September 1, 2005

Dear Fellow NBTA Members,

Having spoken with many of you, I know I speak on behalf of all NBTA members, partners and staff in extending my profound sympathy to those affected by fury of Hurricane Katrina.  As I watch the news, my heart aches, and I am overwhelmed by a sense of helplessness.

Yet, as travel managers and travel service providers, we are on the front line of our company’s operations, tasked not only with the responsibility of ensuring business travelers in the affected region are safe and as comfortable as conditions allow, but also ensuring business continuity.  That means we have work to do.  Meetings must be rescheduled.  Itineraries must be reconfigured.  Shelter and aid must be provided to those devastated by the storm.  And, while our attention is focused on these immediate tasks, we must also be thinking about how these events will impact the travel industry and our nation’s economy.

As always, during this challenging time, NBTA is committed to providing its members with news and resources to assist in the decision-making process.  In the days following the storm, NBTA distributed information from leading news sources and from iJet Intelligence Risk Systems.  As the region and the nation move into recovery mode, NBTA strives to provide you with the most current information on housing, air travel, car rentals, meetings and conventions, and other key topics in the affected area on the Hurricane Katrina Resource Page at www.nbta.org/hurricane.

As a membership association, our actions are always driven by the needs of members and the industry.  There are two ways you can help NBTA help you.  First, we have a short survey online to assess the needs of NBTA members both now and into the future.  Please take a few minutes to complete that survey.  Second, we have established a new email address to gather information related to the hurricane.  If you have information that you think may help your fellow corporate travel professionals, if you have immediate or future needs NBTA may be able to help with, or if you have any type of feedback that can help guide our actions in this challenging time, please send your thoughts to hurricane@nbta.org.

Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, I want you to know that we have personally reached out to each of our members in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, offering the assistance and support of our NBTA family.  Thankfully, those we have reached are fine, as are their families and their employees.  We will let you know if there are ways fellow members can provide assistance to them.

As travel professionals, I know we will each help our companies through this difficult time. As an association, I am confident we will work together to help the whole industry meet the challenges ahead.

Sincerely yours,

Suzanne Fletcher
President & CEO
National Business Travel Association

Return to the Hurricane Katrina Resource Page