PeopleFoundStories

Success!

Please post stories if you have two people who have found each other.

---

(note: the son mentioned missing in this email was actually found 24 hours later I believe)

(message from Angelo Embuldeniya)

Hi there Connie,

This is just to confirm that we called up one of the numbers you specified (601-947-83340) below a few minutes ago. We got through to the lady at the other end (mom) who said that she's safe and fine.

However, she did say her son - Jonathon Betrant is still missing, was in New Orleans and is supposed to be back in Birmingham today for surgery. We hope and pray that he will be found soon.

Regards, Angelo Embuldeniya. -- (The KatrinaHelp Team) www.katrinahelp.info +15042081564 -- local to Tulane, LA -24hrs/day/international

On 9/2/05, kirby kimbrel <kirby_kimbrel@bellsouth.net> wrote: I have my family in Lucedale,Mississippi and I have tryed to call them and can not get threw,it just rings then says your call did not go threw ,then on another one it says your call did not go threw...they live i think it is 60 miles north then the others live in Moss Point ,I need to know if the damage went as far as Lucedale,Mississippi...and did the flood go to Lyman,Mississippi...that is 7 miles north of Gulfport... i want to find certian people when i can to see if they are okay..will there be a list of names looking for different people as time goes on..one of my family realitives i am looking for lived in Pascagoula....but i beleive they went to our other family people towaite it out in Lucedale,Mississippi...but if they thought it would not be worse than Camile.wich i was in ,in Gulfport in 1969.,then they may have not been very safe,.i was 16 then and had a 2 month old baby boy...our home was in Lyman,Mississippi on Mamosia Lane...it is called that today,I am more worried about Pass Chritian,Gulfport,Lyman,Moss Point,and LUCEDALE...has any news came in as to places that far inland..i hope we know soon...i been threw hurricanes that came up from the gulf to LUCEDALE when i was a child and they could blow you away even 60 miles inland soooooooooooooooooooooooooPLEASE KEEP THAT IN MIND IN THE SURCH.MY E MAILE ADDRESS FOR YOU TO CONTACT ME IS AUAUST_28_2005@yahoo.com...I am trying to call 228-769-5598 and228-217-3792 and601-947-8334 I am Connie..i can be reached at my email address and my number 205-243-3581...THANKS ALOT for what ever you can tell me.

---

here is our summary:

The folks at (Dina Mehta & Phil Wolff) Skype Journal immediate chipped in and got us a Skypeout/in number and Connectotel in the UK got the skype number enabled to send/recevieve sms while Kevin Delaney of KhaosLabs in Canada built us a disaster-relief call center application to go with the whole communications set up in less than 8 hours. During this time, we got ready communication hubs in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, UK & Perto Rico which were staffed by other volunteer networks.By Friday night (50 hours after katrina) the KatrinaHelp team had got a wireless communications network ready with international volunteer callers and were able to get in contact to inaccessible places via SMS, route messages through our lines to embassies and loved ones overseas and had international speakers.

Our first success there, as Angelo Embuldeniya reports:

"Just put a call through to LA. Might be our first semi-success story. The family was safe, lines are opened at 602, range is not down any longer - just her son missing, called back original sender to email, copied KatrinaHelp group and she (Connie) was overwhelmed!"

• (Her son was found 24 hours afterwards)

The hotline used for various information sharing purposes and coordination with other networks and agencies is staffed 24/7 by members of KatrinaHelp in Amsterdam, Bahrain, India & USA.

Due to our wireless network we were then able to have real-time information flows to/from volunteer/donor networks on the ground, the ability to do status checks on shelters, receive situation updates from command centers and citizen journalists as well as reach swamped networks during critical times.

---