Iraq war hampers U.S. tornado recovery

[vinnie]

OVERLAND PARK, Kansas (Reuters) - A shortage of trucks, helicopters and other equipment -- all sent to the war in Iraq -- has hampered recovery in a U.S. town obliterated by a tornado, Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius said on Monday.

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"There is no doubt at all that this will slow down and hamper the recovery," Sebelius, a Democrat, told Reuters in Kansas where officials said the statewide death toll had risen to 12 on Monday.

"Not having this equipment in place all over the state is a huge handicap," Sebelius said.

The tornado that devastated Greensburg, 110 miles west of Wichita, started a weekend of violent weather in Kansas, a state in the heart of the central United States region known as "Tornado Alley."

Ten died in Greensburg, a town of 1,600 people. An 11th died in nearby Pratt County and a 12th in a separate tornado in Ottawa County.

The twisters were accompanied by widespread flooding on Sunday and Monday that required more than 200 water rescues and closed many roads and shuttered several schools in another part of the state.

"We're getting pounded in Kansas. We have the need for National Guard in two different parts of our state now. This is really going to be a problem," Sebelius said.

Sebelius and other Democratic governors earlier this year assailed the Republican Bush administration for the strains they said the war had placed on their states' National Guardsmen, frequently mobilized for state emergencies

 

[vinnie]

A Pentagon spokesman in Washington said other states were supposed to help provide resources in an emergency. White House spokesman Tony Snow said the administration was doing what it could and equipment would arrive if it was needed.

Kansas Emergency Management spokeswoman Sharon Watson said because of the shortage of National Guard equipment, the state was rushing to hire contractors to help clear debris.

Nearly 70 Kansas National Guard troops were arriving in Greensburg on Monday to supplement about 40 troops already on the ground, and some guard Humvees were available to start clearing wreckage, Watson said.

Sebelius said the failure by Washington to replace or return state National Guard equipment deployed to Iraq was "not a very satisfying effort."

The governor said Kansas lacks about half the large equipment it could use for recovery efforts and debris removal, including dump trucks and front loaders. More than 20 percent of its Humvees and 15 of 19 helicopters were sent to Iraq, said officials with the Kansas National Guard.

The National Weather Service said the twister that hit Greensburg Friday about 9:45 p.m. was an F5, the highest on the scale. With winds of 205 mph (330 kph), it stayed on the ground about an hour, traveling 22 miles and wreaking a path of destruction nearly two miles wide.

"It's been one of the most destructive tornadoes in the last 10 years," said National Weather Service meteorologist Matt Gerard.

 

[toastonastick]

Imagine that coming from a democrat. Using tragedy for political gain. :nono:

 

[The Sponge]

Imagine that coming from a democrat. Using tragedy for political gain. :nono:

Is she lying?:shrug:

 

[Dead Money]

Stretched thin...

Stretched thin...

If this country is stretched that thin.....WE BE SERIOUSLY FU*KED.....

Take care of our own........FIRST.

 

[amhlilhaus]

they're trying to figure out now how to blame bush for spawning the tornadoes.

 

[The Sponge]

they're trying to figure out now how to blame bush for spawning the tornadoes.

You might be right. I thought they were trying to figure out why we are in Iraq wasting time and lives in an unwindable civil war, when our national guard should be home attending to stuff like this.

 

[vinnie]

You might be right. I thought they were trying to figure out why we are in Iraq wasting time and lives in an unwindable civil war, when our national guard should be home attending to stuff like this.

Amen !

 

[Jaxx]

Take care of our own........FIRST.

I agree with that but I guess they could rush in some dozers and make a big pile and have a bon fire that place is rubble. Debri removal? Once the few streets they do have are clear what is the hurry to move the debri. It will take months to years not hours or days for the town to even think about rebuilding. Do not get me wrong I have alot of compasion for the towns people and there family's and hope they can get as much help as possible which the Red Cross and National Guard are doing but not for the demo bringing the Iraq war are into it.

 

[djv]

The last couple of storms I believe in Georgia and Alabama he couldn't wait to get there. Lets see this happen Friday this is Monday night and he's not there yet. Could it be there noting left to see for photo ops. Maybe he's been busy, you know tea with the queen.
Are we ready for much of anything big. Hell No.
The money has been pissed away long time ago.
I hope Dem congress does something about this. The last congress failed under the Reb's.

 

[vinnie]

NEW ORLEANS - More than 20 months after Hurricane Katrina, many communities in Mississippi and Louisiana are still haggling with the Federal Emergency Management Agency over how much money the government will reimburse them for debris removal and infrastructure repairs.

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FEMA says it audits all Katrina projects to root out waste and fraud. Local officials, however, say the agency has needlessly dragged out the process and has not clearly defined what prices it considers reasonable.

Millions of dollars are at stake for cash-strapped communities still struggling to rebuild. Some communities say that if FEMA does not reimburse their expenses, they may have to borrow money or raises taxes to cover debris-removal contracts.

In Mississippi, two dozen counties and cities could lose a combined $18.4 million because FEMA questions whether they paid too much for the work, said Mike Womack, director of the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency.

Womack said local governments paid for debris removal at a statewide average of about $17 per cubic yard. The state and FEMA agreed that 20 percent over that average ? or $19.95 per cubic yard ? was a reasonable rate, according to Womack.

Jones County, Miss., about 100 miles inland, is in danger of losing more than $2 million. The county spent about $9 million to remove 300,000 cubic yards of debris, paying contractors about $27 per cubic yard.

"They say that's the best price they could get," said Womack, who wrote a letter to FEMA last month defending the rate.

Jones County administrator Charles Miller said FEMA told the county its bid price was reasonable in the early aftermath of Katrina. It was not until this past March, he said, that the county learned FEMA was questioning the rate.

"Had we known at the time that the price was too high, we would, of course, have rebid it," Miller said.

Andy Dial, president of the county's Board of Supervisors, said Jones County may have to borrow money or raise taxes to plug a gap in its $30 million annual budget if FEMA does not cover the remaining $2 million.

"I think it's ridiculous," Dial said. "When you make a promise to help, I think you ought to keep your end of the bargain."

Randy Walker, a FEMA infrastructure chief for Mississippi, said about 80 percent of communities "did it the correct way," obtaining competitive bids for debris-removal contracts and paying reasonable rates. He said Mississippi communities paid for debris removal at rates ranging from $7 to $55 per cubic yard.

Walker said local governments can't "throw out the bid laws" in the aftermath of an emergency.

Last summer, Mississippi withheld nearly $17 million in federal reimbursement money from Harrison County, the state's most populous coastal county, while FEMA probed a "multitude of discrepancies" in bills contractors submitted for debris removal. FEMA inspectors could not find stumps to match hundreds of trees workers said they cut.

Gulf Coast communities had a choice in the early aftermath of Katrina: Either hire private contractors to clear debris or let the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers handle the work.

Hiring private contractors allowed many communities to employ local workers and perhaps finish the work sooner than the Corps could. Letting the Corps clear the debris allowed others, including suburban New Orleans' Jefferson Parish, La., to avoid a FEMA audit.

"There was no out-of-pocket expense for us," said Marnie Winter, director of the Department of Environmental Affairs for Jefferson Parish. "We're not waiting for that money like all the other communities."

St. Bernard Parish, La., just outside New Orleans, is among the communities waiting for a check. FEMA paid the parish about $100 million for debris removal but still owes about $70 million, said David Peralta, the parish's chief administrative officer. St. Bernard also is waiting for $30 million in reimbursement for sewer repairs, Peralta said.

Peralta said FEMA has "kind of implied" that it is looking into whether the parish paid reasonable rates. Peralta defended the Katrina contracts, saying officials tried to solicit competitive bids without delaying the work.

"We didn't have a whole lot of choices in those first few days," he said.

 

[StevieD]

You might be right. I thought they were trying to figure out why we are in Iraq wasting time and lives in an unwindable civil war, when our national guard should be home attending to stuff like this.

Not to mention securing our borders.

 

[DOGS THAT BARK]

What is it about these women governors--Would someone please inform this lady that they have construction companies-contractors ect that make a living doing this sort of thing--but then again I am sure the liberal entities got together on Monday and got their talking points in order--even the NYT has doesn't deny it anymore--

Toastonastick--hit the nail on the head--
"Using tragedy for political gain."

 

[Chadman]

What is it about these women governors--Would someone please inform this lady that they have construction companies-contractors ect that make a living doing this sort of thing--but then again I am sure the liberal entities got together on Monday and got their talking points in order--even the NYT has doesn't deny it anymore--

Toastonastick--hit the nail on the head--
"Using tragedy for political gain."

What a load of crap. You guys have to take the good with the bad and face realities when the people you support make the choices they do. Are you suggesting the United States National Guard is not the initial line of defense when it comes to protecting the individuals of each state and helping them through times of crisis? Are the contractors and construction companies the first, second or third (for crissakes) responders in an emergency like this? Do the local construction contractors have Humvees and helicopters, and are they trained in public safety situations?

Does the National Guard do the work of construction crews and contractors? Of course not, those people come in later.

The governor (what the heck does her sex have to do with anything?!?) is exactly on point with the commentary and how is she gaining politically from pointing out the obvious? That our efforts in Iraq - which has required local National Guard units to deploy in a foreign country and fight a war, and then be held over (sometimes more than once) to extra duty - will continue to hinder our homeland readiness to meet the needs of our country. One thing I'll grant you, she gains political points for stating the obvious, and for intelligence points for having her opinion - unlike some other apologists around here.

I'm sure you can't be suggesting what it looks like you are, but that would be nothing new.

It is interesting that FEMA seems to be examining the local contractors in these disaster areas so closely...other administration organizations sure don't seem to be doing that in Iraq...which of course you and I pay for. No big deal there, right?

 

[shawn555]

This administration is beyond horrible, they have done nothing but make this country weaker in countless ways since taking office.

The post Katrina response was beyond criminal, that was the first sign that our guard was spread thin.

This just continues to show how we are worse off now than before bush.



Kansas gov.: Tornado exposed Guard holes

By JOHN MILBURN, Associated Press Writer
Tue May 8, 5:44 AM ET

TOPEKA, Kan. - Gov. Kathleen Sebelius says the war in
Iraq has exposed holes in domestic disaster response like the one currently under way in tornado-ravaged Kansas.



The governor said about half the state's National Guard trucks are in Iraq, equipment that would be helpful in removing debris. Sebelius, who asked the
Pentagon in December to replenish lost resources, said the state also is missing a number of well-trained personnel.

"I don't think there is any question if you are missing trucks, Humvees and helicopters that the response is going to be slower," Sebelius said. "The real victims here will be the residents of Greensburg, because the recovery will be at a slower pace."

White House spokesman Tony Snow said the National Guard has equipment positioned around the country to respond to disasters when requested by the states.

"There's been an enormous amount of help on the scene already, frankly, when it comes to what's been going on with the tornado. FEMA has certainly been actively engaged, and the administration is doing whatever it can," Snow said. "And if there's a need for equipment, it will arrive."

Sebelius said she would bring up those concerns with
President Bush on Wednesday when he visits the hard-hit Kansas farming town of Greensburg, where a tornado hit Friday, claiming nine lives.

Maj. Gen. Tod Bunting, the state's adjutant general, said the Kansas National Guard was equipped to about 40 percent of its necessary levels, down from the 60 percent it had at the start of the war. About 850 soldiers have deployed to Iraq and
Afghanistan.

"It just leaves you pretty tight," he said. "We're fine for now."

Bunting said Kansas would be asking National Guard units in other states to send specialized soldiers and equipment to help with the recovery.

Randy Noller, spokesman for the National Guard Bureau, said equipment needs have been an ongoing issue since the war began. He said Lt. Gen. H. Steven Blum, chief of the National Guard Bureau, has repeatedly asked Congress for funding to replace equipment being left overseas.

"This is an issue that we've been dealing with for several months," Noller said. "He knows about it and is working to get it fixed."

Sebelius, a Democrat, has written the Pentagon twice and spoke about the issue at great length with Bush in January 2006 when they rode together from Topeka to a lecture in Manhattan.

"He assured me that he had additional equipment in his budget a year ago. What the Defense Department said then and continues to say is that states will get about 90 percent of what they had," Sebelius said. "Meanwhile, it doesn't get any better. I'm at a loss."

She said it will take a commitment by Bush, Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Congress to see that the troops are funded properly overseas and the National Guard has the materials to protect the homeland.

"The issue for the National Guard is the same wherever you go in the country. Stuff that we would have borrowed is gone. It's gone across the country," Sebelius said.

 

[DOGS THAT BARK]

Yep and I guess 10,000 died---

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - Barack Obama, caught up in the fervor of a campaign speech Tuesday, drastically overstated the Kansas tornadoes death toll, saying 10,000 had died.
The death toll was 12.

"In case you missed it, this week, there was a tragedy in Kansas. Ten thousand people died?an entire town destroyed," the Democratic presidential candidate said in a speech to 500 people packed into a sweltering Richmond art studio for a fundraiser.

http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8P0K1FG2&show_article=1

--- They get their message out then do the back tracking--if you can't see the light--I'll do a little high-lighting for you

White House Rebuts Guard Shortage Claim

May 8, 8:18 PM (ET)

By JENNIFER LOVEN

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Bush administration and Kansas' governor started Tuesday pointing fingers at each other over the response to last week's devastating tornado. By lunchtime, both sides had backed down.

With President Bush set to travel to now-razed Greensburg, Kan., on Wednesday to view the destruction wrought by Friday's 205 mph twister, Democratic Gov. Kathleen Sebelius said she planned to talk with him about her contention that National Guard deployments to Iraq hampered the disaster response.

"I don't think there is any question if you are missing trucks, Humvees and helicopters that the response is going to be slower," she said Monday. "The real victims here will be the residents of Greensburg, because the recovery will be at a slower pace."

Sebelius said that with other states facing similar limitations, "stuff that we would have borrowed is gone."

White House press secretary Tony Snow fought back aggressively.

In an approach reminiscent of the blame game played by the White House with another Democratic governor, Kathleen Blanco of Louisiana, after the federal government's botched response to Hurricane Katrina, Snow at first said the fault for any slow response would be Sebelius'. He said she should have followed procedure by finding gaps and then asking the federal government to fill them - but didn't.

"If you don't request it, you're not going to get it," he told reporters Tuesday morning.

Snow said no one had asked for heavy equipment. "As far as we know, the only thing the governor has requested are FM radios," the spokesman said.

Well, not exactly.

At Snow's second, midday briefing with reporters, he offered that it turned out that the state had requested several items that the federal government supplied - those radios, and also a mobile command center and a mobile office building, an urban search and rescue team and coordination on extra Black Hawk helicopters.

Snow recounted a phone conversation on Tuesday between Sebelius and Bush's White House-based homeland security adviser, Fran Townsend, in which the governor said she was pleased with the federal performance on the tornado and had everything she needed.

About the same time, Sebelius was doing her own backpedal from across the country.

Her spokeswoman, Nicole Corcoran, said the governor didn't mean to imply that the state was ill-equipped to deal with this storm. Sebelius' comments about National Guard equipment were, instead, meant as a warning about the state's inability to handle additional disasters, such as another tornado or severe flooding, she said.

"We are doing absolutely fine right now," Corcoran said. "What the governor is talking about is down the road."

Sebelius has long spoken out about the fallout from sending National Guard units and equipment overseas. She says the war in Iraq is damaging domestic disaster readiness, because needed manpower is drained from states and the Pentagon is not replacing equipment at a fast enough rate.

Sebelius said she asked the Pentagon in December to replenish lost resources. She also said she spoke about the issue at great length with Bush when he was in Kansas in January 2006, and that Bush assured her that the money for replacements was in his budget.

Snow said the president recognizes there is a need to relieve pressure on the National Guard, and that it is one of the main reasons Bush has called for expanding the overall size of the military. But he also said that, regardless, there still are sizable numbers of personnel and equipment around the country ready to respond to disasters.

"If you take a look at the way the National Guard units are dispersed, you still have considerable strength in each state," he said.

--

gul?li?ble (gŭl'ə-bəl)
adj.
Easily deceived or duped.

 

[Chadman]

gul?li?ble (g?l'?-b?l)
adj.
Easily deceived or duped.

I'll grant you that point, Wayne. Thanks for giving us the "true" picture, brought to us from the White House and Tony (FauxNews) Snow.

gul?li?ble (g?l'?-b?l)
adj.
Easily deceived or duped.

 

[DOGS THAT BARK]

Tony Snow report happen to be on all major new sources I believe Chad--or would assume they are--maybe not CNN and cbs/nbc

 

[gardenweasel]

"this is the first time in history that wind has bent metal roofing."..../rosie

other unrelated bush failures:

the cat played with the water sculpture and broke the pump...now the water comes down all uneven....

my cell phone's battery is low.....




hard to figure out what rises faster...gas prices or the inane b.d.s. rhetoric.....

btw...the "governor" is already backing off her original ludocrous statement...there`s more than enough equipment and national guard available to handle the job...and last time i looked at a map,kansas is surrounded by nebraska, missouri, colorado and oklahoma....one of the two dakotas is close at hand, as is arkansas.....



so,what do we learn from this?...

kansas,right???..obviously,george bush just hates white people as well as blacks.....lol

 

[Chadman]

So, is it your position(s) - Wayne and Weasel - that our country is as well prepared to handle local emergencies with National Guard troops and machinery as before the war in Iraq? Simple question, would like to hear the answer(s).