P.O.'ed off
Dec. 6th, 2005 07:54 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
infrogmationOne of the lingering problems in Post-Katrina New Orleans is mail service.
Mail delivery has been officially back here, but everyone has their stories of how unreliable it is, and of things lost.
First class mail within the city, from and to well functioning parts of town, takes a week or so to arrive now.
No one I know has gotten magazines sent since the storm. As I mentioned, I got a copy of the first New Yorker magazine of September over a month late, and nothing else.
My mail carrier (who lost his home in New Orleans East) was one of the first to decide on his own to start delivering on his route rather than still holding things at the Post Office, as enough people were back Uptown.
What ever happened to the mail of September? 99.9% + of an entire month's worth of mail for a major city seems to have disappeared into the twilight zone. People who filled out change of address/forwarding as soon as they evacuated never got it forwarded. It wasn't waiting for people when they were told they could pick up mail at branch post offices or designated centers. A while back, people were told that all the city's mail was in a warehouse in Houston, then a story had it that when Rita threatened it was all trucked to Dallas. Now a story has it that it was all returned to the senders. But everyone can tell of mail that was never seen again on either end, and for a lot of folks that included important stuff.
The other day there was an announcement that there was a good bit of Katrina water damaged mail that has been dried out and would be delivered. Okaaay... that should only be a couple days worth of mail at most, right? Unless post office trucks were coming into town during the days after the storm and dumping mail into the flood waters?
Also, no mailboxes. Once plentiful, they took the mailboxes off the street corners, even here in high neighborhoods that never flooded. Why?
Any indication that U.S. Mail is being phased out in other parts of the country?
I recall back in the Reagan administration reading about the Federal Government contingecy plans for change of address forms and delivering mail after nuclear attack. That seemed pretty unlikely then. Now I see they can't even cope with a hurricane.
Mail delivery has been officially back here, but everyone has their stories of how unreliable it is, and of things lost.
First class mail within the city, from and to well functioning parts of town, takes a week or so to arrive now.
No one I know has gotten magazines sent since the storm. As I mentioned, I got a copy of the first New Yorker magazine of September over a month late, and nothing else.
My mail carrier (who lost his home in New Orleans East) was one of the first to decide on his own to start delivering on his route rather than still holding things at the Post Office, as enough people were back Uptown.
What ever happened to the mail of September? 99.9% + of an entire month's worth of mail for a major city seems to have disappeared into the twilight zone. People who filled out change of address/forwarding as soon as they evacuated never got it forwarded. It wasn't waiting for people when they were told they could pick up mail at branch post offices or designated centers. A while back, people were told that all the city's mail was in a warehouse in Houston, then a story had it that when Rita threatened it was all trucked to Dallas. Now a story has it that it was all returned to the senders. But everyone can tell of mail that was never seen again on either end, and for a lot of folks that included important stuff.
The other day there was an announcement that there was a good bit of Katrina water damaged mail that has been dried out and would be delivered. Okaaay... that should only be a couple days worth of mail at most, right? Unless post office trucks were coming into town during the days after the storm and dumping mail into the flood waters?
Also, no mailboxes. Once plentiful, they took the mailboxes off the street corners, even here in high neighborhoods that never flooded. Why?
Any indication that U.S. Mail is being phased out in other parts of the country?
I recall back in the Reagan administration reading about the Federal Government contingecy plans for change of address forms and delivering mail after nuclear attack. That seemed pretty unlikely then. Now I see they can't even cope with a hurricane.
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no subject
Date: 2005-12-06 02:18 pm (UTC)Still, I should also write to BSP Intl. and find out WTF happened to copies of the Torch (magazine).
no subject
Date: 2005-12-06 03:38 pm (UTC)Mail is steadily flowing (effortlessly) here in BR.
Where have all the mail boxes gone?
Date: 2005-12-06 05:58 pm (UTC)All my checks'es are in Texas
Date: 2005-12-06 06:01 pm (UTC)Hope to have my car ready tomorrow.
Re: All my checks'es are in Texas
Date: 2005-12-06 10:05 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-12-06 11:00 pm (UTC)As for the National Geographic you asked about in another post, I might have one. I'm getting mom's magazines here until her subscription runs out. Was it this month's issue?
Nash Geog Raffik
Date: 2005-12-07 12:43 am (UTC)If you happen to have a copy you could send, let me know. I'd appreciate it, and be happy to send you a check or such for your expenses.
It's, like, lots of folks seem to be writing about us, but unless it's on the web, we don't see it.