Posted on 09/04/2005 7:22:25 PM PDT by chet_in_ny
Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Sunday that the federal government's handling of Hurricane Katrina has been "inadequate," and said more aid, including police officers and firefighters, was en route to Louisiana.
The Republican mayor, who usually treads carefully when it comes to commenting on the Bush administration, told reporters that the president himself was aware of the government's failings.
"It would appear, and I think the president acknowledged, that the federal government's response has been inadequate," Bloomberg told reporters at City Hall.
Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said 150 police officers, plus support vehicles, were to leave for the region Monday, in addition to 172 officers sent on Saturday. The mayor said some police officers will be federalized, which gives them the same powers as local authorities "to provide much needed law enforcement to keep people safe in and around New Orleans."
Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta said the Federal Emergency Management Agency on Sunday requested 300 New York firefighters. They were to leave Monday to help fight fires and search for survivors. He said hundreds of firefighters had already volunteered before they were asked.
"We received many inquiries from our people about what they could do and could they volunteer," Scoppetta said.
The new wave of rescue workers joins an urban search and rescue team of police, firefighters and city emergency personnel already sent to the South, plus three Fire Department chiefs highly trained in disaster management.
Transit workers and buses were also dispatched to help move survivors from New Orleans to Dallas and Little Rock, Ark.
Bloomberg, who was elected to his first term less than two months after the Sept. 11 attack as fires still raged in the World Trade Center ruins, said New York officials have much to offer — not only in aid, but also experience.
"Some things they probably haven't thought about, but they're things that we know you might need," he said.
One lesson New York has learned, he said, is that officials should be tending to victims at the same time as they are collecting information about the disaster, and not afterward. Those who respond to disasters should be well-trained and able to respond immediately based on what they encounter, he said.
Bloomberg said he has reached out to New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin, but has not been able to get in touch. He did speak with Mayor Bill White of Houston, where thousands of refugees are being sent.
Bloomberg said he is confident in New York City's disaster preparedness because of "highly motivated, highly skilled people that cooperate, that practice and that have the communications and tranportation facilities that they will need."
"New York's level of sophistication in terms of planning and the ability to deal with crises I think is excellent, and we're always trying to make it better."
Let me add something else here. These buses would be functional again after changing all the fluids. Additionally, it'd be wise (imperitave actually) to remove the spark plugs or injector nozzles if they are diesel and turn them over a few times to displace any water that got into the cylinders. After that, these babies will crank up and go.
Let's see how long it takes New Orleans to figure that one out. If they don't, somebody will get some nice buses really cheap.
The Mayor of NOLA is an incompetent crack addict who has no room to complain.
But yes, Bloomberg has reasons to blast this everywhere.... gotta like political axes to grind.
Perfect
Let me say thanks again for doing so
You have to be a residemt of the precinct your voting in to vote for a democrat? Somebody better break the news to the graveyard occupants in Chicago that their votes won't be needed this year in Baltimore.
I think I have known that New Orleans was below sea level for 25 of my 35 years on this earth. I understood, at age 10, that if a big storm hit New Orleans, it could likely wipe it off the map. Considering that this was public knowledge, why do people feel the need to blame President Bush?
There have been 4 Presidents and countless Governors of Louisiana and Mayors of New Orleans that could have prepared for this eventuality. None of them did enough. The only difference between Bush and the other presidents is that Bush is the current president. Bush has as much blame here as, say, Clinton does, which is to say he has none.
Lets put it this way. Everyone knows Los Angeles is on a huge fault line. Should President Bush demand that billions of dollars be spent in preperation for "The Big One" that destroys LA? Of course not. This is exactly what President Bush's critics are blaming him for.
The Mayor of New Orleans is a joke for blaming the President. Maybe he should show some backbone and LEAD. The Governor is no better.
The Mayor of LA, the Governor of California, they had best pay close attention. If it were me, I would get crackin'.
Good article. I've been saying pretty much the same thing for the past several days. This all reminded me of the riots in LA when the products of our welfare state were shooting at Firemen and paramedics that were responding to fires and those wounded.
Is that 1.2 buses and 145 miles to the Superdome, or is it the other way around? Democrats want to know for sure./sarc
Superdome was protected from the flood I guess. I didn't hear any reports of it flooding. the Super Dome parking lot above all of that as well I suspect.
Why didn't you deploy these buses Mayor?
This is a good time to call for a 'Katrina Commission' hearings.
The Governor rejected help until New Orleans was flooded. PS they are not wiped out, they're wet and the local government is whimpering. For wiped out see Biloxi.
How many refugees has NYC agreed to temporarily house? Several TX cities are giving up convention dollars to meet the needs of this disaster, why can't NYC?
What was the first picture? Have you an alternative link?
Who would have predicted that the murder capitol of the US with a murder rate ten times the US average would have a problem with disintigration of public order?
The RINO Mayor of New York City. This sounds like a CYA article.
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