Jeudi

With more than 82,000 New Orleans houses and businesses still without power for the third full day since Hurricane Isaac passed from New Orleans - and fifth day since most people lost power - Entergy and the City attempted to offer some relief in the form of shelter and words on Saturday. Entergy spent the day dispatching their teams to offer explanations, and giving residents a chance to spew some words back at them, while the City opened new cooling centers and indicated they would be calling the electricity provider in for hearings.

Entergy, which said they've restored power to 48 percent of the customers that lost power overall in the storm but only 26 percent of customers in Orleans Parish - issued  a parish-by-parish schedule for restoration. Orleans Parish will see 70 percent of its power restored by Monday, and 90 percent by Wednesday, according to the chart.

The company also opened customer service centers to allow people a chance to vent about their lack of power and ask about their specific problems face-to-face with a company rep. In New Orleans, these centers are located the Entergy offices at 3400 Canal Street on the Eastbank, and 4021 Behman Highway on the Westbank.

Meanwhile, over at City Hall, Mayor Mitch didn't launch into a tirade like his counterpart in Jefferson Parish did Friday night. But it was apparent that political patience with the situation was running thin.

The City Council is planning a special meeting on Tuesday at 10:30 a.m. to inquire with Entergy about why the power restoration has taken so long. Utility Committee chairwoman Cynthia Hedge-Morrell will run the hearing.

"Unfortunately, despite thorough preparation by federal, state, and local governments, our city’s recovery has been stymied by energy outages throughout the city," a Council statement said. "New Orleanians understand that patience is required. But as Entergy’s regulators, the Council must inquire as to whether the process of restoring electricity was sufficiently aggressive and visible as soon as the winds subsided."

The City also opened two cooling centers and more pod locations today to offer some relief to residents. The cooling centers, which have limited occupancy,  are located at 1500 Lafreniere Street in Gentilly on the East Bank and Berhman Recreation Center, 2529 General Meyers Ave., in Algiers. The shelters are for people with the "most critical needs," including the elderly, people with damage to their homes and people with illnesses exacerbated by the heat, the City said.

Additional pod locations were also opened at:

• TREME The Municipal Auditorium at 1451 Basin Street
• MID CITY Tad Gormley Stadium in City Park at 5120 Marconi Drive
• VENETIAN ISLES Old Engine 31 in Venetian Isles at 4300 Alba Road - opening Sunday.

Updated 9:50 pm: The city's cooling shelter on the Westbank at General Meyer Avenue has lost air conditioning, according to a news release. People at the shelter were moved to the East Bank location. Sixty residents registered with the shelter last night, and 20 were moved to the new shelter. Residents are still being accepted at the St. Bernard Shelter. 

Updated 9/2, 11 a.m. The city opened another cooling shelter at the Dryades YMCA shelter, 2220 Oretha Castle Haley Street in Central City.