Federal Evacuation Of Katrina Victims To California On Hold
By Don Thompson, Associated Press Writer - September 8, 2005SACRAMENTO (AP) _ California's plan to house 1,000 federally sponsored Hurricane Katrina evacuees was halted Wednesday after federal officials said many survivors are reluctant to move so far from their families and damaged homes.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency offered flights to California to evacuees in the large hurricane shelters, primarily in Texas. But FEMA regional spokesman William L. Rukheyser said there were few takers.
"The hurricane victims felt, 'We're not that far from home; this is where we feel most comfortable,' " he said. "Because of the reluctance or resistance of evacuees to go long-distance from their home areas, we're certainly not going to insist that someone get on a plane to a place they don't want to go to."
Rukheyser said the evacuation plan "is on hold for the time being. As people in the Southeast indicate they want to come to California, that may happen. But it's not going to be immediate, as we thought previously."
The same situation applies in several other states.
State and local officials had prepared for hundreds of hurricane refugees to be housed in San Diego, San Francisco and San Jose, with other cities ready to follow. Officials in several of the cities on Wednesday said they were continuing with plans to house and care for evacuees, but with less urgency after the FEMA announcement.
"We're maybe not scrambling like we were yesterday, when we thought they were coming in 48 hours," said Sue O'Brien, a special assistant with the Sacramento mayor's office.
David Vossbrink, a spokesman for the San Jose mayor's office, said, "We can certainly understand the reluctance of people to leave the immediate area."
The 1,000 beds being readied to receive refugees are long-term housing, not emergency shelters as in Texas, said Bob Stern, spokesman for the California governor's Office of Emergency Services. The evacuees would have help getting jobs, schooling and financial aid as they settled in for possibly months away from the devastated areas, Stern said.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's office said the state would be ready to offer whatever help is needed, spokeswoman Katherine McLane said.
"I think the real issue here is what's best for the evacuees," she said.
Even as the federal relocation efforts to California were put on hold, Schwarzenegger estimated that "hundreds, if not thousands, of evacuees have arrived independently." They are coming on their own or with the help of churches, charities or other private organizations.
The governor projected the cost to the state will exceed $5 million, depending on the number of evacuees. On Wednesday, he asked President Bush to declare the state a disaster area to help cover the expense. Other states also are seeking federal disaster declarations so they can be eligible for federal reimbursement.
Neither FEMA nor the American Red Cross could immediately say how many people had registered within California. So many people are coming in through private means that "it's impossible to keep tabs," said Chris Johnson, a regional spokesman for the Red Cross in Sacramento.
The state Department of Education is trying to establish a system to track students who enroll in California schools due to the hurricane but did not yet have a count, said Hilary McLean, a spokeswoman for state Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell.
O'Connell on Wednesday traveled to Burbank, where he joined Thomas Edison Elementary School students in starting a "California Kids Care" effort to collect students' donations for Katrina victims. Schwarzenegger toured Red Cross and Salvation Army operations in Sacramento to draw attention to hurricane relief efforts.
Meanwhile, U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer sent Bush a letter asking for a copy of FEMA's California disaster plan.
"Having witnessed what happened in the Gulf States, I am extremely concerned that FEMA is not prepared should California experience a major earthquake," Boxer wrote.
Also Wednesday, the California National Guard said it had sent 726 soldiers and airmen to the Gulf states, up from about 500 late last week. And the California Highway Patrol said 116 officers, including Commissioner Mike Brown, were in Louisiana to help local authorities.
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