BATON ROUGE - As Louisiana continues to recover from Hurricane Gustav, and looks ahead to the cleanup from Hurricane Ike, the Department of Social Services (DSS) reminds citizens to make use of the following important numbers:

Operation Reconnect (1-800-957-1601): A hotline for locating individuals who evacuated in response to Hurricane Ike. Friends and family members who call the hotline will be asked to provide the name of their loved one, and operators will search the DSS database of evacuees as well as the Red Cross Safe and Well list. It is important to note that the Red Cross list only includes residents who allow their names to be released.

Foster Care/Unaccompanied Minors (1-800-259-3428): A hotline for foster parents, foster children, or unaccompanied minors who need assistance.

Disaster Food Stamps (1-888-524-3578, Option 3): The 1-888-LAHELPU hot line provides information on the Disaster Food Stamp Program for residents of the following DFSP-approved parishes: Acadia, Allen, Ascension, Assumption, Avoyelles, Catahoula, East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Evangeline, Grant, Iberia, Iberville, Jefferson, La Salle, Lafayette, Lafourche, Livingston, Orleans, Plaquemines, Point Coupee, Rapides, St. Bernard, St. Charles, St. Helena, St. James, St. John the Baptist, St. Landry, St. Martin, St. Mary, St. Tammany, Tangipahoa, Terrebonne, Vermillion, West Baton Rouge, West Feliciana.