Hurricane Katrina’s Refugees Head To Houston In Bus Convoy

HOUSTON (AP) – At least 23,000 of Hurricane Katrina’s refugees, a majority of them at the New Orleans Superdome, will travel in a bus convoy to Houston starting Wednesday and will be sheltered at the Astrodome, which hasn’t been used for professional sporting events in years.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency will provide 500 buses for the transfer, and the Astrodome’s schedule has been cleared through December to house the evacuees, said Kathy Walt, a spokeswoman for Texas Gov. Rick Perry.

Perry and Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco spoke by telephone early Wednesday to discuss how Texas could help house those displaced by the hurricane. “In the face of such tragic circumstances, we are neighbors and we are going to pull together so these families can find as much normalcy as possible,” Perry said.

Logistics for the transport and housing of the refugees were still being worked out with the Red Cross and state government officials, said Rusty Cornelius, administrative coordinator for the Harris County Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management.

“We want to accommodate those people as quickly as possible for the simple reason they have been through a horrible ordeal,” he said. Texas also is looking at the possibility of using the Ford Center in Beaumont for some long-term housing for other evacuees who may be staying in hotels, motels and campgrounds.

Perry said it was important for Texas to be available to Louisiana’s needy residents, especially children who’ve been uprooted from their daily routines, including going to school. He said Texas public schools will open their doors to any student displaced by the hurricane.

He said the Texas Education Agency will work with school districts to provide additional textbooks and funds for transportation and meals as they “take on this additional pressure.” Blanco said she wanted the Superdome – which had become a shelter of last resort for about 20,000 people – evacuated within two days, along with other gathering points for storm refugees.

The situation inside the dank and sweltering Superdome was becoming desperate: The water was rising, the air conditioning was out, toilets were broken, and tempers were rising. The Astrodome helped put Houston on the map 40 years ago.

It still stands but is dwarfed by Reliant Stadium, the Houston Texans’ newly constructed home. The Astrodome opened in 1965, 10 years before the Superdome.

By PAM EASTON, Associated Press Writer

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Associated Press Writer Kelley Shannon in Austin contributed to this story.

(Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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