[StBernard] Rep. Melancon Recognizes the Second Anniversary of Hurricane Katrina

[Westley Annis]

CHALMETTE, LA”U.S. Rep. Charlie Melancon (D-LA) today joined students, teachers, and residents of St. Bernard Parish in recognizing the second anniversary of Hurricane Katrina’s landfall with the communitys Annual Day of Reflection breakfast.  The memorial event, hosted by the St. Bernard Parish School Board, was held this morning at Chalmette High School and is an opportunity for the community to remember the losses they suffered because of Hurricane Katrina and the levee failures, while also celebrating the rebuilding progress and unity of spirit evident in St. Bernard today.  
 
Today we reflect on a solemn anniversary for the people of south Louisiana and the Gulf Coast, said Rep. Melancon.  Two years ago today, a monster hurricane slammed into our coast, leaving hundreds of miles of destruction in its wake.  But the even greater disaster, the disaster that made Katrina the worst catastrophe in U.S. history, began when the levees built to protect our homes and communities failed on a massive scale and the floodwaters poured in.  Today we gather in this school, where almost 1500 people took refuge from Katrina and the floodwaters, to remember the many lives that were lost or irrevocably changed, the homes and memories that were washed away, and the scores of communities, like Chalmette, that were devastated by the levee failures.
 
But today is also a day to celebrate the progress we have made individually and as a community in rebuilding what was lost to the storms.  A year ago, only a few courageous pioneers had returned to St. Bernard to rebuild their community.  Today, over 20,000 more of their friends and neighbors have joined them. A year ago, two schools in St. Bernard had reopened.  Today, five schools are welcoming students and parents to a new school year.  While the recovery has seemed frustratingly slow and new roadblocks keep going up in our path, thanks to the determined and optimistic spirit of the citizens of St. Bernard, signs of progress are everywhere.  Today we celebrate that spirit and recommit to building a better future for our community.
                                                             
A year ago, I brought a group of Congressmen and women, led by then-Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and Caucus Chairman Jim Clyburn, to the first St. Bernard Annual Day of Reflection.  There was not a dry eye in the room as we listened to the students recall the heartbreak they had endured because of the storms. But we were also inspired by the students love for St. Bernard, and their determination to persevere and rebuild their community.  For many of the visiting Congressmen and women, hearing firsthand from these young survivors was the most memorable experience in their three day visit to the Gulf Coast.
 
The Members took those stories and memories back to Washington with them, and since taking the majority in January, have passed a flurry of legislation sending more relief and rebuilding assistance to the Gulf Coast.  They listened to the teachers, healthcare workers, sheriffs, local government officials, and other community leaders in south Louisiana explain the challenges they faced, and worked with them to draft and pass legislation that would best meet those ongoing recovery needs.
 
Congress, led by Speaker Pelosi and Whip Clyburn, provided over a billion more dollars for levee rebuilding; sent relief funding to help storm-damaged schools, colleges and universities rebuild; and provided direct aid to fishermen to help them get their boats back on the water.  They passed legislation that cut through yards of bureaucratic red tape by issuing waivers giving schools, law enforcement officers, social service providers, and housing authorities more freedom to choose how federal money could be best spent or freeing up additional funds. They extended tax breaks encouraging businesses to relocate to the Gulf Coast and developers to build more affordable housing in the region.  And they removed a huge roadblock to Louisiana’s recovery by eliminating the 10% local match required for disaster recovery projects, like rebuilding schools and removing debris.  This waiver, combined with legislation offering forgiveness for community disaster loans, took a huge financial burden off of our cash-strapped local governments and will help them rebuild faster and more efficiently.
 
While the leadership in Congress has worked to make good on their commitment to be a strong partner in helping south Louisiana and the entire Gulf Coast rebuild, they and I know we are far from being finished.  As long as there are people who can't return home, or families living in FEMA trailers, or schools and hospitals that haven't reopened, or communities that don't have category 5 hurricane and flood protection, our work is not done.  We in south Louisiana are proud Americans, and our needs are America's needs. 
I will keep working in Congress to make sure our leaders remember the Gulf Coast not just today, the anniversary of Katrina, but every day, because the people of south Louisiana remember and live with the devastation every day.
 
As the second anniversaries of Katrina and Rita approached, Rep. Melancon assisted House Majority Whip James E. Clyburn in leading a second Congressional delegation trip to the Gulf Coast in mid-August to again survey the progress and assess the region's ongoing hurricane recovery needs.  The group of approximately 15 House members, including Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, traveled to New Orleans, St. Bernard Parish, and the Mississippi Gulf Coast for a three day working visit, meeting with elected officials, community leaders, healthcare providers, educators, and other citizens working to rebuild their communities. In Louisiana, the lawmakers help a policy conference with local and state officials, visited the Lower 9th Ward, met with doctors, healthcare administrators, and patients at the St. Bernard Health Center, and toured the New Orleans levee system, with a stop at the MRGO in St. Bernard.  The Members also visited Chalmette and met with a woman who is living in a FEMA trailer while rebuilding her home.  Following the visit, the leadership and Members outlined a list of legislative priorities to further aid Louisiana’s recovery, including bills to improve housing, infrastructure, health care, education, and reform the insurance industry and FEMA bureaucracy.
 
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