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KATRINA

The Wire

Katrina: DA seeks 1 autopsy in hospital deaths

The New Orleans district attorney has requested an autopsy on a terminally ill patient whose doctor acknowledged increasing the drugs the patient received in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, the city's coroner said Tuesday.

Katrina recovery was test of ability to adapt

Katrina. For most Americans, it needs no qualifiers.

Katrina ruling could bring new deluge of lawsuits

A landmark court ruling blaming the Army Corps of Engineers' "monumental negligence" for some of the worst flooding from Hurricane Katrina could lead to a new deluge: billions of dollars in legal action from thousands of storm victims.

Judge: Corps' negligence caused Katrina flooding

A federal judge ruled Wednesday that the Army Corps of Engineers' failure to properly maintain a navigation channel led to massive flooding in Hurricane Katrina.

Near Katrina bull's eye, town hopes for rebound

On the morning the Walmart reopened this week in Pass Christian, rain canceled a small parade Mayor Chipper McDermott had planned, so folks stood inside the store and handed out gaudy Mardi Gras beads instead of throwing them from a float.

Obama: 'We will not forget' troubled New Orleans

President Barack Obama is promising the people of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast that his administration "will not forget" them as they work to rebuild after Hurricane Katrina.

New Orleans' past, future collide at Oktoberfest

The beer and oompah music are flowing as ever but there is a mournful tone to this year's Oktoberfest at the Deutsches Haus, a remnant of the city's once-vibrant German culture that faces demolition for post-Katrina development.

Ex-mayor in Miss. pleads guilty in Katrina case

A former Gulfport mayor was sentenced to probation Friday in a plea deal on charges that he defrauded a program to help Hurricane Katrina victims rebuild their homes, allowing him and his wife to walk out of court with no prison time.

Judge approves $20M settlement over Katrina damage

A federal judge has given final approval to a $20 million settlement of class-action lawsuits against several Louisiana levee boards. The suits were filed on behalf of about 500,000 homeowners whose property was damaged by Hurricane Katrina's flood waters.

AP photographer gets subpoena in Katrina probe

An Associated Press photographer has been subpoenaed to testify before a federal grand jury probing the death of a man whose burned body was found in a car near a police station several weeks after Hurricane Katrina.

Obama pledges to push ahead with Katrina recovery

President Barack Obama marked the fourth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina on Saturday by pledging to make sure that turf wars and red tape don't slow the pace of the continuing recovery.

Doc: I 'got rid of' patient after Katrina

Louisiana's top prosecutor said Friday he will not reopen a probe into allegations of euthanasia at a hospital crippled by Hurricane Katrina, despite new statements from a doctor that he drugged a terminal patient to "get rid of her faster."

PROMISES, PROMISES: Praise for Obama on Katrina

As a presidential candidate, Barack Obama pledged to right the wrongs he said bogged down efforts to rebuild the Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina. Seven months into the job, he's earning high praise from some unlikely places.

5-year sentence for subcontractor in levee bribery

A subcontractor has been sentenced to five years in prison for conspiring to bribe two Army Corps of Engineers consultants over bids to reconstruct levees after Hurricane Katrina.

FBI searches New Orleans police in bridge case

Two computers were removed from the New Orleans Police Department during a search by the FBI as part of a probe into a deadly bridge shooting in the chaotic aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, officials said Monday.

Report blasts FEMA on storm trailer formaldehyde

The Federal Emergency Management Agency took too long to respond to initial reports of dangerous levels of formaldehyde in trailers delivered to victims of the 2005 hurricanes, exposing people to possible health risks, a report of the Homeland Security Department inspector general said Thursday.

Miss. shows Katrina recovery at govs' convention

Governors attending their national convention on Mississippi's Gulf Coast have seen signs of Hurricane Katrina recovery — glitzy casinos packed with tourists, new condominium towers rising along the beach, the major expansion of a bustling state port.

Honore: Ex-La. governor halted hospital reopening

Weeks after Hurricane Katrina slammed New Orleans and worsened the medical plight of the city's poor, then-Gov. Kathleen Blanco said the publicly run Charity Hospital would not reopen, even though the military had scrubbed the building to medical-ready standards, the retired Army general who oversaw the work said.

Corps: Costs for storm surge barrier work rises

Top brass at the Army Corps of Engineers say the estimated price of a major project to build three floodgates and a 1.8-mile storm surge barrier to protect New Orleans from hurricanes is now $1.8 billion.

Hurricane victims still in trailers get options

Thousands of Gulf Coast hurricane victims who have missed deadline after deadline to leave their federal housing are being offered additional help and the chance to buy trailers for as little as $1 as the government seeks to avoid mass evictions.

Miss. AG: Keep State Farm settlement deal sealed

Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood has asked a court to block renewed efforts to make public a settlement agreement between his office and insurer State Farm Fire & Casualty Co. that was part of their feud over homeowner claims from Hurricane Katrina.

'Class of Katrina' graduating, 4 years after storm

In the months after Hurricane Katrina swamped the University of New Orleans campus in August 2005, the basketball team practiced at a school six hours away in Texas and played almost its entire season on the road, winning just three games.

Steps urged to make New Orleans safer post-Katrina

New Orleans should increase the strength of new levees being built to protect against catastrophic hurricanes, elevate more houses and abandon neighborhoods that rest below sea level, an independent research panel said Friday.

Katrina flooding victims in court to seek damages

A coastal geologist testified Monday that he warned the Army Corps of Engineers decades ago about the dangers of the shipping channel that funneled Hurricane Katrina's storm surge into New Orleans.

Tainted Chinese drywall shows up in Katrina homes

Thomas Stone and his wife rebuilt after their home was flooded by six feet of water during Hurricane Katrina, never dreaming they would face the agony of tearing it apart all over again.

The Vine
Fox host's book title implies Swift Boat veterans were liars
Source: Raw Story

In order to make his point, however, Gibson has to suggest that the Swift Boat Veterans, whose attacks on Democratic candidate John Kerry helped Bush win re-election in the midst of an unpopular war, were unconscionable liars.

Hurricane Katrina victims win damages over flooding
Source: Guardian Unlimited

The US government could be vulnerable to billions of dollars in claims after a judge ruled that the Army Corps of Engineers' failure to properly maintain a navigation channel led to massive flooding in Hurricane Katrina.

Dr. Ed Blakely: New Orleans full of lazy do-nothing bigots!
Source: NOLA.com

This doesn't surprise me. When I worked in recovery offices last year we were required to goto a meeting this man held.

New Orleans Cannot be Protected from Hurricanes
Source:

But, the Corps' top commander was quoted in two newspapers this weekend saying that despite ongoing efforts, flooding can't be stopped in New Orleans. According to The Guardian in the UK and Huffington Post, Lt.

When The Saints Go Marching In

I just returned from New Orleans this morning after spending the last six days helping some friends and their families work on the three homes the families are rebuilding.

President Obama's Trip to New Orleans Draws Criticism -- Before He Even Arrives
Source: ABC News

Slightly more than four years after Hurricane Katrina ravaged the Gulf Coast, President Obama is traveling to New Orleans today to fulfill a campaign promise to survey first-hand the city's recovery. Share The president discusses the rebuilding programs his office put in place.

Floating house could ride New Orleans' floods
Source: Christian Science Monitor

The dwelling was designed by Morphosis Architects under the direction of Mr. Mayne, a professor at UCLA. Mayne said it's the first of its kind to be permitted in the United States.

Mississippi Gulf Coast not worth a look, Mr. President?
Source: clarionledger.com

President Barack Obama will visit New Orleans on Thursday to survey for himself the progress of recovery from 2005's Hurricane Katrina - but there are apparently no plans by the White House for a presidential stop in Mississippi for the same purpose.

On Gulf Coast, Praise for Obama, Criticism of Visit
Source: The New York Times

NEW ORLEANS — At Willie's Auto Repair in the Lower Ninth Ward, just a few blocks from a school where President Obama is scheduled to speak on Thursday morning, Mr. Obama received Jerome Bienaime's endorsement.

Ship symbolizes survivors bond between NYC, New Orleans
Source: USA Today

NEW ORLEANS — Peering through thick fog, hundreds stood on the banks of the Mississippi River early Tuesday and cheered as the latest piece of naval history cut through the haze and belched its horn. The onlookers waved flags at the New York, a freshly built 684-foot Navy wars …

New Orleans Politics: The Clown Party
Source: The New Orleans Levee

This is from the paper "The New Orleans Levee: We hold nothing back". As most of their articles they use a bit of humor to critique Louisiana (Mostly New Orleans) politics and corruption. Hope you enjoy.

President Obama to visit New Orleans for a post-Katrina survey
Source: McClatchy

By Margaret Talev | McClatchy Newspapers

Former ACORN organizer worries about its future
Source: NOLA.com

Wade Rathke, the former chief organizer of ACORN, acknowledged that the organization he founded in 1970 is caught in a public storm that threatens its existence.

Pigs at the Trough: SBInet, Boeing, and Congressional Complicity

I listened to the hearing the House Committee on Border Security recently had about border control, & SBI Net. I was so cheered by the overall skepticism I heard. I wish I'd written down the names so I could deliver my critique more clearly, but I'll do my best.

Lost Cat Found 3,800km Away: Owners Lack Money to Pay for Its Return
Source: themercury.com.au

After their cat Clyde was found 3,800 km away, the Phillips family is seeking to get funds to pay for its trip home.

DA: No New Investigation Into Memorial Deaths During 'Katrina'
Source: WDSU.COM

NEW ORLEANS -- The Orleans Parish District Attorney's office told WDSU on Friday that it is not reopening the investigation into the deaths of the patients stranded at Memorial Medical Center during Hurricane Katrina.

Did Doctors Euthanize Dozens of Patients During Katrina Evacuation?
Source: Slate

In August 2005, when Hurricane Katrina was just beginning to bear down on the city of New Orleans, the doctors at Memorial Medical Center, a respected community hospital southwest of the French Quarter, were forced to make an impossible ethical decision: choose to evacuate the si …

New Orleans Times-Picayune Page One Editorial on Fourth Anniversary of Hurricane Katrina: 'We're counting on You, Mr. President'
Source: NOLA.com

We are grateful for the federal aid that has flowed our way, including $14.7 billion in improvements to levees and drainage and other storm protection measures.

Charting New Orleans' Progress Since Katrina
Source: CNN

Four Years after hurricane Katrina, New Orleans has made progress into returning the city to its former glory, but there are still many areas requiring attention.

Katrina, Four Years Later: Expert Fired Who Warned Levees Would Burst
Source: Common Dreams

"Fifteen hundred people drowned. That's the bottom line," said von Heerden. He shouldn't have told me that. The professor was already in trouble for saying, publicly, that the levees around New Orleans were no good, too short, by 18″.

Record Casts New Light On Doctors, Nurses Involved In Katrina Hospital Deaths
Source: ProPublica: Articles and Investigations

At a recent national conference for hospital disaster planners, Pou asked a question: ''How long should health care workers have to be with patients who may not survive?'' The story of Memorial Medical Center raises other questions: Which patients should get a share of li …

Katrina, Four Years Later: Expert Fired Who Warned Levees Would Burst
Source: Crooks and Liars

There's another floater. Four years on, there's another victim face down in the waters of Hurricane Katrina, Dr. Ivor van Heerden.

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