Several creators and members of the SEA EAT (South East Asian Earthquake And Tsunami) blog-wiki have reunited on three continents to aid in getting the word out on Hurricane Katrina.

KatrinaHelp Blog offers news and information about resources, aid, donations and volunteer efforts – no politics and opinion. I was invited to join their blogging team and provide updates as I continue to post to my own blog and the ThinkNOLA wiki.

Please use these sources of information to educate yourselves and pass them on to evacuees and remaining New Orleans residents.

From folks I talked to about a couple of hours ago:

The troops are in New Orleans. Helicopters are all over the sky and there is a marked troop presence. Apparently, the president just landed in New Orleans. (A part of me wonders if all of the helicopter coverage is solely to cover the C-in-C.) Military trucks have been sighted in the Lower Garden District and “normal people” are wandering the streets after days of them being empty.

St. Charles Ave. has been a bit scary, but they are hoping that these people will be incarcerated, allowing people to leave their homes to start the cleanup and rebuilding effort.

The French Quarter, Lower Garden District and Uptown folks have some food and water, but are hoping rations enter the city soon for troops, relief workers and residents.

After ample warnings not to let herself turn into the Florence Nightingale / Hanoi Jane of this mission, I let Mac and her friends go. What do you do when she stands her ground with, “If it makes you feel any better, I can pretend I’m leaving, but I’m not.”

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Shell: Human Resources would like anyone who knows of employees who are okay to feed their names back to HR; this is part of EP accounting of how many are still missing and reporting that number to authorities. Please contact HR at (866)745-5489.

Shell Sympathy & Support: I wouldn’t expect otherwise from my employers, but the genuine hurt and concern that radiates from their emails and voices provide much-required comfort. They are there for us. Frank Glaviano, lifelong resident of New Orleans and our American Vice-President of Production, writes:

There is not a doubt in my mind that we will work our way out of this mess and be stronger for it. We will help our employees get back on their feet, we will rebuild our affected assets, we will help the communities that are impacted and we will reopen our office in New Orleans, a place where great people deliver great results.

We are Shell, one company, one family in crisis. We are more than iron and data. We are people with great resolve and tremendous determination. We are people with beating hearts who have and will continue to reach out and help others.

This evening, nothing but relief and tears came as I talked with my manager, Cathy McRae, who gave me the concern of a mother, which she is: “Don’t report to work, get all the help you need, stay with family, be safe, and take care of your head and heart.” Her husband, children and cats are safe in Houston, but what of her Lakeview home?

Your Responsibility As A Shell Employee: Shell has 4500 employees in the areas affected by Hurricane Katrina, 1100 of whom are Exploration & Production employees. Our first priority is to locate all of our employees, to get our offshore operations assessed and repaired, and to restart production.

Therefore, unless you are critical staff involved with any of the above work, please phone in to let them know you’re well and give them phone #s, but don’t report to work just yet. Our physical and emotional wellbeing, damaged facilities and resumed production take top priority.

On Tuesday, I plan to look into volunteer efforts in Houston coordinated by Shell. Be prepared to start helping out. If you’re a Shell evacuee in Houston or would like to help out, please email me. Volunteering our time and effort is something we can and should do.

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Neighborhood Updates:

• Bruno J. of Gentilly, now in Baton Rouge, writes: “Thanks for being safe, guys. Jeanne and I are in Baton Rouge, safe and sound … the house has drowned we think, but we have insurance, our memories, and … a tear or two about the art work and all the perishables …”
• David Y. of the Garden District (riverside of St. Charles and Louisiana) writes: “I escaped N.O. yesterday, by joining a convoy to Baton Rouge then getting a flight out. I am at my parents house in Denton, TX – in shock and upset but surviving.”
• “I lived in the Garden District and we weren’t flooded. We rode out the storm and I was originally going to stay but then the water went out and it became apparent that help might not come until at least a week from now and I decided that was not good. A lot of the bad things you are seeing aren’t happening in my part of town (yet). The grocery store was looted but that’s inevitable. My hope is that the National Guard (which is finally arriving in force) will be out in the streets before the looters go from businesses to homes.”
• Dave, ByTheBayou‘s friend on Port St. in the Bywater, has left the city. His house was still ok when he left.
• Rue de la Course coffee shop, on the corner of Magazine & Race, has been trashed. The bigger Rue on Magazine seems to be fine, except for a trail of melted icecream.

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Mail Forwarding / Change Of Address: (from the WWL-TV blog): Once you land somewhere where you will stay for a bit, file a change of address with the post office. You can do this at the USPS site or by calling this number: (800) ASK-USPS.

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Help from Texas Dept. of Health & Human Services: Unfortunately, folks, this is an urban legend. I am disappointed at whomever wishes to propagate such a cruel hoax at this desperate time.

THIS IS FALSE. PLEASE DO NOT PASS IT ON!

Do you know anyone in Texas as an evacuee from any of the three states Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama? If so, the Texas Department of Health and Human Services will give them 2 months of Food Stamps with no questions asked. All they need to show is a drivers license. This agency will also give you information and locations where they can receive FREE GAS. Also, if you are housing anyone from one of these states you can call FEMA at (800)621-3362, file a claim and receive assistance for your help. This is valid information directly from TDHHS (site).

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A comprehensive, yet disheartening, article on conflicting press coverage.

Where is the aid New Orleans so badly requires?

Apologies for the online silence of this morning, but the last few hours were spent trying to calm down enough to find the words to express HOW ABSOLUTELY ENRAGED AND DISAPPOINTED WE ARE as evacuees that not one sorry act of federal coordination or concern has crystallized to alleviate conditions in our city. So far all we have are rumors of supplies, guards and relief entering New Orleans. Thank you, American leadership! This is not the time to spray vitriol at FEMA leadership, Rep. Hastert, troop support (or lack thereof) and others, but rest assured that this New Orleanian has words and votes reserved for a later date. Mayor Nagin and Gov. Blanco, my hats off to you at this time: you may not have been prepared, but we are with you in your plea to the nation.

A few states kindly offer shelter, guards and other help, but this is not enough. America needs to understand the sheer gravity of this horrible situation. We have frantic and desparate people who are shackled to New Orleans without food, water and safety. They have no way to get out thanks to rampant crime and limited access to evacuation facilities. We need to get these people out with security escorts before we can talk about repair and restoration. To borrow the words of Rep. Carolyn Kilpatrick (MI), these are American citizens, your fellow people, not refugees.

Crescent City Connection, September 1, 2005. (Ellis Lucia, nola.com)

Where are the troops? The lack of quick response to this devastation from our government is unbelievably saddening. As our mayor, Ray Nagin, just said, “Get off your asses.” We can’t “round up” mere school buses and get people out of there – every single Greyhound or tour bus in this nation should be heading down there to evacuate the stranded. Call your local bottled water company and ask them what they are doing to send shipments down to Louisiana and Mississippi.

A friend tried to pacify me, no, lend perspective with “There is no evil intent, just the usual human failings including political posturing, self aggrandizement, waffling, etc.” Well, this is not the time for it, alright? If people continue to die as the government quibbles over a $10.5 billion relief bill, the deaths of our people will be on their hands.

60% of the New Orleans police force (NOPD) is leaving due to exhaustion and not being allowed to respond in kind to shooters for fear of hitting civilians. We need relief for our overworked, hungry and shaken police force. 600 NOPD officers (and dwindling) and 250 NG troops cannot contain the derangement that is now the city of New Orleans. WHERE IS THE HELP?

If any of you personally know troops or emergency personnel heading to New Orleans, the still-dry parts of the city ought to be forcibly evacuated with security escorts. This includes people still stuck in the Garden District and Uptown portions, who are willing to leave as long as troops arrive to protect their exit path.

From D, “For me, our friends’ continued presence in New Orleans is the biggest concern. The rest is just stuff. Stuff we can fix, stuff can be replaced. Our friends cannot. If we have to get them, I think our best plan would be to beg, borrow, steal a boat and come down the river. At this point I won’t go back to New Orleans unarmed. I’m willing to take an armed crew downriver to extract those people if we have to.”

America, if you are reading this and have an iota of conscience, drop whatever it is you are doing and call whomever you know in power to help get troops and resources down there. I’m not asking, I’m begging. We need your help.

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Troops: 12:10PM CDT – I see footage of troop convoys entering the Convention Center area and armed National Guardsmen walking single-file towards the thronging masses

1:03PM CDT – Footage of troop convoys making their way down Poydras St. to Superdome and towards the river

The Fires: A building on the northwest corner of Poydras and Tchoupitoulas (lakeside/downriver – almost next door to Mother’s – across Tchops from W Hotel) is being eaten by a fire. Another fire emanates from a Westbank chemical depot right across the river from the Quarter. See nola.com article for more.

Nagin Radio Address Paraphrased: “Don’t tell me there are 40,000 troops coming when I don’t see them. Now, get off your asses and do something about the worst disaster to hit this nation.”

Just talked to Mac again and she is frustrated with the marked lack of National Guard (NG) troop presence in New Orleans. A bit angry, she wishes to be heard:

What good is the Patriot Act? Our civil liberties are limited, but without doing anything to deal with real-life emergencies. We are no more prepared to deal with emergencies now than we were 4 years ago.

The hurricane ended on Monday. It’s Thursday evening. The troops aren’t here yet. Our policemen are exhausted and are forced to find their own food and drink. They can’t keep doing this. They need help!

Pulling up the latest news, I informed Mac that Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff assured citizens that “4,200 National Guard military police would be deployed in New Orleans over the next three days, nearly quadrupling the overall law enforcement presence there” and that Governor Blanco has requested a maximum of 40,000 NG troops to assist New Orleans in the restoration of order and rescue efforts.

Folks are buoyed by the news, but can’t wait until the troops get there. Again, the Lower Garden District is safe, but if the depravity continues, it shows every sign of spilling into the quieter neighborhoods. In terms of an exit, one cannot be made if key city thoroughfares and the main way out of New Orleans are unsafe.

However, there are additional numerical inconsistencies on the part of a single news station: As I was talking with her, CNN TV announced that the NG chief in charge of Katrina says 3500 troops will be in NO by tomorrow, while the above quote places 4200 in NO in three days.

That’s 700 more in two days when a statistic from earlier today mentioned 1400 per day until the number reaches 35,000.

Hold on a minute while I ask what, in the name of tax-paying hell, is going on?

Someone needs to give us real numbers. Even better, that same someone needs to get troops into New Orleans NOW.

As I beseeched before, please pester your congresspeople about this confusion. There has never been a squeakier wheel.