“Packing so many people in one store is unthinkable. And how can this happen after you go through Katrina and have these deaths in nursing homes and put things in their place, so that would never happen again month?” Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser told CNN. “It’s unthinkable, it’s embarrassing.”
Nungesser, a Republican who has been in office since January 2016, said “there will be some changes here in Louisiana, where this could never happen again.”
He wants more checks and balances from officials approving the plans and how those plans are approved. He said local elected officials and people in the industry should say so in these plans.
Authorities have learned that more than 50,911 calls were made about the conditions of the warehouse, he said.
After Ida’s fall on Aug. 29, the state health department said it heard reports of “deteriorating conditions” at the facility. According to the Louisiana Department of Health, inspectors arriving four days after residents arrived were evicted and avoided making a full assessment.
A review of business licenses by CNN has found that Bob Dean Jr. of Baton Rouge is listed as an executive with the seven nursing facilities in addition to the warehouse.
CNN has contacted Dean Jr., but has not received a response.
When asked about the store by CNV affiliate WVUE, Dean said that “we only had five deaths in the six days and usually with 850 people, you’ll have a couple a day, so we did really well taking care of the people”. “
Five of the seven deaths have been classified as storm-related, the state health department said in a recent press release.
Three of the residences are in Jefferson Parish, two in Orleans Parish, one in Lafourche Parish and the other in Terrebonne Parish.
Apartments for the elderly were evacuated after neighbors were found dead after the Ida
Ten of the facilities visited during inspections on Friday and Saturday were deemed unsuitable for continued occupation and were evacuated, officials said.
Dr. Jennifer Avegno, director of the New Orleans Department of Health, said Monday at a news conference that immediately after the storm, the department began its typical outreach to leadership in facilities that it knew housed many seniors, vulnerable and disabled residents to assess their immediate point. needs and send available resources.
Health officials, along with police, firefighters and the EMS, went door-to-door to check on all residents, Avegno said.
“In some of these facilities, we have found fairly harsh conditions, no electricity, no lifts or lights, people in their rooms who could not access normal services or supports,” he said. “Tragically in some places, our staff discovered residents who had died and had not yet been discovered.”
Officials determined there were “emerging threats to the lives and safety of the people who remained there” and “mobilized quickly, getting these individuals to reach state shelters as soon as possible,” he said. Avegno.
In four days, according to Avegno, the teams visited about 30 facilities to conduct comprehensive assessments and conducted rapid assessments of several more. About 600 residents of these buildings were safely evacuated to state shelters where they are now “safe and comfortable,” Avegno said.
New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell told the same news conference Monday that “what we found was unacceptable and accountability will be general. But right now, we will continue to focus on improving facility conditions.” that we closed in order to bring back our citizens, we do not want to return them in the conditions they left “.
Christopher Homes Inc., which describes itself as “a senior living ministry of the Archdiocese of New Orleans,” owns several of the facilities that the health department closed and housed three of the residents who were found dead.
The Archdiocese of New Orleans provided a statement on behalf of Christopher Homes Inc., which said that “residents are tenants living independently with leases and, prior to the storm season, all residents had to provide a personal plan for evacuation to property management, which verifies the plan. “
“Without a mandatory evacuation order, Christopher Homes could not close the buildings of Hurricane Ida. All residents were encouraged to evacuate. Two hundred and eighty-six residents in Orleans Parish chose to stay. whether or not their apartments had the means to evacuate without resources that the city of New Orleans usually provides in a mandatory evacuation, ”the statement said.
“In the days following the fall of Sunday, Christopher Homes’ leadership repeatedly asked for help and resources from civilian authorities, ”the statement said. “After the death of one of our residents was announced five days later, on Friday 3 September, the civilian authorities finally responded and provided resources to evacuate those residents who had not evacuated voluntarily.”
Cantrell was asked about the archdiocese’s allegations at Monday’s press conference and said, “I don’t play the blame game … If there’s a problem that claims it’s a city issue, I have it at every step of the way, including all the people who accompany us to offer services. This is not one of them. “
“I believe that accountability must be where it stands. And that is all in these institutions, the archdiocese, whoever is responsible for operating, maintaining and protecting the lives of the elderly, something that is done to them. it pays to do, ”Cantrell said. .