In a widely shared Facebook post, city councilmember Helena Moreno said, “Moving past this storm and restoration though, there will be some questions that must be answered.” To begin answering these questions, Fight Back! interviewed an Entergy worker who was at the eye of this infrastructure disaster.

We are not publishing the worker’s name due concerns about retaliation.

Fight Back!: What were conditions like at your worksite before and during the storm, and during the recovery?

Right before the storm there was some preparation, like tying down loose items outside and moving anything likely to be blown away into alternate storage locations. There wasn’t a lot of concern from supervisors. In fact, my own supervisor seemed upset with the lack of concern coming from his bosses during conference calls, etc.

During the storm, things were very unorganized. It wasn’t clear where people were supposed to sleep since we had to confine ourselves to a certain area of the plant. No one was sure what we had to eat. We had to shut down our plant due to high wind and due to the same wind we lost offsite power, which caused us to have to rely on emergency generators. Everything worked as designed, thankfully. This also happened during Katrina and was expected. We were all given air mattresses to sleep on. We had no air conditioning and little lighting. So I would imagine the experiences I had during the storm were similar to people who were at home. There was hardly any food. But I brought some snacks with me, thankfully. We were also asked to “limit” water and bathroom use since our sewerage removal capabilities got worse because of the storm.

Immediately after the storm, we were sent around to assess damage. It looked like a bomb went off. There was metal, pieces of insulation, mud, trash and water everywhere. We had no wi-fi and weak signal, so I couldn’t really communicate with my partner. Most of the other crewmembers had evacuated so we were stuck there and couldn’t leave to check on our houses and loved ones. We had to work.

Fight Back!: What preparations, inspections, etc. were made to prepare for storm impacts?

So in general, Entergy doesn’t like to spend money fixing things unless they have to. Things often leak, or don’t work properly. It’s not usually something that causes workers to be in dangerous situations, at least no more dangerous than normal, but it’s things that make your job more difficult. They really don’t care how burdensome something becomes as long as they’re making money, of course. So keep in mind that the sewerage removal system wasn’t working properly prior to the storm.

Fight Back!: When did your bosses make you aware of the severity of the power situation in the New Orleans area?

I knew beforehand that the power grid would be seriously threatened. My bosses never even discussed that.

Fight Back!: Why were initial projections of when Entergy would restore power so uncertain, with some projections as long as three weeks?

The estimates took so long and inconsistent information was given because at first, they literally just didn’t know what to tell the public. This storm exposed the inadequacies of our grid and they simply did not know exactly how long it would take to fix everything. But that’s only a part of it.

Since this storm required an emergency declaration, FEMA and Entergy had to determine who would pay for the bulk of the labor costs associated with restoration efforts. There were thousands upon thousands of workers that came from other states to assist. This required working with other utility companies, government agencies, and unions. Things like per diem, lodging, fuel and food, along with wages and overtime pay, hazard pay, etc. all has to be negotiated prior to anyone starting work. But the biggest question was would Entergy pay or would the government, or both? So that, along with doing the actual assessments, is why the estimates were originally so unclear. I believe the resolution was for both Entergy and FEMA to pay portions but I don’t know the details.

Fight Back!: In your opinion does Entergy hold itself accountable to the people of New Orleans? Is it responsible enough to remain in its role as monopoly energy supplier in the city?

In my opinion Entergy does not feel accountable to its customers – referred to by them as “ratepayers” – or its employees. They pass on any unexpected costs to your bill. And they are very unconcerned with employees’ lives other than making sure they come to work. They keep employees in the dark about what is happening when decisions need to be made. And they often say the care about safety but will rush employees to increase production.

So no, I don’t believe they should be allowed to continue operating as a monopoly here. I think the only reason they decided to get the power restoration efforts going as quick as they did is because they’re hoping everyone will forget about how bad the grid is designed and being maintained. They don’t want anyone paying too close attention to what caused all this in the first place.

#NewOrleansLA #PeoplesStruggles #EnvironmentalJustice #HurricaneIda #Entergy

New Orleans, LA – As the recovery from Hurricane Ida drags on, residents of southeast Louisiana rush their relief efforts. But government aid lags. Entergy, the state’s power monopoly, has not answered questions about mismanagement.

Organizations scramble to deliver food, gas, repair equipment and other needed aid. Feroz Khan, a volunteer with the New Orleans Mutual Aid Society (NOMAS), told Fight Back!, “People are freely giving supplies, food, money and time to shuttle supplies in from nearby areas. Remote volunteers have been incredibly helpful because we urgently need eyes on spreadsheets and social media to match the resources on the ground to residents who need them and crews who can transport them.”

The Houma nation, the Atakapa-Ishak Nation, the Pointe-au-Chien tribe, several bands of the Biloxi-Chitimacha-Choctaw and other coastline indigenous communities mobilize their own relief. Many fear that outside aid won’t reach them.

The New Orleans Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO) distributes supplies to the Treme and St. Roch areas, some of the oldest Black neighborhoods in the United States. Organizers set up a “People’s Power Charging Station,” a relief tent for community members to get supplies and recharge their devices. FRSO members also assist the state’s mutual aid networks.

But residents still face life-threatening conditions. Toni Mar, a hospitality worker whose roof broke during the storm, said, “My partner and I had to bail gallons and gallons of water.” Their landlord’s repair workers “were being pulled in so many different directions doing hard labor all day in over 100-degree heat.”

Cantrell, Biden: Where are your priorities?

Meanwhile, government responses have been slow, inefficient and uncoordinated.

Many are feeling hopeless and frustrated from applying for federal assistance. FEMA is dropping calls and letting online applications crash. The agency’s on-the-ground workers are doing their best, but they’ve suffered constant cuts over the years in the name of “balancing the budget.”

Aid administrators send money soonest to those with the most property. Compared to wealthy homeowners, low-income disaster survivors have half the chance of getting half the help. FEMA confirmed this with its own statistics in 2019. Black neighborhoods are least likely to get aid. This is because FEMA pays out the most for people with the most expensive damages. This doesn’t always cover people living paycheck-to-paycheck. People without formal housing contracts will get nothing.

For Orleans Parish, the hurricane intensified too fast for a mandatory evacuation. But in the aftermath, the city took four days to provide any evacuation assistance. Many could not afford to go and now suffer life-threatening heat and food scarcity.

While not setting up an evacuation, Mayor Latoya Cantrell kept busy cracking down on “looting.” Looting is not a widespread problem, except for the hotel and gas companies stealing from survivors’ wallets by hiking prices. Yet, the New Orleans Police Department arrested dozens for petty theft. Cantrell held two press conferences on this while relief barely started.

On their end, evacuees hear mixed signals. FEMA is supposed to prioritize aid for uninhabitable housing. But while FE<A tells people to go assess their homes, the city says to stay out of town.

Parishes outside the levee system have the least access to help. Many residents of St. John the Baptist, a majority-Black industrial parish, have yet to see any relief.

Quest Riggs of Freedom Road Socialist Organization summed things up: “The government response has been weak, to say the least.”

Entergy: You said you had us covered!

Linemen and other electrical workers have put brave and invaluable labor into getting southeast Louisiana back on its feet. But Entergy’s managers need accountability for their deceit and negligence.

New Orleans city councilmember Helena Moreno found a discrepancy between what Entergy said they could do and what they did. Back in 2018, they testified that the New Orleans Power Station could start by itself after a crisis. But last week, it only rebooted by connecting to Slidell’s neighboring grid. This delayed energy restoration in the middle of a heat advisory.

Entergy is known for its ineffectiveness and outright lying. New Orleans suffers from about 2000 sustained power outages per year. In 2019, the company hired actors to pretend to support their latest plant at a town hall meeting. As of now, the company has not confirmed or denied if customers would see higher bills due to line damage.

The New Orleans Mutual Aid Society volunteer Khan gave us his perspective: “Instead of seeing revolutionary demands to take control of the grid and bring clean and storm-resilient electricity to all people as a human right, we are seeing leaders desperately trying to keep track of whatever timeline one corrupt energy company is giving them.”

We must fight for the relief we need

It’s clear that Louisianans are helping Louisianans make it through. Many feel-good stories about on-the-ground recovery work are making the news. This is a great thing, and it proves the resiliency of a region that battled disasters for centuries. But it doesn’t let the government off the hook. Storm survivors need fast and substantial aid, a comprehensive city response plan, and real democratic oversight of utilities. Climate change will only intensify hurricanes, so we need these now.

If you’d like to help local recovery efforts, some of their links are below:

Pointe-au-Chien tribe: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/pointeauchien

New Orleans Mutual Aid Society: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?token=amC2kqSLSdRYS_WAbEQwxo9hwILCVyrvVuIxfrB1EILNcYf3e3jYzdGgNvmjmyupUuVt0gFNV1HwyFUJ&locale.x=US

Freedom Road Socialist Organization: https://www.gofundme.com/f/hurricane-ida-relief-by-frso-new-orleans

#NewOrleansLA #EnvironmentalJustice #HurricaneIda

New Orleans, LA – On August 29, at 11:55 a.m., Hurricane Ida made landfall on the Louisiana coast. The storm arrived on the 16th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. Like then, working class, Black, and indigenous Louisianans are least able to evacuate and suffer the most damages.

Storm surges reached up to 16 feet. Affected parishes include Lake Charles, an industrial city that already suffered from Hurricane Laura last year.

The poorest neighborhoods of the coastline are predominantly Black and indigenous. Many more of their residents had no choice but to stay, compared to wealthier and whiter areas. All suffer from dilapidating infrastructure. Even before landfall, thousands of Louisianans lost power.

Dorothy Williams, a Black evacuee and retired housekeeper, told Fight Back!, “I have a niece and nephew that stayed for financial and transportation reasons. We almost didn’t make it either.” Williams’ niece is a healthcare worker.

For Black workers who could leave, many will likely face unemployment and discrimination when they return. Tulane University sociologists James R. Elliott and Jeremy Pais found that that Black workers were seven times more likely to have lost their job after Katrina than white ones.

Meanwhile, corporations selling basic necessities took advantage to increase their bottom lines.

Williams remembered that a friend of hers “figured that their rooms went for double the price.”

Charlette Becnel, a retired flight attendant and journalist who evacuated from New Orleans, said: “Before I had left, on Wednesday night, gas was $2.48 a gallon. The day everyone evacuated, gas went from $2.62 that morning to $2.98.”

She noticed that prices even went up for food and other basic necessities that stores already had in stock. Becnel pointed out that her motel is “not a five-star place. Prices here are what five stars would’ve been before.”

Louisiana is also among the states that suffered the worst outbreaks of the COVID-19 Delta variant. The state’s ICU units were almost full before the storm, and at least one Thibodeaux city hospital has already lost power. The hurricane will probably trigger another spike in cases. All Baton Rouge city hospitals are in the southern white areas.

Southeast Louisiana’s mutual aid organizations are making preparations for relief efforts. Time will tell if federal, state and parish governments will do the same.

This is a developing story. Fight Back! will provide ongoing reports from the ground.

#NewOrleansLA #CapitalismAndEconomy #PoorPeoplesMovements #OppressedNationalities #AfricanAmerican #IndigenousPeoples #hurricane #EnvironmentalJustice #Antiracism #HurricaneIda