RDATE:02092005
WASHINGTON, DC: As part of the federal response to Hurricane Katrina, the U.S. Department of Transportation organized a massive airlift operation and has arranged for hundreds of buses and thousands of trucks to support evacuation and relief efforts.
Through the around-the-clock work of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), today a massive airlift operation was launched at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport to provide supplies and evacuate people from the hurricane stricken region. The airports two open runways and air traffic control facilities will sustain four flights per hour, operating each hour through dusk this evening. Flights will continue through the near future and will increase as continuing infrastructure repairs are made.
Weve cleared the runways and are watching the skies to make sure these humanitarian flights get in and out safely, said U.S. Secretary of Transportation Norman Y. Mineta. The airlines resounding offer of support will help us move more people to safety and more supplies to relieve suffering.
The flights are using commercial aircraft supplied by the nations airlines under the Secretary of Transportations emergency authority granted during times of a natural disaster. The number and type of commercial aircraft are being coordinated among the airlines through the Air Transport Association.
In addition to Louis Armstrong airport, the DOT is also concentrating on restoring Gulfport-Biloxi, Mississippi, airport to full operational status and repairing navigational aids throughout the Gulf region to minimize the Hurricanes impact on our nations aviation system.
The Department of Transportation dispatched more than 500 buses to New Orleans to aid in the city-wide evacuation and the Department is working with Amtrak to arrange for the routing of a passenger train to support the evacuation efforts currently underway. The Department has secured over 1,300 trucks to support the delivery of over 2,700 truckloads including 17 million MREs, 18 million litres of water, 20,000 tarps and over 5 million pounds of ice.
Over 60 federal transportation experts are supporting state and local officials in assessing the damage to highways, railroads, airports, transit systems, ports and pipelines and to support planning for detours and repairs to these critical transportation systems. DOT also has temporarily waived federal rules limiting the hours that repair crews and truck drivers hauling gasoline, diesel and jet fuel can work in response to the hurricane emergency.
((M2 Communications Ltd disclaims all liability for information provided within M2 PressWIRE. Data supplied by named party/parties. Further information on M2 PressWIRE can be obtained at http://www.presswire.net on the world wide web. Inquiries to [email protected])).
