Storm Evacuees Prepare To Head Home

BIRMINGHAM, Ala.—Buses will soon be rolling toward Louisiana.

State Emergency Management officials say the Federal Government has hired more than 200 motor coaches to take evacuees of Hurricane Gustav home.

Buses will begin loading at storm shelters throughout Alabama after 9:00 Friday morning.  The time was pushed back three hours Friday morning.

The buses were being prepared at the Alabama State Fair Grounds Thursday night.

The EMA vowed to keep families and pets together as the return home began.

Buses would be deployed in ten bus caravans, with a staggered departure to avoid traffic disruptions.

Officials hoped to have everyone on the road back home by noon.

There are about 8,300 storm evacuees sheltered in Alabama.