Southwest Veterinary Symposium Must go on

FORT WORTH, TEXAS - 9/22/05 - Despite Hurricane Rita's impending arrival and an increase in attendee cancellations, the Southwest Veterinary Symposium is taking place, authorities report.

Rita is scheduled to make landfall on the Texas coast early Saturday morning, but the conference is expected to continue through its scheduled time of Sunday."Veterinarians keep calling asking if the symposium was cancelled," says Janet Knippa, Texas Veterinary Medical Association (TVMA) member relations and foundation specialist. "Fewer veterinarians will be attending because they are preparing their practices for the storm, but everyone from TVMA is there now, and it is business as usual at this point."

Knippa says she believes veterinarians will be prepared for Rita because the state has a good evacuation plan and thoughts of Katrina's wrath remain fresh in residents' minds.

A music festival taking place in Austin has left few available hotels, forcing those fleeing the storm to seek shelter in more distant cities, Knippa adds.