Katrina Relief Network To Close

A network of private relief workers that helped thousands of battered families put their lives together after Hurricane Katrina has begun unraveling with thousands of families still on waiting lists, even as its managers cast about for new sources of money to keep it going at a reduced level.

As the network shrinks, about 4,600 families will have to wait longer for help, officials of the network said. Some might become entangled in more red tape -- and face longer waits -- as their files are shifted from laid-off workers into new hands.

Members of the network are sorting through their cases, trying to prioritize which families need immediate help before the program shuts down March 31 and their cases are transferred, said Tom Costanza, a local Catholic Charities relief executive who leads the board of the Greater New Orleans Disaster Recovery Partnership, a coalition of private relief groups.