Just wondering about somthing

[DansDarkSide]

Here in buffalo we had a big storm and my heat+power was out for a week in -30 degree weather and 2 1/2 week without internet and cable + still have no phone.

From what Ive heard we had alot of press on us. I just wanted to know what you guys heard about the october ice storm in Buffalo NY.

Oh and by the way FEMA still sucks. If this Ice storm was as bad as Katrina was it would have killed ever more people because of the cold. They gave us 10 million dollars for cleanup when it will take over 100 million to repair and clean up just the west side of buffalo. Now you have to take into consideration the rest of the areas. All of WNY was it by this and only 10 million to help??? And it has been 3 weeks since the storm hit and there are still people without heat, power, cable, phone. The cleanup has been slow I still have to duck under trees just trying to get to the store.

[Cylon]

Originally Posted by DansDarkSide

From what Ive heard we had alot of press on us. I just wanted to know what you guys heard about the october ice storm in Buffalo NY.

Well I live in Long Island, and I have heard nothing of such an ice storm, lol. I really don't watch the news too often, but I haven't seen anything in the newspapers. Maybe there will be some articles in tomorrows edition.

Hope you get all your necessities up and running, and everything will get cleaned out in the streets, town, etc, after a couple of days I'm sure.

[Big Red 11]

There was a bit of coverage on the news - I pay attention to it more because my brother is up in buffalo.

[waltky]

Dans wrote Oh and by the way FEMA still sucks.

Outrage After FEMA Melts Ice Meant for Hurricane Victims
September 25, 2008 - Relief Workers Say Thousands Still In Dire Need of Ice, Though FEMA Disagrees

As victims of Hurricane Ike still await the arrival of disaster relief supplies, FEMA yesterday began melting ice meant for distribution to victims in what is being described as a cost-saving measure. While nearly half a million Houston-area residents remain without power in the ravaged aftermath, causing food to rot and temperature-sensitive medication to spoil, and relief workers on the ground report that ice is desperately needed for those still without electricity, FEMA asserts all needs have been met.

"To ensure that we had enough to provide for everyone in need, we had too much," a FEMA spokesperson said of the ice. "The most cost efficient option was to dispose of it rather than try to preserve it." FEMA could not confirm how much ice it had melted but local reports said it was thousands of pallets. The move has sparked outrage in the disaster relief community, where ice is considered a necessity when electricity is out for preserving food, medication, feeding formulas and keeping people cool in potentially-dangerous heat. Critics argued the move is irresponsible and indicative of a broken disaster relief system.

"It infuriates me to say the least," said Bishop James Dixon of the Community of Faith Church and the Dominion Community Development Corporation in Houston. "There are people who are desperate for what seems like it should be a simple commodity, and with them melting the commodity that these people are desperate for is unacceptable."

Ben Smilowitz, executive director of the Disaster Accountability Project, a nonpartisan organization that monitors the nation's disaster response, stressed that, "So long as hundreds of thousands are without power, there is a need for ice." "Instead of disposing ice on a restricted-access airstrip 160 miles from Houston, why not dispose of the ice in Houston or hard-hit locations still out of power, send each ice truck to a different neighborhood," Smilowitz said. "The ice would be gone – fast."

More ABC News: Outrage After FEMA Melts Ice Meant for Hurricane Victims