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A week after the deadly storm, IBM’s response to the devastation of Hurricane Katrina continues to grow. An IBM crisis response team in Baton Rouge is consulting with government bodies and local relief organizations, as well as working with major universities, colleges and medical institutions to help provide shared data systems and data management.
The company is aiding various recovery efforts by donating equipment and services. These include computers for:
 | Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge that is the staging area for all local, state and federal activities. We have provided for the public team
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| The Louisiana State Department of Environmental Quality to be used for immediate testing of air and water safety
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| Local agencies with equipment to be distributed through the United Way
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| The Texas State Department of Health and Human Services for the immediate registration of all evacuees for food stamps, Medicaid, and other social services
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| American Red Cross for deployment to local chapters in the south, Batesville, Miss., Houston and Austin, Shreveport and Baton Rouge, LA, and Memphis
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The team is also providing support for the State of Louisiana systems and web site and is hosting the Salvation Army web site to assure that contributions go smoothly. IBM is likewise working with the US Chamber of Commerce Center for Corporate Citizenship to develop a job post/job search/job match site.
To ease the transition of tens of thousands of displaced residents, IBM is reaching out to all of the major cities and the school systems in Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee and Georgia affected by the flood, by large numbers of evacuees or by massive unplanned school registrations. The company is working with the local elected leadership, the United Way, Red Cross, African American churches, minority organizations, service providers and others in each community.
In addition, IBM's Crisis Management Team is ready to assist and support clients in the public and private sector, in the affected areas, with infrastructure needs, equipment acquisition and technical support to help clients return to normal business operations at their primary or alternative locations. IBM recommends clients call 1-800-IBM-SERV (option 4) for questions and assistance regarding business continuity and recovery needs. This is the first point of contact and is available to all clients, not just those who have existing business continuity and recovery services contracts.
In addition, IBM’s partner, Lenovo, has donated 1,000 ThinkPad notebook PCs and 500 ThinkCentre desktop PCs to various emergency organizations to assist with relief efforts. Lenovo sent another 100 ThinkPads to the American Red Cross last week, as well as 50 ThinkPads to both the Astrodome in Houston and the Alamodome in San Antonio, The computers are equipped with wireless wide area network service from SBC, so that residents can notify their friends and family of their safety.
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