HOUSTON – More than 850 victims of Hurricane Ike received assistance at two neighborhood meetings organized by ACORN in the Houston area Sept. 17.

Those attending the meetings lacked food, water, electricity and gas. Many have lost wages due to workplaces being closed, and children are missing school and school-provided meals due to schools remaining closed.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) was invited to address residents' needs at the meetings, but representatives failed to show up.

U.S. Representatives Sheila Jackson Lee and Sylvester Turner, both Texas Democrats, blasted the agency's failure to meet with the community and to adequately respond to the crisis in the city. Turner added that CenterPoint Energy, Houston's largest energy provider, is moving too slowly in restoring power to residents. City Council members Adrian Garcia – who is currently running for Harris County Sheriff – and Jarvis Johnson echoed the Representatives' concerns about FEMA, with Johnson suggesting that people load up buses and go after the agency.

Hurricane Ike struck coastal Texas and blew through Houston and surrounding communities late Friday, Sept. 12. Ike's winds and rain damaged thousands of homes and businesses, flooded Houston neighborhoods and left 2 million people without power. Many grocery stores and gas stations shut down and have not yet reopened.

Jeff Larsen of Lone Star Legal Aid, a nonprofit law firm offering legal services on a sliding scale, joined ACORN in connecting attendees with assistance and information including:

•    How to apply for FEMA disaster assistance;

•    Renters' rights;

•    How to replace important documents lost in the storm;

•    How to replace debit cards;

•    How to apply for disaster unemployment insurance for those who have lost work due to the hurricane;

•    What parents can do to get their children enrolled in a different school, and rights regarding children with disabilities.

More than 60 ACORN members are prepared to distribute donated food as soon as it arrives, and ACORN members are working to set up additional food distribution centers.

ACORN members are demanding that CenterPoint restore power in low-income neighborhoods by Monday. Sixty-five percent of the city remains without power, including many low-income neighborhoods. Without power, thousands of people are unable to charge cell phones, access the internet or turn on a television to get information. A phone or internet connection is needed to apply for FEMA assistance. ACORN members have been distributing information to those waiting in lines for food, water and ice, and ACORN worked out of the office of the local SEIU until power was restored in its own office Friday.

ACORN and ACORN Housing are also calling for a three-month moratorium on foreclosures in the areas impacted by Hurricane Ike to allow homeowners the opportunity to rebuild and get back on stable financial ground. 

"Because foreclosures are filed the first Tuesday of each month, within three weeks, many people who are still living in shelters or reeling from devastations caused by Ike may not have a home to return to if foreclosure proceedings prevail," said Texas ACORN President Toni McElroy.

The Federal Housing Administration has already announced a 90-day moratorium, but FHA mortgages represent only a tiny fraction of the market.  In particular, ACORN is calling on all conventional lenders, subprime lenders, mortgage servicers, and the government sponsored enterprises Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to forbear foreclosures in the storm’s immediate aftermath, similar to successful moratoriums that were in place after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

After emergency food and power needs have been met, ACORN members plan to focus on expediting emergency roof repair for the thousands of homes whose roofs have been damaged or torn off.

To make a tax deductable donation to ACORN's Hurricane Ike relief efforts, click here.