It's not well known, but FEMA hires temporary federal employees to do the same kind of disaster work as the Red Cross has been doing for years; disaster assessment and casework. I am not sure of how to get into these jobs, as FEMA never told me how I got onto their lists; I suspect it was CERT training.

If you are interesting in being on the list for responding to incidents like Katrina this is information on how to get involved.

Does anyone here have any experience with the Citizen Corps. Having watched two disasters like this in the US in recent memory its hard to sit on the sidelines and let other people deal with it...

Boing Boing: Federal temporary jobs in disaster recovery, a HOWTO

President George W. Bush said federal relief efforts in Gulf states ravaged by Hurricane Katrina are so far are "not acceptable.''

NOLA mayor agrees. WTF is FEMA doing?!

Bush blasts releif efforts

This wiki was setup to factor the tons of random bits of information flowing out of New Orleans in totally disorganized chunks, and being repeated around the internet in various forms.

Scanner feeds are here.

Main Page - NOLA-Intel Katrina Wiki

"We have a tendency to think of terrorism as (foreign born)," said U.S. Attorney Debra Yang. "And this is a very stark reminder that it can be ... local and homegrown."

Four indicted in alleged terrorist plot against LA-area targets

We just heard a couple of gunshots go off. There's a building smoldering a block away. People are picking through whatever is left in the stores right now. They are walking the streets because they have nowhere else to go.

The convention center is a place that people were told to go to because it would be safe. In fact, it is a scene of anarchy.

There is absolutely nobody in control. There is no National Guard, no police, no information to be had.

Fucking Nuts!

CNN.com - 'A scene of anarchy' - Sep 1, 2005

I've been moving and dumping 55 gallon drums all day. It's back breaking work, but it's a good thing I've got a strong back. I haven't fooled with that much diesel since I was on shit-burning detail in the first Gulf War. I used to volunteer for it because it meant I could skip morning formation. Never been much of a garrison soldier. I was always a field soldier.

So here at Outpost Crystal, we're set pretty good. Thanks for the heads up on the 12-15 feet of water that you guys are telling me I can expect in the CBD tomorrow. That's fine, I'm trained for water operations too. I appreciate all the recommendations, but we're not going.

Exmilitary guy who runs a datacenter in a tower in NOLA is still there and his systems are operational! He has a Livejournal and several cam feeds running. In a way I think all this effort and risk to keep some computers running is a bit silly. On the otherhand, this is absolutely the most hard core systems administration that I have ever heard of.

The Interdictor: Admining in Hell

Voluntary organizations are seeking cash donations to assist victims of Hurricane Katrina in Gulf Coast states, according to Michael D. Brown, Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Emergency Preparedness and Response.

Here is a list of organizations who are working on relief efforts in the Gulf.

FEMA: Cash Sought To Help Hurricane Victims, Volunteers Should Not Self-Dispatch

The metro Atlanta region generally has about a 10-day supply of gasoline in inventory, said BP spokesman Michael Kumpf. The pipelines have been down for two days.
Alpharetta, Ga.-based Colonial Pipeline Co., cut off from its suppliers on the Gulf Coast, is now pumping gas from huge storage tanks, many in Powder Springs, Ga. Whether electric power can be restored to the pipeline pumps before supplies run out is "the great uncertainty ... that hangs over all of us," said Daniel Moenter, a spokesman for Marathon Ashland Petroleum, a major supplier of metro Atlanta's fuel.

Delta has already cancelled 300 flights due to fuel shortages.

Apparently people are rushing gas stations all over town. The Gov. has issued a statement asking people to shop as usual, and avoid panic buying.

Atlanta may run out of gas.

John Hall, a spokesman for the Army Corps of Engineers, said last night that the corps and other agencies were "in a great frenzy" to figure out how to plug the 300-foot gap along the 17th Street Canal.The narrow canal, which is used to drain water pumped out of the eternally soggy city, is not accessible by barge, in part because a newly built low bridge and hurricane barrier sits 700 feet down the canal toward the lake end. "We can't get at it," Mr. Hall said.

Engineering challenges...

Geography Complicates Levee Repair - New York Times

The poorest 20% (you can argue with the number -- 10%? 18%? no one knows) of the city was left behind to drown. This was the plan. Forget the sanctimonious bullshit about the bullheaded people who wouldn't leave. The evacuation plan was strictly laissez-faire. It depended on privately owned vehicles, and on having ready cash to fund an evacuation. The planners knew full well that the poor, who in new orleans are overwhelmingly black, wouldn't be able to get out. The resources -- meaning, the political will -- weren't there to get them out.

White per capita income in Orleans parish, 2000 census: $31,971. Black per capita: $11,332. Median *household* income in B.W. Cooper (Calliope) Housing Projects, 2000: $13,263.

I've been wondering why people didn't leave. This is an answer. Of course, these people could have gone to the SuperDome, but it may not have been clear that was what you needed to do, and it may not have been reasonable for the disabled and elderly. Furthermore, with 15,000 people in there with broken toilet facilities and rising temperatures the SuperDome may, in time, turn into a disaster itself.

Boing Boing: Poor left behind to drown