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 Editorials | September 2005 
Katrina Aftermath goes Deeper than Excuses given by President Bush
 Prensa Latina
| | Karen Tyson bathes her 13-month-old daughter, Darlene, in a bucket at a parking-lot campsite in Waveland, MS. (Photo: Ricky Carioti) |
Reports on long-term effects on people living in states affected by hurricane Katrina and on the US economy as a whole, nullify President George W. Bush´s assumed responsibility for Federal negligence in this tragedy.
"Katrina exposed serious problems in our response capacity at all government levels, to the point that the Federal government failed to do its job, for which I assume responsibility," said Bush at a press conference Tuesday together with Iraqi president, Jalal Talabani.
Insufficient and delayed relief for the victims, the slow process of recovering bodies still lying in the flooded areas made Louisiana governor, Kathleen Blanco, accuse the Federal government of sluggishness and assert the state will contract a private company´s services for that work.
"I have taken action today to resolve a matter that involves life, death and dignity," Gov. Kathleen Blanco told reporters, adding she expressed her "absolute frustration" with the pace of the recovery to federal authorities to no avail.
Authorities have only confirmed 423 deaths in Louisiana since the hurricane struck two weeks ago, while experts have estimated New Orleans alone could hold 10,000 dead or more beneath the floodwaters.
Blanco said she signed a contract with Kenyon International Emergency Services, company originally engaged by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
The National Association of Real Estate Agents (NAR) released a report Tuesday on the long-term consequences of hurricane Katrina for that sector and for the US economy in general.
The report assesses real estate losses could reach 100 billion dollars, as part of NAR´s monthly forecasts of the US economy.
Restoration work will put pressure on prices of construction materials, as most of the houses affected by floods will need to be refurbished, including 80 percent of New Orlean´s houses. The report estimates that 200 thousand homes were destroyed.
David Lereah, chief economist of NAR says construction activity in the zones hit by the hurricane will boost national housing demand which already exceeded the offer.
As displaced families return to their places of origin they will find hikes in house sales and rent prices, while mortgage rates for the long-term will also go up, though more slowly, making it more difficult for them to settle again.
The high poverty level in New Orleans, however, will render impossible for the majority of the population to remake their lives without help from state or federal institutions. |
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