Fed. Govt Could've Saved $Millions by Sending Evacuees on 6 Month Cruise

[buzzsaw_23]

This story should be mind boggling but it just seems to be the standard fare these days.

Million-dollar refugee ships lying half empty
By Dan Glaister in Los Angeles
September 30, 2005

They are the biggest, most expensive refugee boats, hired by the US Government to house the victims of Hurricane Katrina at a cost of a quarter of a billion dollars.

But the three cruise liners are lying more than half empty and critics say they are evidence of the Government's mismanagement of the disaster and lack of preparation. The Federal Emergency Management Agency agreed to pay $US236 million ($310 million) to hire the three ships for six months. However, Senate critics say it would have cost half that much to send the hurricane survivors on a Caribbean cruise.

The ships have a capacity of 7116 beds, at a cost of $US1275 a person a week. The cost of a Caribbean cruise from Texas is $US559 a week. "When the Federal Government would actually save millions of dollars by … sending evacuees on a luxurious six-month cruise it is time to rethink how we are conducting oversight," said Senators Tom Coburn and Barack Obama.

However, the head of contracts at Sealift Command, which is part of the agency, defended the deal. "They were the market," said Captain Joe Manna. "Under the circumstances, I'd say we're getting a pretty good value." The deal attracted further criticism when it emerged that the ships' Miami-based owner, Carnival, is registered in Panama and is exempt from most US taxes. The firm had also sought assurances from the agency that the relief contract would be tax-exempt.

http://smh.com.au/news/world/milliondollar-refugee-ships-lying-half-empty/2005/09/29/1127804608638.html

[rzemanfl]

1. I think what this really shows is that the cruise ship industry gets

almost all its profits from the casinos, bars and shops on board. Not that this isn't a crooked deal anyway.