Posted: 9/6/2005 8:14:04 PM EDT
[#18]
From the President on August 28th and a White House press briefing on August 29th. The 28th was the day BEFORE the storm. For Immediate Release Office of the Press Secretary August 28, 2005
President Discusses Hurricane Katrina, Congratulates Iraqis on Draft Constitution Prairie Chapel Ranch Crawford, Texas
11:31 A.M. CDT
THE PRESIDENT: This morning I spoke with FEMA Undersecretary Mike Brown and emergency management teams not only at the federal level but at the state level about the -- Hurricane Katrina. I've also spoken to Governor Blanco of Louisiana, Governor Barbour of Mississippi, Governor Bush of Florida, and Governor Riley of Alabama. I want to thank all the folks at the federal level and the state level and the local level who have taken this storm seriously. I appreciate the efforts of the governors to prepare their citizenry for this upcoming storm.
Yesterday, I signed a disaster declaration for the state of Louisiana, and this morning I signed a disaster declaration for the state of Mississippi. These declarations will allow federal agencies to coordinate all disaster relief efforts with state and local officials. We will do everything in our power to help the people in the communities affected by this storm.
Hurricane Katrina is now designated a category five hurricane. We cannot stress enough the danger this hurricane poses to Gulf Coast communities. I urge all citizens to put their own safety and the safety of their families first by moving to safe ground. Please listen carefully to instructions provided by state and local officials.
|
For Immediate Release Office of the Press Secretary August 29, 2005
Press Gaggle with Scott McClellan and Dr. Mark McClellan Aboard Air Force One En Route Glendale, Arizona
10:43 A.M. CDT
MR. McCLELLAN: All right, good morning. Another McClellan brothers briefing. I will turn it over to my distinguished brother here in a second, but would like to begin by updating you a little bit on Hurricane Katrina, from our standpoint.
Here shortly some White House officials on board, including Joe Hagin, will be participating in a video conference call with federal and state officials from aboard Air Force One.
Q On the plane?
MR. McCLELLAN: Yes, from the plane. We have video conferencing capability on the plane.
Q Is the President --
MR. McCLELLAN: I don't know if he'll be participating, but I'll try -- I'll keep you posted if he does. I think there is a little bit more of a staff participation in this call. This is something the White House has been doing both from D.C. as well as from Crawford over the last few days. We've been participating in these video conference calls with the federal authorities and with state emergency management operation centers.
The President, this morning, spoke with our FEMA head, Mike Brown. Mike gave the President an update. Katrina remains a dangerous storm. We are coordinating closely with state and local authorities. We continue to urge citizens in those areas to listen to local authorities. Medical assistance teams and rescue teams have been deployed, and we're continuing to coordinate all activities very closely to make sure that the focus is on saving lives. That's where the top priority is right now, and that's where it will remain.
The President also, just a short time ago, approved emergency -- approved major disaster declarations for the states of Louisiana and Mississippi. This will allow federal funds to start being used to deploy resources to help in those two states. This is something that was done verbally, and the states have been -- the governors of those states have been notified of that approval.
And I think that's the latest update I have, in terms of Katrina. And with -- I'm sorry --
Q This is a semantic thing, I guess, but what's the difference between the disaster declarations he made over the weekend and what he's doing this morning?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, the ones yesterday enabled federal authorities really to pre-position supplies and teams so that they were in close -- in full coordination with state and local partners. Today really allows FEMA now to start drawing down or using federal funds to get resources to those areas to help with the response and recovery from this disaster.
Q What about the oil reserve? Is he going to make a decision about whether to release?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, as far as that, the Department of Energy is monitoring the situation. They will make assessments as they are able to do so, and that's really where it stands right now.
Q It has not been released?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, yes -- I mean, it's something that the Department of Energy will continue to monitor, and then they'll make assessments. And that's really where it stands right now.
Q When do you expect to hear some sort of decision from them?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, first of all, with the storm still over the impacted region, I'm not sure that they are -- I'm not sure what the status is, in terms of DOE being able to make the assessments they need in order to make any decisions, or to make any recommendations for a decision to be made. I know that they have people in the region, as well as back in Washington, who are continuing to monitor the situation, and they'll be making the assessments. I would encourage you to stay in touch with the Department of Energy in the short-term. Obviously, that is -- the Strategic Petroleum Reserve is there for emergency situations, and that would include natural disasters. But it's just too early to know at this point.
Q What is he expecting, the ability to produce gasoline and oil to refine, or are they assessing just the need?
MR. McCLELLAN: I think you should talk to the Department of Energy about that. I mean, they'll have to make assessments based on the damage from the storm.
Q Do you know if any refineries have requested releases?
MR. McCLELLAN: I don't. You'd have to check with Department of Energy on that.
Q They point out concerns -- I mean, production is at a standstill now, and you've got --
MR. McCLELLAN: That's why Department of Energy is on top of this, and they're looking at all these issues.
|
|