Tuesday, September 06, 2005 How did Wisconsin Gets Buses to N.O in 24 Hrs? Minnesota Public Radio: On Sat evening, a bus packed with water, food, diapers and other supplies left South Minneapolis for the Gulf Coast. The bus, dubbed the "Caravan of Hope," was operated by a group of community, activist, religious and political groups, who formed the MN Coalition to Aid Hurricane Katrina Survivors. The bus will return Mon evening and organizers say it will be filled w/ 51 evacuees from the Gulf Coast. Door County Compass: Christie Weber of WS felt compelled to get off her ass (just as N.O.Mayor Nagin had pleaded to the media) so she did. She rented 4 buses, got volunteers, and they got there... in 24 hrs! And get this, this concerned citizen did more than FEMA could or would: "She picked up the phone and started calling local charter bus companies. By 6 AM she discovered that there was an abundance of vehicles ready and waiting to be deployed - if and when they were called upon. But, until now no one had called. All of the charter bus companies had already signed on with FEMA several days earlier, and they were just waiting for a call back regarding financial reimbursement, a destination and an approved route." Nice to see that an $8000 bus wasn't used by FEMA or DHS when it was ready and waiting, huh? |