW depressing psychosocial problem. I have seen a significant change in attitude from an eagerness to now elevate their lives, to an attitude to ask for a hand out, and wait for the next handout. The police in the hall and dome have also sensed this change. The social improvement program that we had so carefully orchestrated has had a temporary hiccough due to an action which was not develop by our LOCAL joint command. I am recommending strongly that this misunderstanding of the social psychology of a patient group, by FEMA and Red Cross, be reanalyzed for future disasters. I have talked today to social psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, police officers, and community leaders, and there is a poor understanding of the logic of the FEMA process. Do not get me wrong. I am very much in favor of having seed money, transition money, salary supplemental money, etc. The citizens of AstroCity had all the cloths donated they could wear, lots of food, etc. etc. etc.
Today, one local Furniture Store owner, came and made an announcement that he had made 60 jobs as truck drivers, furniture loaders, etc, and would give the first month's check today to those who would come with him. Six persons responded, because they wanted their FEMA check, with NO work required. I read that today FEMA has distributed $17,000,000 dollars. I hope and pray that this was transition and seed money for those who have stepped out of shelters and into a job in some Texas community. Somehow those of us who are in the midst of the real time up close and personal aspect of disaster must get the message to agencies like FEMA, that there are ways to use their money to encourage productivity, and ways to assure a continuing welfare state. The methods used today by FEMA is an example of the later. I have heard doctors at other shelters that this same reversal of a mental state has also been experienced.
As we on these lists developed a social responsibility and action, we can also develop a composite voice on how best to encourage evacuees under our charge to be functional members of society. We must communicate with our local and federal agencies, how NOT to continue to encourage a welfare state. Such an attitude becomes a self fulfilling prophecy. This hiccough we experienced today has been one of two hiccoughs, and neither was initiated by our joint command. I am convinced more than ever that the governance of ALL disaster activation and continuance is LOCAL. Should transition to state or federal governance be required, we on this list need to see the logic and proforma of such and be able to critique such for effectiveness, logic, and ability to accomplish the focused mission of the local joint command. Should there be a need for federal assistance, I would STRONGLY recommend that your local plans structure that such assistance are decisions locally, and be discussed at the local command staff, prior to implementation. Much more of this in the after action reports which I am sure that many of us on this list from many cities will be invited to participate in.
I have a long list of issues relating to environmental health, safety in shelters, clothing distribution. locations of staging (triage) sites, transportation to clinics, location of clinic within a shelter, staffing, etc. but I am getting sleepy right now. |
