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Wisconsin sends help to Gulf Coast

Only two days after Hurricane Gustav made landfall on the Gulf Coast, aid is trickling in from Wisconsin and beyond to help the beleaguered communities of that region.

While Gustav did not inflict as much damage as once feared, emergency services are still needed, according to Jane Richardson, communications and marketing director for the Badger Chapter of the American Red Cross.

“We have sent 11 volunteers down so far,” Richardson said. “Our volunteers operate shelters, set up communication networks, drive emergency vehicles, provide logistics and so on.”

According to Richardson, volunteers from the Red Cross are often “pre-positioned” in hurricane zones before the storms actually hit to ensure a rapid response, serving in two- to three-week deployments.

Other local disaster relief organizations, such as the Wisconsin Department of Emergency Management, have not sent resources to the Gulf Coast, saying that no such request was made from the affected states, according to Lori Getter, spokesperson for Wisconsin Emergency Management.

Getter added if a state needs emergency resources, it can request them from the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, an interstate partnership that allows disaster-afflicted states to receive emergency aid from other states.

“No requests were made for [our] resources thus far,” Getter said. She added that most EMAC aid for disasters of this scope come from states nearest to the affected area.

Getter added Wisconsin resources were requested and provided after Hurricane Katrina.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency, whose response to Hurricane Katrina in 2005 was the subject of much controversy, took steps to ensure such an incident wasn’t repeated.

“FEMA and its federal partners are working directly with state and local officials to provide the resources they need to execute their disaster plans,” the organization said in a statement earlier this week.

In response to Gustav, FEMA highlighted its “teamwork approach”, an element that was seen by many as lacking after Hurricane Katrina. This approach included coordination between the states affected as well as nearly two dozen federal organizations.

Among the evacuees of Hurricane Gustav was Brad Vogel, a UW alumnus and second-year law student at Tulane University in New Orleans. One week into the school year, classes were abruptly cancelled in preparation for Gustav.

Vogel said the evacuation process was “surreal” and “hectic.”

He described a pre-evacuation “party” he held in New Orleans, at which he and some friends ate everything in the freezer before the storm to prevent it from spoiling, as electricity was expected to be out for at least several days.

Vogel also described the lasting effects Katrina left on the city.

“There are still FEMA trailers in New Orleans, and some damage of Katrina is still there,” Vogel said. “Some neighborhoods are still pretty damaged.”

Vogel said classes at Tulane University would resume next Monday.