It's déjà vu for evacuees in Houston

Storm-weary residents expressed fear of the unknown and frustration at the thought of having to pick up and relocate again to Fort Chaffee, a defunct military base. But Harris County, Texas, officials, who absorbed 27,100 evacuees at local shelters during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, said ordering the remaining 4,000 out was for their own safety. The move also would free up manpower to take care of the area's own residents as the storm approached, they said.

Only 240 evacuees had accepted the offer by Tuesday afternoon; many others decided to find apartments or shelter elsewhere, officials said.

"If they want to go somewhere else, they are free to do so," said Coast Guard Lt. Joe Leonard, who has been in charge of the 21-day effort to shelter evacuees at Reliant Park and the George R. Brown Convention Center.

On Tuesday, 10 commercial planes took evacuees from Houston to Fort Chaffee. Leonard said he expected that the last evacuees choosing to go to Arkansas would be flown out today. About 40 who were afraid to fly were taken to the base by bus.

As Louisiana residents learned that Hurricane Rita was threatening the Texas coast, many showed obvious signs of post-traumatic stress. Some stood in front of the Reliant Arena with their bags, unsure where they were going but determined not to be shipped away to Arkansas. Others stood in long lines at the makeshift U.S. Post Office, waiting to change their address to alert family members of their next move.

"I don't have a choice," said Wayne Sylvester, a 9th Ward resident who chose to go to Arkansas. "If I were to stay here, where would I live?"

Three weeks was not enough time to recover from the storm, Sylvester said. "I've been through so much," he said, wearing an "I Survived Katrina" T-shirt. "I'm tired. It's just so hard."

"It's time to go," said Maurice Brown of Violet, who found an apartment Tuesday.

"We had notice that everybody had to leave," Brown said. "It's not like this snuck up on us."

Brown said he used money he received from the American Red Cross and the Federal Emergency Management Agency to help him.

"People can't stay here forever," Brown said. "They got to realize that. They have to move on."

On Tuesday, residents could be seen packing up the possessions they had managed to accumulate during their stay. They used trash bags, boxes, suitcases and grocery carts to haul away their belongings.

Although they were told late Monday that the Reliant Arena would be vacated by Tuesday night, several evacuees still were in their bed clothes at noon.

Volunteers from the Red Cross and other agencies gingerly prodded them to make a decision.

Roy Grant said he would take his chances in Baton Rouge with his wife and two children.

"It will be an old Army base in Arkansas," Grant said. "That's way too far."

Grant said he was told if he did not go to Arkansas, he would be on his own.

"We are practically on our own now," he said. "Everybody has a lot of tension. They're frustrated."

In addition to the one-way plane ride to Arkansas, flights to and job opportunities in many cities across the nation were posted throughout the shelter.

In the midst of the chaos of people scrambling to find last-minute places to stay, Carl Wright was at peace Tuesday.

Wright, who lost the use of his legs almost 20 years ago, sat in a wheelchair and waited for a bus ride to the airport. A company had paid to relocate him to Colorado Springs, Colo., he said.

Wright, who used his upper body to pull himself and his wheelchair into the attic and then onto the roof of his Uptown home, said he won't be returning to New Orleans.

"I don't want to go anywhere near water again," he said.