Hurricane Katrina

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New Fear for Katrina Victims: Collectors

Company claims it overpaid on some rebuilding grants

(Newser) - A contractor responsible for doling out federal rebuilding money to Katrina victims is seeking another company to collect what may amount to hundreds of millions of dollars from Katrina victims. ICF International claims it overpaid some applicants in a rush to get $11 billion out the door; meanwhile, a third...

In Surprising Turn, Scruggs Pleads Guilty

Famed Miss. lawyer may serve 5 years in bribery case

(Newser) - Dickie Scruggs, one of the nation's top class-action attorneys, entered a surprise guilty plea today in Jackson, Miss., to charges of conspiracy to bribe a judge, the Clarion-Ledger reports. Federal prosecutors said they would recommend 5 years in prison for Scruggs, who also faces a $250,000 fine. He pleaded...

Oprah Makes Giving Competitive
Oprah Makes Giving Competitive
Mar 2, 2008 12:42 PM CST

Oprah Makes Giving Competitive

New show's contestants will compete to be the best philanthropist

(Newser) - Heavyweight philanthropist Oprah Winfrey will outsource giving to a whole new level tonight: Her new ABC reality show, “Oprah’s Big Give,” makes charity a competition. Contestants compete to raise money for needy folks and causes, and each week the lowest-earner is given the boot, reports the New ...

Will Mac Reject His Radical Pastor's Nod?
Will Mac Reject His Radical Pastor's Nod?
OPINION
Feb 28, 2008 2:59 PM CST

Will Mac Reject His Radical Pastor's Nod?

Salon cites double standard that protects evangelical extremists

(Newser) - Barack Obama gets grilled over unsolicited praise from Louis Farrakhan, but John McCain draws no flak for “proudly” accepting the endorsement of a homophobic, Islamophobic evangelical pastor. Grotesque double standard, Glenn Greenwald calls it in Salon. Tim Russert made Obama “jump through multiple hoops” to disown the Nation...

B&N Chief Gives $20M for Katrina Relief

Money will support building of 20 new houses

(Newser) - The chair of Barnes & Noble and his wife are donating $20 million to New Orleans in what may be the biggest Katrina relief project yet, the AP reports. Leonard Riggio said today that the funds will build 20 new houses in a racially mixed neighborhood for lower-income families. Those...

West Can't Forget Victims of Katrina

NBA All-Star goes all out to help needy in New Orleans

(Newser) - Tonight's NBA All-Star Game in New Orleans showcases basketball's best. In the Big Easy, the lingering effects of Hurricane Katrina's devastation are part of the scene. For Hornets All-Star forward David West, they're part of everyday life, and no matter how much he does to help, it doesn't feel like...

FEMA to Move Families, Citing Toxins in Trailers

High formaldehyde levels found in lodging of hurricane survivors

(Newser) - FEMA will move thousands of survivors of hurricanes Katrina and Rita out of their government-supplied trailers because of possibly dangerous levels of formaldehyde, the Times-Picayune reports. Those at greatest risk, including those with current health problems, will be moved into apartments and hotels in the next two weeks, with the...

Post-Katrina, Mardi Gras Revels
Post-Katrina, Mardi Gras Revels
Feb 5, 2008 11:50 AM CST

Post-Katrina, Mardi Gras Revels

Hurricane's shadow still looms, but New Orleans revelers make a comeback

(Newser) - Super Tuesday means Mardi Gras in Louisiana today, and the New Orleans bacchanal is slowly finding its feet 3 years after Hurricane Katrina. The predominantly black Zulu parade has as its king this year a 62-year-old native who left the Big Easy for Houston after the levees broke. He's only...

Katrina Victims Can't Sue Army Corps
Katrina Victims Can't Sue
Army Corps
Jan 30, 2008 10:19 PM CST

Katrina Victims Can't Sue Army Corps

Judge sympathizes but says feds have immunity

(Newser) -  A federal judge ruled yesterday that thousands of New Orleans homeowners affected by devastating levee breaches after Hurricane Katrina can't sue the Army Corps of Engineers, the New Orleans Times-Picayune reports. Judge Stanwood Duval called the case "heart-wrenching" but said a 1928 law gives the Corps immunity from...

FEMA Buried Dangers of Katrina Trailers, Reps Charge

Formaldehyde risks ignored in scramble

(Newser) - Democrats on a House committee say the Federal Emergency Management Agency ignored good science in using travel trailers with dangerously high levels of formaldehyde as long-term housing for victims of Hurricane Katrina, CNN reports, adding that FEMA suppressed a report on formaldehyde risks. The emergency agency calls yesterday's accusations "...

Edwards to Quit '08 Race
Edwards to Quit '08 Race
Jan 30, 2008 8:20 AM CST

Edwards to Quit '08 Race

Ends underdog bid overshadowed by fierce Obama, Clinton rivalry

(Newser) - Democratic hopeful John Edwards is ending his second quest for the presidency, reports the AP, capping a campaign in which he focused on progressive ideals and wrestled with the recurring cancer of his wife, Elizabeth. The former senator canceled campaign events last night for what was to be a major...

Nation's First Indian Gov. Vows to Clean Up Louisiana

'Whiz kid,' 36, pledges ethics, economic reform

(Newser) - Louisiana's first non-white chief executive since Reconstruction—and the first elected Indian-American governor in US history—vowed yesterday in his inauguration speech to clean up the corruption-plagued state. The charismatic Piyush "Bobby" Jindal, a Roman-Catholic convert from Hinduism, is a conservative Republican who also becomes, at age 36, the...

US Hurricane Aid Snarled in Red Tape

$3.5B to replace schools and firehouses languishing in accounts

(Newser) - Billions of dollars in FEMA aid earmarked for rebuilding infrastructure pulverized by the 2005 Gulf Coast hurricanes have yet to be spent on thousands of important projects such as replacing schools and firehouses, USA Today reports. Out of $4.5 billion in aid to Louisiana and Mississippi, only $1 billion...

Commander of Katrina Relief Effort to Retire

Honoré will concentrate on improving country's disaster readiness

(Newser) - Russel Honoré, the general who gained renown for his handling of the Hurricane Katrina relief effort, will retire from the army Friday, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. Honoré had a storied career, from Korea to Katrina, and although he’s “transitioning” (his preferred word) out of military life, he already...

Katrina Victims' Claims Number in the Trillions

New Orleans residents seek damages from Corps of Engineers

(Newser) - New Orleans residents have peppered the Army Corps of Engineers with claims for trillions in damages, USA Today reports, asking for sums higher than the nation’s entire economic output. One claim alone seeks $3 quadrillion. In all, the corps has received more than 489,000 claims, with more still...

McGovern: Oust Bush, Cheney
McGovern: Oust Bush, Cheney
OPINION
Jan 6, 2008 1:07 PM CST

McGovern: Oust Bush, Cheney

Former Dem. nominee rails against duo's 'high crimes and misdemeanors'

(Newser) - Now is the time to impeach President Bush and Vice President Cheney, declares former Democratic nominee George McGovern in a passionate, if quixotic, plea in the Washington Post. The duo have committed a plethora of "high crimes and misdemeanors," says McGovern, including illegal wiretapping, systematic torture, and substantial...

New Year's SMS Jam Sends Bad Message

Experts worry about network overloads in future crises

(Newser) - When the ball dropped to usher in 2008 so many people texted New Year's tidings that mobile networks jammed, the AP reports. Sadly, this is nothing new: Bounced missives in the midst of disasters like 9/11, the '03 blackout, and Katrina can be life and death matters. But full backup...

NRA Sues for Guns Seized After Katrina

But arms org still seeks survivors who owned the weapons

(Newser) - The National Rifle Association has filed a federal lawsuit to recover hundreds of guns seized from New Orleans residents in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, AP reports. The suit claims that residents were left "at the mercy of roving gangs, home invaders and other criminals" because they lost their...

Near 300,000, New Orleans Hits 65% of Its Former Size

Surge in population one barometer for health of Big Easy

(Newser) - New Orleans is now at 65% of its pre-hurricane population and looks poised to pass the 300,000 mark at any day now. Although many neighborhoods are still in need of rebuilding and dotted with vacant lots, the growth represents a "significant indication of New Orleans' sustained viability as...

Katrina Spreads Cajun Cookin'
Katrina Spreads Cajun Cookin'
Dec 24, 2007 12:14 PM CST

Katrina Spreads Cajun Cookin'

Displaced residents open restaurants across America

(Newser) - Until recently many residents of Monett, Mo., couldn’t even pronounce muffaletta. “They’d say, ‘I want that big sandwich with the big name,’” says chef Darren Indovina. Thanks to the Gulf's post-Katrina diaspora, small towns like Monett are getting their first taste of real Cajun...

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