Vanity: Open letter to FEMA and Bush..declare a NATIONAL emergency

lots | August 28, 2005 | me

[janetjanet998]

I have never seen any thing like this in my 20 years of storm following....nor do i recall such a potential in history..

we have the worst case scenario times 10.even the "big one" everyone talked about was even assuming a much smaller cane area wise..

the storm is huge...like 2-3 times the size of andrew and maybe almost just as strong...it is hitting at the worst possibe angle for NOLA and size the eye is so large ,30 miles across, the MS coast will get it too...it will affect many more people that Andrew did..hurricane force winds are 150 miles wide and exspanding... Andrew was very small and jogged south and hit then less populated areas of miami then into the bare swamps...storm surge with will be huge may go miles inland in places

its large so it will take awhile to spin down producing many tornnadoes and flooding inland

Declare a national emergency...get the military ready for rescue then clean up

I never thought i would see a bigger news story in my life then 9-11....this could be it...its picking up speed and many people will still be stuck on the roads when it nears..plus it is so big wind/rain many hours ahead of it will not help with the traffic...

[beyond the sea]

Yes it is.

I wonder how much of the Sunday Morning talk shows will be about this.

[uncbob]

Be safe. Its no big thing. You can handle it.

You are completely wrong

That city is below sea level and will become an ATLANTIS if it takes a direct hit

[Brytani]

Let me tell you something, I live in a hurricane prone area, smack dab in the town that Andrew destroyed, Homestead, FL, as a matter of fact. Not only do I have insurance, I'm paying more for it then you will pay over 5 years.

Roughly, Homeowners for us is 7,200/a year, wind storm is an additional 1,400/yr, flood insurance runs me $850/yr my car insurance policy for a PERFECT driving record is 1,200 every six months.

Give me a break about those of us living in natural disaster prone taking YOUR tax dollars. Not only do we pay out the nose for our insurance, we also pay taxes, or did you forget that little fact?

[janetjanet998]

Table 4: The most intense mainland United States hurricanes, 1851-2004 (includes only major hurricanes at their most intense landfall).

1 Unnamed (FL Keys) 1935 5 892 26.35
2 Camille (MS, SE LA, VA) 1969 5 909 26.84
3 Andrew (SE FL, SE LA) 1992 5 922 27.23
4 TX (Indianola) 1886 4 925 27.31

[MindBender26]

No matter what happens, in one month, Kate O"Brian's on Bourbon Street will be open for business, suckering in the tourists attending LSU and Saints games.

[Jimmy Valentine]

Probably a lot. The good old "if it bleeds, it leads" news standard.

Praying for the people in this storms path.

Was a kid when Diane blew through L.I. N.Y. Was out of school for three days. We lived about five miles from the water in a hill top community. Still had 18 inches of water in the basement.

[StatenIsland]

ping

[beyond the sea]

I think this is one for the ages. It sure is beginning to feel like "end times".

[janetjanet998]

Hurricane Katrina Special Advisory Number 22
Statement as of 7:00 am CDT on August 28, 2005 ...Katrina...now a potentially catastrophic category five hurricane...headed for the northern Gulf Coast... A Maximum sustained winds are near 160 mph...with higher gusts. Katrina is a potentially catastrophic category five hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson scale. Some fluctuations in strength are likely during the next 24 hours.
Hurricane force winds extend outward up to 85 miles from the center...and tropical storm force winds extend outward up to 185 miles.
Data from an Air Force hurricane hunter plane indicate that the minimum central pressure has fallen to near 908 mb...26.81 inches.
Coastal storm surge flooding of 15 to 20 feet above normal tide levels...locally as high as 25 feet along with large and dangerous battering waves...can be expected near and to the east of where the center makes landfall.

[janetjanet998]

moving even faster now..no way to get all those people out..not even close

[MindBender26]

It will be Hell

We will survive.

[Quinotto]

If the federal government declares a national emergency in storm-affected areas, I want my taxes reduced by the amount sent to those regions that are attributable to my income.

CLEARLY you do not live on a hurricane-prone state otherwise you would not make such a puerile comment.

Then perhaps they should buy insurance, and quit sucking off my tax dollars.

Again, amateur hour! I have yet to meet a home owner who chooses not to have insurance. Besides being mandated by state laws, most people also have mortgages and insurance is something also required by the lenders. People end up being dropped by an insurance company due to the fact that the insurance company chooses not to renew in certain states. If that happens, there is an underwriting insurance company mandated by the state which will allow people who cannot find an insurance company get coverage.

[DeeOhGee]

You have chosen, for reasons entirely your own, to live in a hurrican-prone area. There is risk in that; you knew that, or should have, when you chose to live there. Why should I pay for your risk?

I elected, three years ago, to start my own business. There was considerable risk to my personal finances and fortunes. Did I ask you to finance my risk?

[MindBender26]

Latest webcam shots from NO show traffic moving freely and at normal speed on all evacuations routes.

Prepare; yes
Panic; no.

[janetjanet998]

that will change very very soon..last night it was a weak cat 3 moving west people went ot bed saying we will see what happens in the morning...now its a CAT 5 and heading towards them...according to my sources most peole stayed and some even had hurricane parties
within 2 hours it will be bumper to bumper at a stand still

[tiredoflaundry]

You have chosen, for reasons entirely your own, to live in a hurrican-prone area. There is risk in that; you knew that, or should have, when you chose to live there. Why should I pay for your risk?

Maybe those in hurricane prone areas should live in the mid-west? Oh wait Tornados. Ok, um go west. Oh wait earthquakes! Ok North that's it! Massive snow storms!

[Normal4me]

Where do you live that is resistant to all forces of nature? Earthquakes, flooding, tornados, fires, snow storms, lightning, hurricanes, etc happen all over this country every year. Please tell us so we can all move to your neighborhood and live a carefree life.

[DeeOhGee]

You are missing my point and making it at the same time. People can live wherever they want. There is some sort of risk inherent just about anywhere. No matter where you live, it is incumbent on you to acknowledge and accept that risk. It is your responsibility, not mine. Just as it is my risk, not yours, to live in a flood plain, or in tornado alley, or in northern Wisconsin, or on a fault line.

Do we really want to rely on the federal nanny state to protect us from risk?

[uncbob]

Please tell us so we can all move to your neighborhood and live a carefree life.

And maybe he will guarantee everybody a job while he is at it

[Popman]

Doesn't it have to be a "national" event for Bush to declare a NATIONAL emergency.

Anyway, the Natalee Holloway story is much more compelling and important that Bush should declare that a NATIONAL emergency.

< / sarcasm >