And there are still East Texans living outdoors, washing their clothes in creek water (post-Rita) and 107 Texans dead from the evac..not the Hurricane, but the evac!
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/stories/100205dnmethomeland.28040be.htmlFirst responders may have more trucks and trailers, radios and laptop computers, hazmat suits and bomb robots.
But state officials aren't certain recipients know how to properly use the equipment. And everyone in the field can't communicate with one another – a problem officials say they are addressing. Three funding streams have delivered more than $11 billion in grants to U.S. cities and counties, a small part of the more than $175 billion spent so far to secure the home front.
Texas has received more than $1.4 billion, including about $625 million for responders –the nation's third-highest total. Mr. McCraw, a former FBI agent and Texas state trooper, won't discuss specific terrorism risks or vulnerabilities. But he and others say the state's petrochemical complexes, ports, sprawling agricultural industry and places with ties to President Bush are prime marks. "I can guarantee you there will be another attack on U.S. soil," he said. "We've got too many targets, too many terrorists, too little time."
In the rush to secure grants, the North Texas council of governments deferred development of a regional disaster plan, Mr. Dawson said. Ideally, he said, such a plan would have guided equipment purchases.