By Melinda Morris
Times-Picayune (New Orleans)
Copyright 2007 The Times-Picayune Publishing Company
The New Orleans Fire Department didn’t get a lot of publicity for making water rescues in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, because firefighters decided space in boats was better used for victims than photographers, 8th District Chief Richard Hampton of Algiers said.
But the department rescued 18,000 people, Hampton told the Kiwanis Club of Algiers - Morning Edition at its Jan. 4 meeting, and despite equipment that continues to suffer ill effects from Katrina and the loss of many younger firefighters, “When the bell goes off, we’ll be there.”
Hampton said, “Most of us were born and raised in this city. We’re there for the city of New Orleans.”
Hampton said no member of the fire department left his post “before, during or after Katrina,” which brought a round of applause from the Kiwanis Club.
After the storm, the entire NOFD operated out of Algiers on the campus of Our Lady of Holy Cross College, the Little Sisters of the Poor and Our Lady of Wisdom.
“Algiers served us quite well,” Hampton said. “We’re very, very appreciative of those folks.”
All four firehouses in Algiers received some damage from Katrina, but they are all operable and up and running, unlike many parts of the city, where firefighters are working out of trailers, Hampton said.
The station on Gen. de Gaulle Drive still has a blue roof, and the department is seeking donations to replace the roof. The roof is on the city’s list to repair, but a shortage of money has prevented the repair from happening, Hampton said.
Tight finances also stand in the way of construction of a fire station in Lower Coast Algiers, Hampton said. That area is served by the station on Woodland Highway.
The fire department has received money from philanthropic organizations to replace equipment and repair fire stations, because government money is slow to materialize. Many more donations are needed, Hampton said.
While the NOFD was “very prepared for the storm” and lost only three pieces of equipment during Katrina, driving the firetrucks through the salt water resulted in corrosion and “devastated our fleet,” he said. “It played havoc with the electrical system.”
Trucks from Algiers that responded across the river suffered these ill effects, he said. Equipment continues to break down from the damages suffered after Katrina, but “there is enough equipment to stay up and running.”
The De Gaulle station has a new engine, he said.
While most senior fire personnel have stayed with the department, “Other cities are stealing some of our best people, especially younger people. But I don’t think we can fault them for that,” Hampton said, noting the difficulties of living in post-Katrina New Orleans. But he said, “We are suffering manpower shortages.”
He said, “We’re working with less people and basically doing more work.”
Kiwanis President Bobbie Whiddon also presented a plaque to the department’s firefighter of the year, apparatus operator Alfred Juno, from the station on Gen. Meyer Avenue, and told him a savings bond in the amount of $2,000 was on its way. Juno administered CPR to an infant in Algiers in June, and was credited with helping save the child.
“This baby probably would have lost her life,” Hampton said. “Infant CPR is very difficult.”
Several members of the NOFD attended the meeting, and Algiers Kiwanis President Elect Gary Bair joked, “If we have a fire this morning in Algiers, it won’t be here.”