Operations Temporarily Closed Until Rita Passes
Release Date: September 22, 2005
Release Number: 1603-029
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BATON ROUGE, La.-- The Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the State of Louisiana Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness (LOHSEP) are announcing that eight Disaster Recovery Centers (DRC) located in Louisiana will temporarily suspend operations until Hurricane Rita, presently approaching the Texas-Louisiana coastline, has passed.
Eight Disaster Recovery Centers will be suspending operations at 12 noon, Thursday, Sept. 22.
All eight centers south of I-10 including Slidell, will suspend operations. The affected Disaster Recovery Centers (DRCs) are: Lafayette (Lafayette), Iberville (Plaquemine), Plaquemines ( Belle Chasse), St. Tammany (Slidell), Lafourche (Thibodaux), St. James (Vacherie), Orleans (Algiers), and St. Charles Parish (Boutte). The eight centers north of I-10 will have business operations as usual.
The temporary suspension of eight DRC activities frees up local first responders to concentrate on providing all necessary emergency needs to their communities. It also allows residents to focus their attention on the pending preparations. DRC personnel will be ready to get back to work quickly after the danger has passed.
Should Hurricane Rita make landfall along the Louisiana coast, a survey of all DRC locations will be conducted when the all-clear signal is received. Once the DRC sites are inspected and approved for service by FEMA and the State of Louisiana, they will reopen to continue with their mission of assisting those affected by Hurricane Katrina.
Avoyelles Parish Iberville Parish – Temp. Closing Orleans Parish – Temp. Closing Rapides Parish St. Tammany Parish – Temp. Closing Webster Parish |
Bossier and Caddo Parishes Lafayette Parish – Temp. Closing Plaquemines Parish – Temp. Closing St. Charles Parish – Temp. Closing Washington Parish |
East Baton Rouge Parish Lafourche Parish – Temp. Closing Quachita Parish St. James Parish – Temp. Closing Washington Parish |
FEMA prepares the nation for all hazards and manages federal response and recovery efforts following any national incident. FEMA also initiates mitigation activities, trains first responders, works with state and local emergency managers, and manages the National Flood Insurance Program and the U.S. Fire Administration. FEMA became part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security on March 1, 2003
Last Modified: Thursday, 22-Sep-2005 16:09:24