A category 5 storm is very rare, and Ivan likely will be one, if he gets into the Gulf. New Orleans could not survive any Category 4 or 5 storm that directly hit from the southeast or southwest, and even a slow-moving Cat 3 storm would accomplish the same thing. But I think most residents have had that fact drummed into their heads by now, and hopefully they'll act accordingly.
Betsy was unbelievable,,wind gusts over 200. The city was wrecked but the lake didnt get picked up and dumped.
I agree that Ivan is confusing the TPC to some extent, if only for the reason that the updates are frequently changing quite a bit from what they were showing only hours before.
Category 5 hurricanes were a lot more frequent in the past. It is a mystery why the frequency of these cat 5's dropped off beginning 1,100 years ago.