U.S. Gulf Coast States Enter Recovery Stage to Rebuild Lives
Feeding operations in the Gulf Coast region are scaling back and relief workers are just beginning to enter the long-term recovery phase of rebuilding the broken communities.
Feeding operations in the Gulf Coast region are scaling back and relief workers are just beginning to enter the long-term recovery phase of rebuilding the broken communities.
After serving a record 12 million meals to hurricane victims in the past 10 weeks, Southern Baptist Relief workers have seen a steady decline of meals served as communities return to their "semblance of self-reliance," said Jim Burton, director of the Southern Baptist Disaster Relief center at the North American Mission Board, according to the NAMB.
As evacuees try to return to their normal lives, many are still urging for federal aid in efforts to rebuild the community.
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The Federal Emergency Management Agency announced on Tuesday a deadline to have evacuees move out of hotels and into mobile homes or apartments until they find permanent homes. FEMA set the date at Dec. 1.
While some evacuees say the time is sufficient, others, still searching for housing and whose federally funded hotel rooms will no longer be available by December, express concern over the deadline. Around 51,000 people in Texas are still in hotels and motels.
As time runs out, New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin is urging Congress for aid for affected homeowners who might not return to the city. The proposed Louisiana Recovery Corporation bill would provide for community restoration and benefit city residents, most of whom are poor and black.
The United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR), meanwhile, is providing long-term assistance through a federally-funded program called Katrina Aid Today. While direct aid is not provided, the case management program helps families devise a plan of action to resolve such unmet needs as housing, employment and healthcare to advance the recovery process. Katrina Aid, funded by FEMA, is designed to serve 300,000 persons over the course of about two years.
For more information on Katrina Aid Today, visit katrinaaidtoday.org
