Quotations

«Though the storm may have passed, it is still not safe for all of us to return to home. We must wait for the emergency operations to be completed and we must also allow time for experts to assess any potential public safety concerns. We may return home only once these situations are resolved and local leaders have determined it is safe for us to do so.»

«FEMA, now a shell of what it once was, continues to be overwhelmed by the task at hand.»

«Offers of medicine, communications equipment and the desperately needed items continue to flow in, only to be ignored by the agency.»

«Accountability at every level is critical, and leadership begins at the top.»

«It's just fabulous, fantastic news for this region.»

«She's very much in charge, she shows a remarkable inner strength.»

«I believe we turned that corner several years ago.»

«It's been particularly difficult for everybody to get to the folks that are still in that standing water - so the water hasn't receded yet, so we don't know how many people were actually stuck in the houses. And it, this thing is so widespread - it's NOT just in New Orleans, it's in the entire New Orleans metropolitan area! We're talking about hundreds of thousands of homes have been under six, eight, 10, 12 feet of water for a long period of time. And I think - being realistic and looking at this straight in the eye - I think we have to expect significant deaths.»

«I understand that the U.S. Forest Service had water-tanker aircraft available to help douse the fires raging on our riverfront, but FEMA has yet to accept the aid. When Amtrak offered trains to evacuate significant numbers of victims - far more efficiently than buses - FEMA again dragged its feet,»

«When the storm hit and the levees broke, our calls went unanswered,»