LINES REMAIN QUITE LONG FOR KATRINA VICTIMS AT PENSACOLA CENTRE

The Pensacola News Journal reports today that the American Red Cross' Northwest Florida chapter had to cut off the line near noon Wednesday after more than 2,500 victims of Hurricane Katrina waited for hours to receive assistance.

The Red Cross had relocated it's primary disaster relief site from it's office to the much larger East Brent Baptist Church to accomodate the crowds of applicants seeking assistance. People began gathering as early as 3:00 AM since the ARC began offering financial assistance of between $300 and $1,500 based on family size, with nearly 600 in line by 7:00 AM.

On a personal note, I finally spoke with my sister who lives in rural Covington County, Mississippi. Her family is safe, although her home suffered some slight roof damage and her husband's shop building was destroyed. She mentioned that when she went to a Red Cross relief site in Collins, it was much the same scene as described in the Pensacola News Journal story. Their home got electricity restored last Friday, but still no landline telephone or cable service. A really huge load off my shoulders!