Frustration in Mississippi as bad as New Orleans but less visible in the news

'We are working hard to meet our own needs' - The Clarion-Ledger :

"Hattiesburg Mayor Johnny DuPree is angry, upset and scared.

"'I started trying to get federal help in here on Monday and six days after this town has struggled to get enough water and ice for its people, we finally hear from the feds,' DuPree said Saturday.

"Hurricane Katrina slammed into the Mississippi Gulf Coast on Monday and slashed its way through Hattiesburg and the Pine Belt.

"Two representatives from the Federal Emergency Management Agency arrived in Hattiesburg Saturday.

"'I didn't have an airplane or a telephone or a radio that worked,' DuPree said. 'Finally I just sat in my car and yelled. No one heard that either.'"

Alias Smith and Jones ...

When the FEMA representatives did arrive at the county emergency management center on Saturday, the results were somewhat less than satisfactory for the locals.

"Smith and Jones said the agency plans to post fliers alerting storm victims to call 1-800-621-FEMA or visit www.fema.gov. But most people in the Pine Belt still are without phones and electricity, so they can't use the information.

"Contacting FEMA is the most important thing a person can do, Smith said. 'If you qualify, the help really does come pretty quick,' he said. 'But nothing is going to happen to you if you don't register.'"

This comes from the Clarion-Ledger in Jackson, MS, which also reports that local churches are taking in persons displaced by the storm - some of them from New Orleans. Amazing, isn't it? Someone from N.O. can find his way to Jackson and get privately-provided help from a church; but the government can't find it's way from Jackson or wherever they are supposed to be staging to get aid to places like New Augusta.