A few months ago I met a young man from New Orleans who swam for three days through unbelievable filth to find his family. And didn't.
His name is Rico.
He ended up in Houston, then in San Francisco when he requested a place that didn't have hurricanes (then we had a huge storm--he was VERY upset).
He told some godawful stories about how people were treated at those "shelters." He said that in Houston they were literally beaten away by police if they arrived back in the evening past curfew, which was 9 p.m; women and children included. A lot of folks were looking for work, or a place to live, and had a hard time getting around in a strange town and back to the Astrodome on time.
His cousin is a nurse in Baton Rouge and worked as a volunteer in the huge morgue. She recognized his father and niece there, and let him know. But, without DNA verification they're not releasing bodies and most of the bodies are either beyond typing or haven't been looked at yet.
That means he knows where his father's and niece's bodies are, but because family identification isn't being accepted he can't bury them. He is convinced that the reason for the policy is that identification would cause a flood of insurance claims, and FEMA (or whoever has the power to deny him his family's bodies) is cooperating with a corporate wish to not pay claims just yet, if ever.
It was six months after the storm, and the day before I met him, when he located his sister in New York and then his mother in Oklahoma City. Before that, he hadn't known if they were even alive. And for those 6 months his mother hadn't known whether he and his sister were alive, either. Then he had to tell her that her granddaughter, and their father, were dead.
When he got to San Francisco he was given $300 and a handshake, and that was the beginning and the end of Red Cross assistance. He is an amazing young man--found a job and an apartment (although in a dangerous neighborhood where he so obviously doesn't belong) and started taking care of other guys from New Orleans. His income is stretched and he's desperate to reunite his family.
The same day, I met people who had tried to volunteer professional services (psychologists, trade unions with apprentice positions available) to the relocated New Orleans residents and were turned away. Whoever was there supposedly taking care of those needs had an exclusive contract (with FEMA or the Red Cross, I don't know which)and was not interested in fully qualified volunteers. Another stink among so many.