How about that FEMA? They did a heckuva job moving sick folks out of harm’s way in advance of Hurricane Gustav. Something like almost 250 evacuees were airlifted into Little Rock for hospital care here ahead of the storm.
Er, but Director Chertoff … didn’t anybody think about getting those sick folks home AFTER the storm?
Apparently not. Or so we are told by a reliable hospital source. Take St. Vincent Infirmary. It received 63 patients at two locations. The storm’s long gone, but some 57 or so evacuees are still on hand. Does FEMA have a plan to get these folks home? It does not. In fact, I’m told that during a conference call this week, FEMA officials suggested to hospital officials that it could just turn out the able-bodied to homeless shelters.
Kid you not.
St. Vincent has begun moving patients ready for return, and with places to go, in vans — with food and water, of course.
So far, the best FEMA has been able to offer is transportation by the end of next week. That’s presuming a couple of other storms don’t hit the U.S. before then.