Denham Springs Mayor Gerard Landry voices his complaints about FEMA during a Congressional Subcommitee hearing Friday.
Walker Mayor Rick Ramsey airs his grievances about the FEMA response to the record flooding in his city and others across Livingston and surrounding parishes.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Mayors Gerard Landry of Denham Springs and Rick Ramsey of Walker left the nation’s capitol with mixed feelings Friday after they testified in a Congressional subcommittee hearing on FEMA’s lackluster response to the catastrophic floods last month in Livingston Parish.
The two mayors in an interview Friday afternoon prior to their flight back to Louisiana praised the bipartisan delegation, particularly the three members from Louisiana in the hearing for the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, which aired live worldwide on C-SPAN.
The lack of definitive response from the lone FEMA administrator – the assistant to absent Gen. Craig Fugate, who was not in attendance – did nothing to change either mayor’s less-than-flattering opinion of the federal agency.
“Most of it was 'I’ll have to get back with you later' or 'I’ll have to check on that',” Ramsey said. “Part of is that the person who heads FEMA wasn’t there, which was just an opportunity for him not to have to answer any questions.”
Fugate’s absence also angered Baton Republican Congressman Garret Graves and his Democratic counterpart, Cedric Richmond of New Orleans.
“I think our Congressmen were very receptive to what we discussed and they were disappointed, as well,” Ramsey said. “We felt he should’ve been there, but wasn’t.”
Ramsey considered the lack of assurance from FEMA the biggest disappointment during the trip.
“We were able to get information on certain levels of how we can rebuild homes based on substantial losses and assurance that as much as possible will be done,” he said. “But the message we got from that was 'Thank you for coming to this hearing, we’ll see what we can do'.”
Both mayors criticized FEMA for its lack of effective response and the lack of accurate and timely information given to the community.
“My frustration stems from the fact that FEMA is applying strict, generalized rules to a flood of epic proportions,” Landry told the committee. “Nothing like this has ever happened in Denham Springs, nor in any of the many areas impacted by these waters.
“It is unlikely that a flood of this magnitude will ever happen again,” he said. “Yet, FEMA continues to treat this event as it if were a routine, localized event that affected a small number of individuals.”
Landry also urged members of Congress not to make residents wait for them to fix FEMA, which he called “a broken system they are unwilling to fix.”
He demanded the agency waive the flood zone requirements that would require residents to elevate their homes during the rebuilding process. Landry and the other mayors did not see the logic in building to a higher elevation for a rain event that would occur once in 1,000 years.
"If FEMA continues to enforce strict, generalized standards that have repeatedly proven ineffective to this flood of historic proportions, our city will be unable to rebuild and will fall into blight because of the actions of FEMA,” he said.
FEMA’S lack of foresight for location of a Disaster Recovery Center disappointed, Ramsey said.
He said the location in Sidney Hutchinson Park made it difficult to access for many of his city’s flood victims, who lost both their homes and vehicles in the deluge.
“That was great, but it's between three and five miles of where the flooding occurred and very hard for victims to get there,” Ramsey said.
The lack of attention to the extent of the flood did not stop with victims, Landry told the Committee.
“A FEMA official contacted me shortly after the flood and asked me to arrange for fifteen hotel rooms for FEMA representatives,” he said. “I told them I wish I knew of one room in the area –that's how out of touch FEMA has been during this flood.”
Residents of Denham Springs and other cities across Livingston Parish waited five days before FEMA’s first deliveries of food and water reached the areas, Landry said. It took two weeks for a FEMA representative to contact him about setting up a Disaster Recovery Center within the city limits – and 19 days after the floods for it to open.
He deemed it “unacceptable” for FEMA to promise aid in relief during the area’s time of need. Its failure to deliver on that promise has made the struggle more difficult, Landry said.
“FEMA must evaluate its practices and procedures in order to ensure a quick response in times of great crisis,” he said. “FEMA must efficiently and effectively utilize its vast resources and already-existing field offices in order to meet the needs of our communities.
“To date, this has not happened,” Landry said.
FEMA federal coordinating officer Gerard Stolar also misinformed the state’s House Committee on Homeland Security when he said his agency was “running into red tape” with cities.
Landry said his City Council eliminated the red tape a week after the flood when members approved the suspension of an ordinance that prevented recreational vehicles from being parked in the yards of residential dwellings.
“To date, FEMA has not asked us to alter, amend or suspend any of our city ordinances, nor have they asked us to provide assistance in any other way,” he said. “Time and time again, FEMA has not only been unable to assist us in meeting its stringent criteria, but has also placed the blame for their inefficiency and failures on our city ordinances.”
The agency also misinformed residents on placement of FEMA mobile homes in flood zones.
Landry told the Committee that FEMA angered him when Denham Springs citizens were forced to fight with FEMA to receive assistance the agency promised them.
“Failure to accurately and timely disseminate critical information essential to our recovery is unacceptable,” he said. “Clear communication before and during a crisis would prevent this situation from occurring.
“FEMA must, at the very least, provide its employees with accurate information to give to the citizens in the affected communities,” Landry said. “FEMA must provide qualified, experienced personnel to assist community leaders in making the adjustments needed in order for their communities to qualify for FEMA assistance."
Central Mayor Jr. Shelton, who also testified, said the FEMA response has proven the entity as a whole is “inept, inconsistent and disorganized.”
“It was quickly apparent that the FEMA staffing our area had a lack of training and knowledge about the FEMA rules and regulations,” he said. ”The majority of the staff we have spoken to stated they were brand new to the job with only seventy-two hours of training.”
Shelton also lashed out at FEMA’s possible requirement of home elevation as part of the rebuilding process.
“It’s sad that people build homes on flood plans drawn up by FEMA that didn’t show them in a flood zone, but now they want to make them change everything – that’s not the right thing to do,” he said. Governor John Bel Edwards was less critical, but acknowledged FEMA as a flawed agency.
“While I am grateful for the quick response we have received from this flooding, I am under no illusion that the response has been perfect,” he said. “I urge FEMA to ramp up the delivery and installation of manufactured housing units in Louisiana. While the response with manufactured housing units has been quicker than any other Louisiana disaster, it has not been fast enough for the families in Louisiana who have lost their homes and have no place to go.”
