September 24, 2005 (Baltimore, MD) – Hurricane Rita Adds to the Devastation in the Gulf Coast Region

Update

Early this morning Hurricane Rita made landfall near the Texas-Louisiana border, bringing devastating winds and heavy rainfall to areas already struggling to rebound from the effects of Hurricane Katrina just three weeks ago. For government agencies and nonprofit organizations alike, the efforts of the last several days have turned from recovery and rebuilding to tending the immediate needs of moving people out of harm’s way and bracing for the impact of this second storm. This has meant a second relocation for many thousands of people who had been evacuated from Louisiana and moved to Texas to escape Hurricane Katrina.

As these necessary steps are taken there is increased concern for the long term effects of shuffling so many people from one location to another. There is a growing fear that many people who qualify for, and are in dire need of, support services and funding for housing, food, and medical care, will be lost in the shuffle. It will be crucial that disaster response plans include ways for these people to reconnect to sources of help.

Activity continues in Washington, D.C. as legislators and administration officials wrestle with the best alternatives for long term response. Progress has been made on the legislative front as laws have been passed which liberalize the tax deductions for money contributed to relief efforts. It is hoped that the coming week will bring definitive action on the steps that will be taken to provide help for displaced persons for the many months until their homes can be rebuilt.

Lutheran Disaster Response (LDR) continues to work through Lutheran social ministry organizations along the Gulf Coast to address immediate needs and lay the groundwork for the longer term effort ahead. As each step in the recovery effort is completed, it enables the next step to begin. Already, more than $8 million dollars has been contributed to LDR for this relief effort – and 100% of this money goes directly to relief work.

Lutheran Social Ministry Organization Updates

• Lutheran Social Services of the South was forced in recent days to shift its emphasis from working with displaced persons in Texas to evacuating residents and clients from facilities that were potentially in the path of Hurricane Rita. As soon as it is safe to return, the work to provide food, shelter, spiritual and emotional support, and emergency grants, will resume and intensify. Staff persons have been named to lead the agency's long term disaster response in Louisiana and in Texas. LSS has worked with Lutheran Disaster Response and denominational officials to ensure a coordinated effort.


• Lutheran-Episcopal Services of Mississippi is doing remarkable work in leading the LDR response effort in Mississippi. After only three weeks the work has shifted in emphasis from immediate recovery to rebuilding, and it is gaining momentum daily.


• Lutheran social ministry organizations in many parts of the country are mobilizing local congregations and volunteers to assist displaced persons who have found their way to these communities through formal and informal channels. If a government sponsored relocation plan for large numbers of displaced Americans is put into place, there will be an urgent need to replicate this effort on a large scale. Lutheran Services in America is engaged in ongoing planning with other Lutheran partners to prepare for this possibility.

ELCA Domestic Disaster Response
P.O. Box 71764
Chicago, IL 60694-1764
Phone (with credit card) 800-638-3522
www.elca.org

OR

LCMS World Relief and Human Care
1333 South Kirkwood Road
St. Louis, MO 63122-7295
Credit Card Gift Line: 888-930-4438
www.lcms.org