snip...Four deaths have been blamed on Ike so far: two in Texas and two in Louisiana, according to the Associated Press.
snip...Bush said the federal government is providing 1.5 million liters of water and 1 million meals a day to help the displaced. He also mentioned restoring electricity, clearing debris and getting the Houston sewage plant running again as top goals.
"Our first priority is search and rescue," Bush told reporters.
snip... In Galveston, the worst-hit city and the place where the massive storm's eye made landfall, authorities were still unsure whether there were fatalities among the thousands of residents who ignored warnings to flee. Rescue workers were moving block by block across 32-mile Galveston Island and had found no fatalities by the 11-mile marker. But they were concerned that there could be deaths on the more devastated western side of the island, which still lay ahead.
"We haven't even gotten to the west end, and I know the west end is totally devastated," City Manager Steve LeBlanc said. Two apartment buildings in the eastern part of town collapsed. "We don't know if there are people in there or not," LeBlanc said.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/story/2008/09/14/ST2008091400700.html
So far the death toll is a lot less than expected which is great.
I wish GW would shut up on issues like this. Meals and water..... those are what are given out by the Red Cross. The Red Cross is a private entity, they recieve some government funding but rely mainly on private donations and volunteers. They aren't government. They do work in conjunction with FEMA, but they work independently too.
The search and rescue is being handled by local fire departments, and local LE and private individuals. FEMA helps to coordinate and provides some resources, but they can't and don't do the searching.
I hate it when the prez tries to take credit for the government that the government is not entitled to. The credit should go to those authorities, organizations, enitites and individuals who are actually doing the work! Okay, rant over.
And BTW GW, gas gouging started before Ike even made landfall. The price of crude went down, but the price at the pumps went up.