05448
Aug. 30, 2005

PDA appealing for $10 million
in Hurricane Katrina relief

Disaster specialists traveling
to affected areas to help survivors  

by Evan Silverstein

LOUISVILLE — Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) has issued a $10 million appeal for Hurricane Katrina relief.

     PDA, the disaster-response agency of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), also has earmarked $500,000 from the One Great Hour of Sharing offering and general relief funds for immediate response to the needs of hurricane survivors.

     Some of the funds will be used to support the deployment of the Presbyterian Disaster Assistance Team (PDAT) to assist the affected presbyteries, congregations and communities.

     Katrina is one of the most destructive hurricanes ever to hit the United States, according to PDA. Damage estimates range between $10 billion and $25 billion.

     “I can tell you right now, it will be the biggest thing we’ve responded to domestically, in terms of the scope of the damage and the number of people involved,” PDA Coordinator Susan Ryan said.

     PDAT representatives, along with the Rev. John Robinson, national associate for PDA, have been in contact with middle governing bodies in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida to assess the situation and offer assistance.

     Eight PDAT members are now working in those states, and eight more have moved as close as possible to hard-hit areas and preparing to move in as conditions allow.

     PDA staff members have been meeting each morning to discuss the disaster and get updates from PDAT members involved in the response, Ryan said. At least six PDAT members are committed to long-term recovery work, she said.

     “We’ve got folks in there, and we’re doing the assessment now,” Ryan said. “The (Florida) Keys are part of that. They’re going to take a trip down to all the churches in the Keys and give us an assessment report, so they’re on the road doing that.”

     A situation report issued by PDA on Tuesday described the post-hurricane damage in Mississippi and Louisiana as “massive and unprecedented.”

     Flooding in Mississippi was devastating for at least six miles inland, the situation report said. Biloxi and other coastal communities were hit by a 25-foot storm surge. PDA has been told that there are no undamaged houses in the city of Biloxi.

     Two new breaks in levees sent water from Lake Pontchartrain coursing through the eastern part of New Orleans. Officials said about 80 percent of the city was flooded, some areas under 20 feet of water.

     Ryan said the damage-assessment process may not get under way in some areas for several days because of extensive damage. She said it is already evident that Mississippi will be a primary focus.

     “The poverty there, the communities, I think in Mississippi we’re going to find that’s where we’re going to be doing a ton of work,” Ryan said. “I can tell you that right now they’ve got it the worst, and they were the poorest and the least able. You’ve got a lot of communities in Mississippi that don’t even have sewerage systems in their communities. They’re not going to have the kind of insurance that’s going to allow them to recover.”

     Robinson said he thinks the part of Florida hit hardest was the Presbytery of Tropical Florida, but said Florida Presbytery in the panhandle may have sustained considerable damage. Peace River Presbytery, which was hit hard last year by Hurricane Charley, appears to have escaped the brunt of this storm.

     “I’m waiting for reports from the panhandle and from Florida Presbytery, because they had a very high storm surge today, and we have not heard what the results of that were,” Robinson said Monday by phone. “Pensacola and that area and Navarre Beach were hit so heavily the last time (by Hurricane Ivan) that I really do have some concern about how well they may have weathered this storm.”

     Ryan said a toll-free number will soon become operational sometime this week for people who want to volunteer for relief work teams.

     A bulletin insert is available at www.pcusa.org/pda.