THURSDAY, OCTOBER 27, 2005
NEWS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN 5B
HURRICANE WILMA
Floridians criticize FEMA
Homeland security secretary tours area, asks for patience
BY LARA JAKES JORDAN
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff on Wednesday asked victims of Hurricane Wilma to have patience for relief efforts as he surveyed crumpled boats, shattered mobile homes and snaking lines of cars at fuel stations along the storm's path.
Stepping up aid in Wilma's wake, Chertoff promised to deploy cargo planes overnight to gather water and ice from across the country for delivery by today. He also said the government was working to find more power generators to send to south Florida and called on oil companies to help distributors get fuel out of the ground and into gas tanks.
"I have to say, in honesty, patience will be required for everybody." Chertoff told The Associated Press during his flight
to Florida. "Under the best circumstances, even in the best planning, you still confront the physical reality of a destructive storm."
Chertoff took an aerial tour of the Miami area by helicopter as part of a day in Florida overseeing the federal government's response to Wilma. Though he acknowledged delays in getting supplies to storm victims even two days after Wilma blew through the state, he said the demand for water, food, ice and gas simply outstripped what authorities had stockpiled in preparation.
of frustrated local officials who pleaded for water, ice, fuel and most importantly -power.
Chertoff oversees the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which was widely criticized for the government's sluggish response to Hurricane Katrina when it ravaged the Gulf Coast nearly two months ago.
Power shortages were one of the largest problems, said Miami-Dade County Commissioner, Carlos Gimanez, who pressed Chertoff for more generators. As many as 2.8 million power customers were still without electricity on Wednesday, said Gov. Jeb Bush.
He spent part of Wednesday hearing pleas and complaints from local officials. He was greeted in Opa Locka by a group
Other local officials were more vocal in their frustrations.
"It's not a matter of we lack fuel, we just can't get it out of the ground because we lack power." Gimanez said. "Grocery stores are closed because we don't have power. The longer we go without power, the worse the situation gets."
Did he get a satisfactory response from Chertoff? "He said he'll look into it," Gimanez said. "That's as good as I'm going to get. He's not going to tell me there's 10,000 generators on the way."
Before Chertoff arrived in Miami, Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Alvarez said he was "disappointed, angered" that FEMA hadn't sent more emergency supplies and that some sites were running low of water and ice.
Alvarez said FEMA officials had not been able to tell him when more supplies would be coming. He said bureaucratic delays were hindering Miami officials from distributing supplies from a site in Homestead, Fla., where FEMA delivered them.
In Tallahassee, where Chertoff began his swing through Florida, Gov. Bush defended FEMA's performance and said the blame for any delays should fall on his shoulders.
"The emergency operations folks are doing their job, and they do it well here, irrespective of what people write." Bush told Chertoff as the two toured the state's emergency operations center, accompanied by a reporter. "I've got total confidence in that at the end of this, our reputations will be intact. . . We've worked our asses off."
Turning to the reporter, the governor said, "You can quote me on that."
Bush said an estimated 4,000 storm evacuees remained in 31 shelters across the state.
People wait in line for gasoline in Broward County, Fla., on Wednesday. Frustration mounted on the third day of recovery from Hurricane Wilma, with the scramble for gas, ice, food and water causing long lines and traffic snarls, which prompted renewed criticism of storm planning and response. Miami-Dade County's mayor called the relief effort "flawed."
Wilfredo Lee/THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
HEALTH
FDA considers over-the-counter sales of home HIV test kits
BY JOHN J. LUMPKIN THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON — Swab the inside of your mouth. Put that swab into a vial of test fluid, and 20 minutes later you'll learn whether you're infected with the virus that causes AIDS.
The OraQuick Advance test is already widely available in health clinics and doctors' offices. The Food and Drug Administration is considering its sale over the counter.
Supporters of home kits said they would encourage more people to get tested and get treatment sooner if infected. But
concerns have been raised about whether a doctor or counselor should be nearby when people find out they are HIV-positive.
The test is accurate more than 99 percent of the time, Spair said. Still, a positive result from the test should be confirmed through an additional test by doctors or public health officials, he said.
The maker, OraSure Technology of Bethlehem, Pa., has not decided how much it will charge consumers for the kit, said Ron Spair, the company's chief financial officer. The company sells the kits for between $12 and $17 to clinics and doctors, he said.
Those antibodies become present in the body several weeks after a person acquires HIV; the test will not detect the virus if it was more recently acquired.
The OraQuick Advance test is already widely available in health clinics and doctors' offices. The Food and Drug Administration is considering its sale over the counter.
To take the test, a person swabs the inside of his mouth, between his cheek and gum, picking up not saliva but cells lining the mouth. The user then inserts the swab into a vial of fluid that comes with the kit. Twenty minutes later, an indicator will light up if the test detects the presence of HIV-1 or HIV-2 antibodies.
On Nov. 3, FDA's Blood Products Advisory Committee will consider whether to recommend the product for over-the-counter sales. The FDA has the final say; it usually follows the advice of
FDA briefing documents posted on the Internet said the kits could lead to more people knowing whether they have HIV, which could mean earlier treatment of the infection. People afraid or unwilling to take the test, particularly those without any symptoms, may more readily test themselves with a kit they can use privately.
"Knowing your status is critically important," Spair said. "We want to provide that opportunity to the broadest number of people possible."
But the documents also note concerns about someone learn-
its advisory committees.
ing they might have HIV when they are alone with no health professional or counselor nearby.
Terje Anderson, executive director of the National Association of People with AIDS, said he doubted they would be as popular as at-home pregnancy test kits, suggesting most people who want an HIV test would prefer to be with a doctor.
About 1 million people in the United States are believed to have HIV. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates nearly 300,000 people have the virus but don't know it.
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