BY DAVE HUGHES
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
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FORT CHAFFEE, Ark. — About 1,500 New Orleans residents fleeing Hurricane Gustav arrived here Sunday by plane and bus, and another 1,250 were on their way Sunday afternoon, the state's chief emergency planner said.

David Maxwell, director of the Arkansas Department of Emergency Management, told reporters he expected Fort Chaffee to reach its capacity of 4,000 evacuees. He couldn't say on Sunday how long they would stay. Arrangements had been made to house those displaced by Hurricane Gustav for up to 30 days.

"They'll be here as long as it takes," Maxwell said. "We'll know more in the next 48 hours." Louisiana officials asked whether Fort Chaffee could take about 2,000 more evacuees, Maxwell said. He responded that while the fort could accommodate additional evacuees, the barracks that could be used are not air-conditioned.

Those additional barracks may not be needed. Other shelters are being opened in Texas and Alabama for those unable to leave New Orleans themselves, he said. Buses heading north from New Orleans were being sent to Shreveport before being assigned to various shelters.

Other shelters for evacuees were being set up in Little Rock, Monticello and Hope, Maxwell said.

For those leaving New Orleans on their own, Maxwell said, information on available shelters in the state is on the Arkansas Department of Emergency Management's Web site, www.adem.arkansas.gov. Searchers can follow links to a map of Arkansas that says "Arkansas shelters click here." A map showing the state's counties will appear. Clicking on a county will make a dialog box pop up with the name of the shelter or shelters there, available beds and phone numbers.

Fort Chaffee was set up as a shelter for evacuees who could not get out of New Orleans on their own. They started arriving Saturday and Sunday, transported by commuter jets that landed at Fort Smith Regional Airport from Louis Armstrong International Airport in New Orleans. Evacuees were shuttled to Fort Chaffee on Fort Smith Transit buses.

Others arrived on buses making the 10-hour drive from New Orleans. The buses and jets were recruited under a contract with the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

A group of nine buses disgorged its passengers early Sunday afternoon outside a theater at Fort Chaffee.

The displaced citizens made their way, dragging or carrying suitcases and bags, through the milling crowd into the base theater. Inside, they were assigned to barracks based on whether they were two-parent families, one-parent families, single men or single women.

Once in their barracks, some slept through the afternoon after a long bus ride that arrived about dawn Sunday. Others sat on steps outside the barracks or walked to and from the processing center for supplies.

Some evacuees sitting outside complained that while they were in Arkansas, their luggage had gone to Atlanta. Others were upset about the heat and the dirty conditions inside the World War II vintage barracks.

The barracks where the evacuees were being housed are air conditioned, Sebastian County Office of Emergency Management Coordinator Tonya Roberts said. Normally, the barracks are used by soldiers training at the Fort Chaffee Maneuver Training Center.

Evacuees initially were given military rations called "meals ready to eat" and bottled water, but the Salvation Army set up kitchens to provide three hot meals a day for the rest of the evacuees' stay.

Efforts are being made to make the evacuees as comfortable as possible by providing items such as blankets, soap, comfort kits and towels, Roberts said. Telephone and Internet banks are being set up and a television signal is being piped into the theater so evacuees can keep abreast of the situation at home.

Shuttle buses will be used beginning today to allow evacuees to travel to Wal-Mart, Central Mall or to movie theaters in Fort Smith, Roberts added.

Arkansas National Guard Adjutant General Maj. Gen. William Wofford, who traveled to Fort Chaffee on Sunday to check on the operation, praised the soldiers and civilian volunteers for the work they did to accommodate the displaced citizens.

About 165 soldiers from the Fort Chaffee garrison unit, the Army National Guard's 142nd Fires Brigade and the Air National Guard's 188th Fighter Wing are working at Fort Chaffee this weekend. Another 55 civilians with the Red Cross, Salvation Army and the Sebastian County Office of Emergency Management are also working. Several Sebastian County sheriff's deputies are patrolling at Fort Chaffee as well.

Copyright 2008 Little Rock Newspapers, Inc.