Guestblogging today is my fine friend Emily O. Smith who spent several days collecting data on Houston Survivors of Katrina. Apologies for posting these a bit late.
Thu, 8 Sep 2005
"I am in Houston working (at least part-time)at the Astrodome interviewing Katrina victims. I am with work. We got here yesterday and plan to stay until Monday morning--if they need us that long.
The Astrodome has been on lock-down today (my colleagues couldn't get in) due to security--I think some folks were trying to hand out debit cards or something, not sure what the deal is. I haven't been there yet today.
Right now, I'm at UT Houston doing work for my everyday job. Our shift doesn't start until the evening and though there are projects we can do During the day, my bosses want me to get some jobby-job stuff done first. may get to help out with the extra stuff tomorrow: interviewing older folks to see if they need to be moved to assisted living places, Interviewing folks for mental health issues. Blah blah anyway we did go to the astrodome last night. the good news is that volunteers are packing away cots as ppl find other places to go--a lot of church groups in Houston are organizing for members of their congregation To take people into their own homes. pretty incredible of people to do that--take in complete strangers. i don't know if i could do that, honestly.
Otherwise, we have been talking to the ones still behind--about 7500 at the astrodome's three facilities. i was the talking to the folks on the main floor of the astrodome itself--weird to imagine big sports events and concert there--so many cots and cops and germs everywhere. kids are running around and being kids, adults waiver between surly and grateful. one guy made me want to cry because he was mean (as if i should take it personally) and a few others made me want to cry because their stories were so sad--esp the older folks. i talked to an 80 year old woman, a 76 yr old man, a 72 yr old man, and a few others. Imagine these folks getting through floods and a hurricane! unbelievable. I am only supposed to ask people how old they are and if they are sick and if so how. Then I am to fill out my little checklist o'symptoms for what they feel and move on. mostly that's what I do, But sometimes they talk to you and you stay to listen.
Luckily the folks here (UT Houston folks who we're here to assist, not FEMA (my bad)) encourage us to listen for awhile before pointing out the counseling area, which is highly unused. I interviewed 84 people in the span of 2 and 1/2 hours, about four of whom were white or mixed, one latino, and every one else was african-american. Some were less than 1 year old and up to 80 as I mentioned. They're the hardest to talk to. I mean, it's easy b/c they talk and talk but hard because what they say is so sad. The hardest was the 76 year old who doesn't know where his wife is and is only with one of his sons--he doesn't know Where his other children are, either. He had a chance earlier this week to leave the astrodome (presumably on a church bus to go to someone's home) but didn't go b/c he didn't know where his son was at the minute and didn't feel right about taking off. He talked about other things too--knowing the levee broke b/c there's no way that stuff is rainwater and he didn't want to go and didn't think it'd be so bad but it just kept getting worse and worse and...--and so on. He was just so consumed by it all and was very shaky and had tons of medicine with him (luckily). Not everyone had their medicine when they evacuated. They got their prescriptions filled at the makeshift CVS pharmacy which is a trailer pulled into a warehouse area of the astrodome. Some of the medicine is generic (or not generic) and looks different than what they take and they don't want to take this new stuff because their old pills were white and red and this one's orange and MAYBE it's the right thing, but you never know... So there's more than a little distrust of the health system, which is both sad and unsuprising. (If I undertood him correctly, my 76 yr old friend seemed to have some doubts about the levees breaking and if it was an accident.)
Health-wise most folks were fine. A lot of people had blood pressure they needed meds for and got. Diabetes was mentioned a few times as well...and many other pre-existhing things that need attention. And lots of folks had been feeling bad but got antibiotics and whatnot from "medical" a station in the astrodome and were feeling better. they had so far found 2 cases of var-something virus (nice health knowledge, emily) which apparently is serious and super-infectious and there have been 6 cases of bloody diarrhea (lots of regular diarrhea though i only came across 5 or 6 folks who mentioned having a problem with it, and only one currently had it still). They set up isolation areas for the really serious cases to prevent spread of infection. a lot of folks have swollen feet from standing a ton in lines (e.g. the line to thebathroom which was crazy long when i saw it) and dehydration. no one really reported anxiety or depression (though there's a bit of a stigma to these things that make people unlikely to mention it). Not everyone showed signs these things but it's fair to say that many many folks have some post-traumatic stress.
But there are some people who have great senses of humor (wrong term) about the whole thing. One guy said it's a waste of time being pessimistic and he's being optimistic and he appreciates the volunteers who have come from everywhere and so appreciates Houston for opening its arms to everyone and plans to relocate to Houston. And he laughed as his 4 year old daughter explained to me that she feels okay but her Cookies were sick (and showed me a bag of animal crackers). Another woman laughed a lot and asked me for a can of coca-cola and that would make her feel better (she was actually feeling fine, of course, and actually got a soda from some volunteer right behind me).
There are volunteers of all kinds and sometimes we had to wait for one of us to finish before the other one of us could start. It's got to be pretty exhausting talking to volunteers all the live-long day, so I Try to be brief when people are groaning to see you approach. I'd probably groan, too, but most people were accomodating--which is pretty nice when you interrupt their reading or card game or conversation (wince). It took the most energy to approach people and less to get the information. I wouldn't call it fun work but I like it and want to do more--at least for a few days. It's a pretty exhausting environmentwith lots of activity and near-constant overhead announcements of people looking for other people in the astrodome, etc. LOUD announcements.
Folks in our hotel came from New Orleans as well. One guy we talked to at check-in last night(midnight) left N.O. at 6 that morning and they were just arriving now. Traffic was terrible. He and his sister were there for the night on their way to CO where they had relatives and jobs lined up. So that's good. The mayor wants people out of the astrodome and other shelters and into better places--homes, assisted living, etc I'd guess--by Sunday. I have no idea if this is likely or not. Last night they were (I heard) moving folks from one of the astrodome facilities (the Reliant Arena) into another (the Reliant Center) so they could close one and consolidate. Why they were doing this at 9 at night is certainly a question onecould ask. Anyway, there are apparently 250,000 evacuees in Houston, so maybe they can find spots for these remaining 7500.
Have to run. Kisses all around!emilyo"
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