The call operator apologized and said the special needs shelters were full of nursing home patients who had been rescued from an evacuation warehouse in Independence.Īccording to the state, the medical needs shelter in Alexandria was never full and no one was turned away. Deatra Hollins added her cousin to the registry right after Ida and tried to get him and his mother to a shelter, but she didn’t get a call back until five days later. New Orleans and other parishes have lists of residents with special needs.

“They have to have some type of plan, service for them - period,” said Deatra Hollins, Carl Hollins’ cousin and a licensed practical nurse who was trying to help from afar after evacuating her own family. Systems that are in place, such as special needs registries, do little to address deteriorating situations once power is out and the conditions are unlivable. Despite a regular stream of natural disasters in Louisiana, each hurricane uncovers flaws in the system. Ida exposed cracks in Louisiana’s special needs response and how the state addresses situations where extended loss of power or other slow-burning consequences can have devastating consequences. At the same time, evacuation can be almost impossible for some, whether it’s due to a lack of money, transportation or few shelter options for people who need a lot of equipment or special conditions to survive. But for people with disabilities and their families, the temporary discomfort can threaten their health and life. In the aftermath of a hurricane, going without power is difficult.

My son was not understanding,” said Hollins, 55, who is also disabled due to a back injury.

Woman sitting on disabled child