hurricane media hype

[mmbt0ne]

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They have been saying for years everytime a hurricane develops, if a category 5 hurricane ever hits, New Orleans will be in deep trouble, the city is not capable of handling it the way it is built.

This may be the one they have been hoping never came.

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I figured it was just another case of this at first too. But this time is different. Everyone we know, the people who have never left home before are in Texas, or Arkansas, or just somewhere else that isn't home. My mom has already planned to take her 30-something sick days she has saved up over the years, and go down there after the rain stops to do whatever she can. I'm sure my dad and grandmother are making similar arrangements.

This is going to be ugly. The storm is too big not to have a serious direct hit on NO. It may not be dead-on, right where the eye goes, but it's going to get rocked. The only part of the city that might survive is uptown, because it is far enough away from the lake in all directions, and apparently the river is fairly low right now, which will help minimize the flooding. Of course, the rest of the city is [censored]. If the flooding is as severe as some projections, the pumps the city has built in will be covered in water, and inoperable. It will take months just to get rid of the water, forget about clean water and utilities.

I remember my mom telling me stories about going to Biloxi the day after Camille hit, while she was living in NO. All she can think about is that she'll doing the same thing on a grander scale this time around.

[cbfair]

Read this.

I'm not sure when it was written, but it wasn't this morning. There is a significant concern that NO could in fact cease to exist as we know it. There's a disaster scenario that New Orleans and Federal disaster planners have contemplated for some time, called "filling the bowl". NO lies below sea level and below the level of lake Pontchartrain (sp). The concern is that the lake will spill over the levee system and overwhelm the pumping capacity of the city leaving it flooded for as long as months. These flood waters would be filled with raw sewage, chemicals, petroleum, snakes, alligators rats and other nasties; FEMA has predicted that the worst case scenario (hypothetical hurricane, not Katrina specifically) could kill 20k to 100k people.

We won't know until the coming days what the aftermath will hold but there is no question this is one of the largest hurricanes in US history and that it is bearing down on a major city. Those two factors alone are reason for concern, couple that with New Orlean's unique low stature and you have the real potential for historic disaster.

I hope some miracle intervenes, but I've been watching this live feed for awhile and it doesn't look good.

My thoughts are with the people of New Orleans tonight and I pray for their safety.

[gumpzilla]

That's a crazy article. My girlfriend called me to tell me about this stuff earlier tonight, which surprised me a great deal, since I hadn't been paying attention to the news this weekend and still thought Katrina was a pissant non-entity as far as hurricanes goes. Now I'm pretty riveted to it. This is going to be nuts, and I have a hard time imagining what it's going to be like for New Orleans residents.

[Bulldog]

How will Jack Bauer stop Katrina in less than 24 hours???

I was in Biloxi last year and all I could think was that this place didn't look very safe. Beau Rivage is right on the water. You could jump from the outside deck of Beau Rivage into the water. I'm thinking Beau Rivage might not be there tomorrow. Too bad because that is one of my favorite casinos.

[ChipWrecked]

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How will Jack Bauer stop Katrina in less than 24 hours???

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Hopefully, when he does catch her, torture will begin quickly.

[Matt Flynn]

Atlantis? No. The greatest natural disaster in the history of the U.S.? Unless that storm veers off or loses a tremendous amount of power, yes, and by a wide margin. It is that bad.

[Aceshigh7]

In Houston we had tropical storm Allison a few years ago that flooded the entire city. That was the biggest natural disaster to ever hit the city, causing 5 billion worth of damage and killing 22 people. And this hurricane Katrina looks a hell of alot worse.

[wonderwes]

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In Houston we had tropical storm Allison a few years ago that flooded the entire city. That was the biggest natural disaster to ever hit the city, causing 5 billion worth of damage and killing 22 people. And this hurricane Katrina looks a hell of alot worse.

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I was in that. I got stuck at a friend's apt because every single street was underwater. That was truely nuts. Amazing all that flooded was done by a tropical storm.

[Ray Zee]

it may or may not be a tragedy by someones standard. the city is below sea level and should never have been built that large to begin with. and everyone that lives there knows what can happen and needed to be prepared. the city should be prepared. too bad people react only when disaster is imminent not when probable.
forecasters have for some time said as a result of global warming hurracanes will be more frequent and stronger. nothing has been done about global warming either. you get what you pay for as cold hearted as it sounds.
but i do wish everyone with an interest well. i am rooting for the people not for the city except that that state has the highest pollution in the country and the storm may unleash bad chemicals into the environment to the detriment of all.