The evacuation of people with disabilities from Corpus

Accidental Accomplishments
The evacuation of people with disabilities from
Corpus Christi, Texas – September 2005
Corpus Christi Demographics
• Population 21 – 64 years 151,752
• People with disabilities
32,494
living in the community (21.4%)
• 65 years and over
29,487
• People w/disabilities 65+
13,940
(47.3%)
• Households without vehicles 9,350
(9.5%)
• Registered B-Line riders
2,600
• Core B-Line riders
700
Demographics, continued
• Daily Meals on Wheels
600
• Transit-dependent evacuees
300
transported during Rita from
City Hall
• Evacuees/family members
284
transported during Rita from
Oveal Williams Sr. Center
• Katrina evacuees in Corpus 1,500
Christi
Katrina Evacuee Impacts
• Coastal community receiving
• Shelter to housing, hotels underway
• Ctr for Independent Living contract
with City to facilitate housing – 336
• Population demographics similar
• EOC had minimal disability
representation
• No plan in place for evacuation of
“special needs” – aging & disability
living in the community
Disability in the Community
• US Supreme Court decision in 1999
“Olmstead” – ADA lawsuit
• Promoting Independence Initiative
in Texas – riders – now encoded
• Over 11,000 people with disabilities
moved to Texas communities from
nursing facilities
• Relocation contractors statewide
• Money Follows the Person federal
Mandatory Evacuation - Rita
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Transportation for all populations
Number of buses ordered
Institutional plans to transport
Medical community
Planned notification process
Personal planning
Knowledge of people with disabilities
in the community and their needs
• Effective communication
CIL & Consumer Participation
• Presence with City EOC for Katrina
housing assistance
• Request for assistance in count and
notification for mandatory evacuation
• Calls to individual consumers,
Medicaid waiver program providers
• Present at Oveal Williams for loading
• ‘Embedded’ evacuee
• Return trip assistance
CIL Participation, continued
• Secured supplemental funding from
DOE-RSA to:
• conduct de-briefing with community
• establish special needs registry
• identify people with disabilities
triaged into nursing homes
• continue housing assistance beyond
FEMA support
Go!Coastal Project
• Emergency preparedness education
and evacuation assistance planning
project focused on disability and
aging specific populations
• Plan, Prepare, Go!
• Work Together – Save Lives
• De-briefing symposium with
community stakeholders at Texas
A&M University
• Cross-training of first responders and
disability community
Go!Coastal, continued
• Special Needs Registry (voluntary)
• Educational presentations for small
groups of individuals with disabilities
of all ages, families, caregivers
• Reached nearly 1500 individuals with
sessions, held where people live
(housing authorities, subsidized
housing, churches, Sr Centers)
• Enrolled over 300 people in registry
• Provided to City’s database
The Accomplishments
• Corpus Christi EOC involved the
disability community in evacuation
decision-making; now, in planning
• Approximately 350 people with
disabilities, all ages, living in the
community were evacuated
• De-briefing and planning solidified
relationships to include consumer
advocates, people with disabilities
• Special needs registry developed
• Personal plans, community education
Purposeful Accomplishments
1. communities will plan and execute
for ALL citizens to survive
2. input from the disability community
will be sought, valued and
implemented
3. citizens will be assisted to develop
personal readiness plans and
voluntarily sign up for registries
4. transportation, shelter, emergency
personnel will understand crossdisability & accommodations
Additional Resources
• Community Transportation Association of
America – www.ctaa.org (checklist)
• Disability Policy Consortium – www.dpctexas.org
(links to emergency preparedness advocacy)
• Governors Committee on People with Disabilities
www.governor.state.tx.us/disabilities/resources/
keylaws
• Texas Center for Disability Studies UT Austin –
txcds@uttcds.org (Tips for First Responders)
• Texas Council on Developmental Disabilities –
http://www.txddc.state.tx.us/resources/disasters.
asp
• Texas State Independent Living Council –
texsilc@texas.net (local Centers)
Contact Information
• Coastal Bend Center for Independent
Living
1537 Seventh Street
Corpus Christi, TX 78404
361-883-8461 – www.cbcil.org
judyt@acicbcil.org
• Judy Telge, Executive Director
• Crystal Lyons, Coordinator
Go!Coastal Project