ST. TAMMANY PARISH STATUS REPORT
Friday, October 7, 2005 1:00 PM
Contact Suzanne Parsons Stymiest at 898-5243

PARISH PRESIDENT KEVIN DAVIS ANNOUNCED THAT THE CURFEW IN ST. TAMMANY PARISH HAS BEEN LIFTED.    

Parish President Kevin Davis will meet with Avery Estates Homeowners on Tuesday, October 11th at 4:00 PM in the meeting room of the Slidell Branch Library located on Robert Blvd.  Avery Estates, east of Slidell, is one of the many neighborhoods hit hard by Hurricane Katrina.

THERE IS A BURN BAN IN EFFECT IN ST. TAMMANY PARISH. DEBRIS ON THE SIDES OF THE ROADS IS BECOMING DRY. A FIRE CAN EASILY GET OUT OF CONTROL AND CAUSE SERIOUS DAMAGE TO LIFE AND PROPERTY.  PROTECT YOURSELF, YOUR LOVED ONES AND YOUR NEIGHBORS. DO NOT BURN. THE BURN BAN WILL BE ENFORCED TO THE FULLEST EXTENT OF THE LAW.  THE PENALTY FOR BREAKING THE BURN BAN IS UP TO 30 DAYS IN JAIL OR A FINE BETWEEN $300-$500.

St. Tammany Parish Code Enforcement will not be enforcing the ban on small, temporary roadside signs until November 15, 2005.  This allows local businesses to re-establish contact with their customers during this time of disrupted communications.  Beginning Tuesday, November 15th, the ban will be strictly enforced.  All businesses are asked to have any temporary signs removed by that date.

PARISH OFFICES CLOSED MONDAY, OCTOBER 10^TH: Parish President Kevin Davis announced that St. Tammany Parish offices would be closed Monday, October 10th.  “The majority of our employees have been working long, hard hours since Hurricane Katrina without time off to take care of their own homes and families.  For that reason, I am allowing parish employees to take this regularly scheduled holiday so that they can take care of their personal business.” Please obtain all necessary permits before Friday, October 7th, so that the work of rebuilding St. Tammany will continue uninterrupted.  All parish offices, including satellite permit offices, will re-open with normal schedules on Tuesday, October 11th.

EMERGENCY OPERATIONS CENTER INFORMATION: For information from the St. Tammany Parish Emergency Operations Center, call 898-2323 from 7am-7pm.

CHARTER COMMUNICATIONS: Charter has now established a repair update hotline that customers can call in to hear updates on their particular area. The hotline number is 1-888-249-7751. The phone number to Charter Communication’s National Headquarters in St. Louis, Missouri is 1-314-965-0555. Charter’s President is Neil Smit and their Vice President is Michael Lovett.

DRINKING WATER – SOME AREA RESTRICTIONS REMAIN: Louisiana DHH continues to sample some private water systems. Be sure you know who the provider of your water is before you begin to drink the water. This is a very serious public health issue. If you have ANY doubt about the safety of your water, CONTINUE TO BOIL. Due to the extensive number of water systems in St. Tammany Parish, we cannot list the smaller private wells and systems. Call the Parish Department of Environmental Services at 898-2535 for additional water information from 8am to 4:30pm. You may also call the LA Department of Health and Hospitals at 893-6296. The Slidell section will be located at 21454 Koop Dr, Suite 2C, Mandeville, until further notice. All water samples from the Slidell area should be delivered to the Mandeville address and request for retail/day care inspections should call 893-6296. The DHH is offering free bacteriological testing for citizens who have private drinking water wells and systems. Homeowners with well systems can pick up a sampling kit and instructions for submitting samples of their water at 21454 Koop Dr, Suite 2C.

DEBRIS PICKUP: 130 crews are picking up debris in St. Tammany Parish. Please help by taking your yard debris to the ditch – DO NOT put the debris in the ditch!  Please keep the debris away from mailboxes, away from under power lines and on top of electrical equipment, such as transformers.  Please separate wooded debris from flooded household debris since different haulers will be picking up the different items. St. Tammany Parish has picked up 1,185,381.43 cubic yards of debris to date. For more information call 985-201-0809.

DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH: is operating out of the mobile community information center at the Walmart on Airport Rd. in Slidell from 8am-4pm. The Department of Public Health will be offering immunizations on a limited basis. The Community Wellness Center, 1505 N. Florida Street in Covington, is open daily from 8am to 4:30pm, providing immunizations including the free Tetanus-Diphtheria shot. They can also register storm survivors for WIC food assistance and Medicaid.

MOSQUITO CONTROL:  Mosquitoes help spread West Nile Virus! Use insect repellant containing DEET when outdoors. The number of mosquitoes in road side ditches is increasing due to debris. Residents should empty all outdoor containers holding water. If it holds water it can breed mosquitoes…cover it, dump it & turn it over, or get rid of it!

TARPS: The Army Corps of Engineers is providing blue roofing and tarps. Operation Blue Roof is a program that provides assistance to storm victims in disaster areas through the installation of plastic sheeting on damaged roofs, allowing residents to return and remain in their homes. The Corps of Engineers does not distribute tarps for self-installation through this program to obtain assistance under this program. The homeowner must sign a Right of Entry form to grant access to their property. The residence must be structurally sound. The roof cannot be more than 50% damaged and cannot be flat, or covered with metal, tile, slate or asbestos slate. You may sign up for them at the 31-A Park Place Drive in Covington. As of October 3, 2005 8,401 tarps have been requested and 5,928 have been installed. 

JOB FAIRS: The Louisiana Department of Labor is hosting a job fair on October 10, 9am-Noon at the Greater Covington Center, Bogue Falaya Hall, 317 N. Jefferson St., Covington. Employers with positions available should contact Jim or Bianca at (985) 893-6254 or (985) 893-6205. The Shaw Group is hosting a job fair from October 4-7 at the Covington Country Club, from 9am-6pm. They are looking to hire 100 debris monitors and 1 administrative assistant.

REGISTRAR OF VOTERS: Absentee voting for the October 15 primary election is from October 3-8. You may vote during weekday hours from 8:30am-4:30pm, and on Saturday from 8:30am-12pm. The Covington office is at 701 N. Columbia St, and the Slidell office is closed until further notice. For more information call 985-809-5500.

RED CROSS UPDATE

SHELTER/HOT MEALS INFORMATION: Red Cross is serving meals twice a day – midday and early evening. The Red Cross has 863 volunteers working in St. Tammany Parish and has served over 1.5 million meals to date.

AMERICAN RED CROSS FINANCIAL AID: The American Red Cross toll-free call center is established to provide financial resources, from $360 to $1,500 to hurricane survivors across the nation to meet their immediate disaster-caused needs. This financial assistance program is available from the national headquarters at 1-800-975-7585 telephone number to register. Starting October 5, Red Cross financial aid switched from debit cards to checks in order to simplify the application process and help prevent fraud. The American Red Cross has also opened a drive-through Red Cross center in Slidell offering disaster financial assistance. It will be open 9am-7pm, 7 days a week at 1000 Caruso Blvd. in Slidell (Slidell Factory Outlet). There is also a walk-up center in Mandeville at the Castine Center, 63350 Pelican Drive, Mandeville. It is open from 9am-4pm. Financial assistance is based on factors such as family size, residence, and costs of necessities. One member of each household should call 1-800-975-7585. The Red Cross has raised over $933 million and assisted 500,030 families to date.

FEMA SERVICES UPDATE

FEMA ASSISTANCE: Disaster victims are urged to register for assistance by calling FEMA’s toll-free registration line 1-800-621-FEMA (1-800-621-3362), TTY 1-800-462-7585 for speech and hearing impaired, or register online at www.fema.gov. People who have questions may visit the FEMA center at John Slidell Municipal Park, 105 Robert Road, & at the La-Z Boy Center, 31-A Park Place, in Covington. The Disaster Recovery Centers will be open from 9am - 7pm, seven days a week to meet face-to-face with recovery specialists. As of September 29, FEMA reports that 101,548 households in St. Tammany have registered for FEMA assistance. FEMA has designated $7.5 million in assistance to St. Tammany Parish.

FEMA TRANSITIONAL HOUSING: Anyone in need of transitional housing must call FEMA at 1-800-621-FEMA (1-800-621-3362) to get your name on the list. FEMA is determining housing priorities.