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Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi News and Relief Information Updated 09/23/2005, 5:30 pm (Eastern time) Information will be posted here as it becomes available, so please check back at this page regularly for news updates and to find out how you can help the people of Louisiana and Mississippi. -Click Here To Read ICFA Member Eyewitness Reports -Click Here To Learn How To Help -Click Here For Latest News Click Here For Minute-by-Minute Updates On the WWL TV Web Log UPDATE: Requests for information on how you can help and financial needs in the affected areas Regarding the need for funeral director or other services, materials and assistance: Please visit the NFDA Web site for information on offering your services as a funeral director in the affected areas. This is an offer of PAID temporary employment. Click here for the sign-up form. NFDA is coordinating this effort with Kenyon International, the company managing the project. Regarding the desire to provide financial assistance: Contributions to American Red Cross, Salvation Army and other major charitable organizations will likely do the most good right now. Information is posted below. We will be publicizing the efforts our members are making in this regard, to hopefully inspire others to do the same. Western Sequioa/Inglewood Park Cemetery are already running a program within their company. Regarding specific needs of ICFA members, we do not have any information to share yet. The sheer breadth of this humanitarian disaster is going to be the biggest story for the near future, and the story is likely going to play out over a long time. Please e-mail information and requests to ICFA news staff. UPDATE: FEMA: Frequently Asked Disaster Assistance Questions UPDATE: IF YOU ARE IN ONE OF THE AFFECTED AREAS AND NEED HELP, call the American Red Cross, 1-866-438-4636 UPDATE: The State Police road closure hotline number has been discontinued. The inability of a number of 911 centers to receive calls requires the road closure hotline number now be used for emergency 911 calls only.-- If you have a 911 emergency in a storm-affected area call 1-800-469-4828. Do not call this number for road closure information. Use of this line for road closure will prevent emergency calls from being answered. The public can still obtain road closure information from the Louisiana State Police web site at www.lsp.org. HOW YOU CAN HELP: New Web site helps match volunteers with those needing help Specific Donations Needed for Katrina Relief Efforts Photo database of kids looking for their parents Urgent notices from individuals still needing rescue in New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Help Wiki (good compendium of information) A database is being developed for people who are missing and may need to be rescued from New Orleans. Call 225-925-6626 to give officials their names. They may also have information about people already rescued. Due to the large amounts of flooding, state police officials are requesting volunteers and/or their boats to assist in operations in the New Orleans area. Those who are interested in volunteering themselves or their boats are encouraged to call 1-225-925-7500. FEMA lists agencies to contact, to volunteer or send donations Relief agencies seek donations for hurricane victims American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund Red Cross: Volunteers needed Samaritan's Purse Salvation Army Feed the Children United Methodist Church Episcopal Relief and Development Operation Blessing International Catholic Charities back to top LATEST NEWS (in descending chronological order): 09/23/2005 Logistical snarls in Louisiana put funerals on hold Beaumont-Port Arthur area targeted Rita's Rains Start Falling on New Orleans Wind, water breach 2 New Orleans levees Up the coast, it's a race against time Check here for continuous updates: Texas citizens report on Hurricane Rita First effects are reaching Beaumont First signs of Rita: Strand sees flooding Mississippi Baptist Convention Opposes Land-Based Casinos 09/15/2005 With DNA matches necessary, identifying bodies could take months Funeral homes feel weight of death toll Morticians overwhelmed Receding floodwater reveals dramatically altered parish Emergency workers shocked by storm devastation Disaster mortuary team handles dead with sensitivity Colorado mortician joins FEMA team 100 Year Old Woman Offers Own Bed to Evacuees Over 2,000 kids still separated from families more than two weeks later Unexpected storm fallout: Uninsured get medical care Katrina Ushers in Return of Big Government Bush to Outline New Aid Package in Address 09/14/2005 Traditional funerals yield to grim realities Protocol Established To Respect Jewish Dead Tennessee experts help identify those killed by Katrina Funeral company: Insurance should cover most hurricane losses Stewart Enterprises moves some functions to Orlando Stewart Enterprises: Hurricane Severely Damages New Orleans Cemeteries and Funeral Homes New Orleans' dead get police escort New Orleans Area Funeral Homes, Cemeteries Reach Out To Customers Over 50 Katrina evacuees have died in Texas Nursing home owners booked in 34 deaths N.O. water still unsafe, air ok N.O. loses $3.5 billion in Convention Center business Big levee failure reason for "complete destruction" of St. Bernard Canal May Have Worsened City's Flooding Disputed Project Was a 'Funnel' for Surge, Some Say 'Like a ghost,' man nearly left for dead opens his eyes Residents ignoring order to stay away He comes back to save cat Asia looks at Katrina coverage and draws conclusions A century ago, another flooded American city battled for survival 09/09/2005 FEMA Chief Relieved of Katrina Duties Coming burials a concern - many cemeteries closed In hurricane's wake, a new dilemma: Treating the dead with dignity Outside Help in New Orleans for Collection of Bodies New Orleans jazz funerals are casualty of Katrina Fewer bodies than expected in Orleans Parish La. mom of unclaimed baby finally found Local Funeral Home Director Reflects upon Katrina's Dead Family Opens Doors to 35 Evacuees Lessons of Florida's levee disaster unheeded Bush: Nation Can 'Overcome Any Challenge' Katrina frees alligators from Mississippi ranch Cops trapped survivors in New Orleans Poll: More than half say abandon flooded parts of New Orleans Don't Refloat: The case against rebuilding the sunken city of New Orleans New Orleans' Restaurateurs Vow to Return Federal Air Marshals: Heroes of New Orleans Airport Evacuation Katrina Aftermath: Louisiana U.S. Delegation Failed Katrina Tales: day 12 `Wiped out' says it all for parish 09/08/2005 Impromptu volunteers complicating relief efforts Manatee sheriff's detective witnessed horrors of New Orleans convention center St. Bernard Parish Fears 1,500 Dead Mile-long lines form for Red Cross debit cards Please visit the NFDA Web site for information on offering your services as a funeral director in the affected areas. This is an offer of PAID temporary employment. Michiganians helping at makeshift morgues along Gulf Coast Kenyon International Emergency Services hired to handle fatalities 880 foreigners still missing New Orleans readies 25,000 body bags The Heroes of The Katrina Disaster Few Islands in a Sea of Troubles More Confusion, Lines for Disaster Aid New Orleans' Aquarium Mostly Killed Off 332 evacuees start new lives in S.C. Lessons not learned before Katrina hit Mississippi residents welcome signs of recovery City had evacuation plan but strayed from strategy Army National Guard issuing a call to arms Red Cross In Tulsa Say No Fraud Problems So Far True leaders emerge in hurricane's aftermath A 'cane could drown N.Y.C. 09/07/2005 Click on this map to find current flood levels in different parts of New Orleans First EPA Tests Confirm New Orleans Floodwater Risky Even for Skin Contact Tally of evacuees in Houston shelters drops dramatically as people leave for new accommodations, new jobs and new lives Pet dog, Snowball, to reunite with young La. owner New Orleans Superdome an 'unholy mess', may have to be demolished Snipers Firing On Workers Repairing Cell Phone Towers Military Response to Katrina Intensifies Teams collect and identify the dead Gangs, crowding, bring tinge of evacuee backlash Town prepares to welcome the dead Poll: Most Americans believe New Orleans will never recover Emptiness, silence of city makes haunting impression The Lure of Coastal Life Outweighs The Risks FEMA Chief Waited Until After Storm Louisiana Officials Could Lose the Katrina Blame Game One city's tragedy may be another's boon Officials: Chemicals bigger concern than cholera Reporter for Fla. Newspaper Shot in La. St. Bernard Parish hit hard 09/06/2005 Grim Mission in New Orleans (CNN transcript) DMort Region 9 Breaking News; What to Bring DMort Region 2 Daily Updates FEMA lists disaster recovery centers opened today 'DMort is telling us to expect up to 40,000 bodies' New ICFA member reports posted On the spot: the makeshift Katrina morgue In tiny Louisiana town, a morgue awaits the countless bodies Eerie prediction: 'Gone with the Water' from Oct. 2004 National Georgraphic The Sunken City More Help From N.Y. On Way for Hurricane Victims 22 bodies found tied together in village Katrina Victims Could Be Cremated - FEMA contacting local crematoriums Warehouse set up to process bodies 'Living hell' - Bodies found piled in freezer at Convention Center A Day with the Undertaker from Gulfport Mortuary Teams Start New Orleans House-To-House Search For Bodies Morgue ready to receive more than 5,000 bodies Many Victims May Never Be Identified Photo database of kids looking for their parents Pumps begin removing water; mayor braces for what will be found under the floodwaters Say hello to new city-within-a-city in Texas Sad story of boy and his dog grips nation Levee board under federal investigation before Katrina hit Residents Survive With Stone Age Skills Governor Blanco Piddles While New Orleans Burns Lieutenant General Russel Honore, 'John Wayne dude', general blasts Katrina complaints as 'B.S.' New Orleans myths: The numbers tell a different story New Orleans collecting its dead FEMA is not a first responder. Immediate emergency management is primarily a local and state responsibility Why Hurricane Katrina Made Me Switch from NBC to Fox EARLIER UPDATES New Orleans in the throes of Katrina, and apocalypse New Orleans hospital: Morgue full and under water The power of private charity Satellite images of affected areas Four emergency morgue units sent to disaster area He will help recovering and processing what could be thousands of bodies Fires Threatens New Orleans Business District and French Quarter Mississippi crews haul bodies for outdoor autopsies Click on the 'Amazing Video' link and what it was like to be in the middle of this hurricane Trooper: 'Don't go there unless you have a machine gun around your neck' Thousands trapped, stranded throughout New Orleans Public health: 'Pretty devastating out there' Trying to survive, while others binge Hurricane Katrina, Louisiana, New Orleans and Shoot To Kill - 'real threat to the citizenry are the human predators' Annotated map of New Orleans includes reports on numerous areas Hastert: Rebuilding below sea level senseless Miss. Struggles to Deal With Dead Bodies New Orleans slips into anarchy New Orleans to be abandoned - may take six months to remove water Urgent plea from St. Bernard Parish With water levels evening out, here comes the hard part Major airport closings loom if jet-fuel disruption not fixed soon Red Cross takes over where hotels leave off Unrest overtakes much of New Orleans Caskets Washing Up On Shores Of Mississippi Report from ICFA member Linus Shackelford in Mississippi New Orleans Mayor: Katrina May Have Killed Thousands Convoy prepares to bring Katrina refugees to Astrodome Refugees roam as all hotels within hundreds of miles are booked Americans Contribute Millions for Relief Mississippi: Katrina damage, town by town An Iconic City Can't Replace the Irreplaceable New Orleans' Tragic Paradox 'Caskets are everywhere' 17th Street Canal repair fails; floodwater expected to rise 15 feet in next few hours Massive Storm Damage Found in Alabama Governor says entire city needs to be evacuated Bayoubuzz launches Hurricane Katrina Web Page Caskets knocked out of mausoleum at memorial park Mortuary disaster teams dispatched from Texas More than 2.7 million without power Rare strokes of luck mark rescue Victims left with nothing Watch Live Video of Damage and Rescue Operations (WDSU hurricane coverage) More than 95 percent of Gulf oil production lost Biloxi fears hundreds dead 'I can't find my wife's body' - 30 reported dead in MS beachfront apartment complex N.O. residents will be asked to stay away for a month Body count rises, over 1 million without power Check BayouBuzz for local updates Check WWLTV for News Updates about the Situation in New Orleans 'Worse than our worst fears': Minute-by-minute updates here Long distance and cell services failing Anheuser-Busch donates water in hurricane relief move Lowe's Prepared for Hurricane Katrina Relief back to top