Posted on 08/28/2005 3:53:54 PM PDT by BJungNan
Associated Press Writer
NEW ORLEANS (AP) - The mayor ordered an immediate evacuation Sunday for all of New Orleans, a city sitting below sea level with 485,000 inhabitants, as Hurricane Katrina bore down with wind revving up to nearly 175 mph and threats of a massive storm surge.
Acknowledging that large numbers of people, many of them stranded tourists, would be unable to leave before the eye of the storm strikes land sometime Monday morning, the city set up 10 places of last resort including the Superdome.
``This is a once in a lifetime event,'' Mayor Ray Nagin said. ``The city of New Orleans has never seen a hurricane of this magnitude hit it directly.''
The mayor said a direct hit by Katrina's storm surge would likely top the levees that protect the city from the surrounding water of Lake Pontchartrain, the Mississippi River and marshes. The bowl-shaped city must pump water out even during normal times, and the hurricane threatened electricity that runs the pumps.
``We are facing a storm that most of us have long feared,'' Nagin said.
President Bush urged people living in the path of Katrina to take the storm extremely seriously and follow orders to evacuate to higher ground. A day after declaring an emergency for Louisiana, Bush declared an emergency for the state of Mississippi and pledged federal support.
``We cannot stress enough the danger this hurricane poses to Gulf Coast communities,'' Bush told reporters on his ranch in Crawford, Texas.
Not the best choice of words....
What he said was "I don't think I have the authority to order an evacuation."
He did not order anyone to leave until this very day at lunch.
Earth Friendly Tin Foil Conspiracy Hat On: Its Karl Rove dont you know??
Seriously, I wouldn't put my life into the decision-making of politicians. I'd turn on the Weather Channel and make my own decision whether to evacuate or not, regardless of what any political bureaucrat has to say. People are relying on government here a little too much...it's a natural disaster.
Oh no, I made Benjamin, Al Frankin's brother!
Absolutely NOT true; in fact, they didn't even order it until President Bush called the LA governor. And that was about noon today.
NO has had many, many false alarms in the last 50 years, and they are reluctant to force the city evacuated until they are at least semi-sure.
This storm has been projected to hit NO since last Thursday night.
There is absolutely NO excuse for the horrible way this was handled.
You're kidding, right? There's not a mayor on the east coast that won't order his city evacuatated when a hurricane is coming.
Wait till the floods from the rains further up river come down to meet the storm surge..
The heavy rain will be inland for a while before the eye makes land..
And then there is also tornados...
And the snakes. :-)
Mandatory evac for the city of New Orleans wasn't called until 9am this morning. IIRC, some was implemented in certain areas about 1pm yesterday, at the same time that the governor called for a large scale voluntary evac. But late last night the NO mayor was still saying that he didn't have the legal authority to order a mandatory evac of NO.
They have laws down there concerning evacuations that seem to be a tad different than you might imagine. In fact, the folks doing the forcible evacuation carry forms with them for resisters to sign absolving the government of any responsibility should they not actually leae the area.
At waht point would YOU have ordered the mandatory evacuation? 10% chance, 30% chance, 50% chance, 75% chance.
You're wrong.
It's clearly a nipple.
Where do you see that? If it's not Ol Ben, then it is clearly Al Frankin's cousin!
Hmmmmm and one of the largest populations of poor in the country.
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