Hurricane Evacuees Living At New OrleansFireman's CU

NEW ORLEANS - (10/14/05) -- Desperate for housing after theirown homes were destroyed by Hurricane Katrina, some employees ofNew Orleans Fireman's CU are living at two of its branches.Nineteen of the credit union's 57 employees lost their homes, whilehomes for nine others are indefinitely uninhabitable. Findinghousing for them was a top priority for the credit union. "Weimmediately set to work looking for housing," said Judy D'Lucca,president of the credit union, told The Credit Union Journal,during a media tour of hurricane-ravaged credit unions conducted bythe Louisiana CU League. Two employees currently live on the secondfloor of the credit union's main office in what is otherwise thebusiness development department. "We already had a kitchen upthere, and we're putting in a washer-dryer," DiLucca offered. "Wetook the men's room and installed a shower. We bought inflatablemattresses, and now this is home for them." Six more employees liveabove the credit union's St. James Branch. The credit union wasable to find apartments and trailers for some of its otheremployees.