Posted on 08/31/2005 12:43:07 PM PDT by BurbankKarl
http://www.radioreference.com/forums/showthread.php?t=20219
Hostage Situation in New Orleans
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Just a heads up, armed looters have taken over one of the medical centers in New Orleans where the injured people were being sent. They are holding the entire staff of the hospital hostage and firing at the national guard. An FBI SWAT team has just been flown in (from Baton Rouge I believe) and they are just now getting situated. I'm not sure of any online scanners that are up monitoring the state trs. That is where alot of traffic is going on at.
LSP Troop B is requesting immediate backup. Troopers, riot squad, and national guard. He said the crowd is triple the size it was earlier and they are about to be overrun.
The location is 610 and eleshafield(spelling?).
Should I make another thread that has events going on down there? Lots of stuff has gone on and half of it never makes it on the news or anything.
Thanks Ruth, chilling report!!
You will get no argument from me about them using up the resources. I know there were some people who couldn't get out of town because of their financial situations, but they had plenty of time to get to the superdome before the city completely flooded. I am willing to bet that the majority of these people are stuck in their attics where they tried to survive.
Officials Helpless Against Looters
Aug 31 3:42 PM US/Eastern
By KEVIN McGILL
Associated Press Writer
NEW ORLEANS
With law officers and National Guardsmen focused on saving lives, looters around the city spent another day brazenly ransacking stores for food, clothing, appliances _ and guns.
Thieves commandeered a forklift and used it to push up the storm shutters and break the glass of a pharmacy. The crowd stormed the store, carrying out so much ice, water and food that it dropped from their arms as they ran. The street was littered with packages of ramen noodles and other items.
Looters also chased down a state police truck full of food. The New Orleans police chief ran off looters while city officials themselves were commandeering equipment from a looted Office Depot. During a state of emergency, authorities have broad powers to take private supplies and buildings for their use.
Officials tried to balance security needs with saving lives.
"We're multitasking right now," said New Orleans Police Capt. Marlon Defillo. "Rescue, recovery, stabilization of looting, we're trying to feed the hungry."
Gov. Kathleen Blanco said she has asked the White House to send more people to help with evacuations and rescues, thereby freeing up National Guardsmen to stop looters.
"We need to free up the National Guard to do security in the city," Blanco said.
New Orleans' homeland security chief, Terry Ebbert, said looters were breaking into stores all over town and stealing guns. He said there are gangs of armed men moving around the city. At one point, officers stranded on the roof of a hotel were fired at by criminals on the street.
The Times-Picayune newspaper reported that the gun section at a new Wal-Mart had been cleaned out by looters.
Authorities said an officer was shot in the head and a looter was wounded in a shootout. The officer was expected to survive.
Authorities planned to send more than 70 additional officers and an armed personnel carrier into the city.
In the meantime, city authorities were putting a higher priority on rescuing victims and repairing a levee breach that was spilling water into the streets.
"One of our fears is if we don't stop the breach, that we will put good people's lives in jeopardy," the governor said. "We are concerned about essentials. We are asking for more military presence in the city to control the situation better.
On New Orleans' Canal Street, dozens of looters ripped open the steel gates on clothing and jewelry stores and grabbed merchandise. In Biloxi, Miss., people picked through casino slot machines for coins and ransacked other businesses. In some cases, the looting was in full view of police and National Guardsmen.
The historic French Quarter appeared to have been spared the worst flooding, but its stores were getting the worst of human nature.
"The looting is out of control. The French Quarter has been attacked," Councilwoman Jackie Clarkson said. "We're using exhausted, scarce police to control looting when they should be used for search and rescue while we still have people on rooftops."
Sen. Mary Landrieu's helicopter was taking off Tuesday for a flyover of the devastation and she watched as a group of people smashed a window at a gas-station convenience store and jumped in.
At a drug store in the French Quarter, people were running out with grocery baskets and coolers full of soft drinks, chips and diapers. Other looters were seen leaving a store with armfuls of tennis shoes and football jerseys.
100,000 people still in NO.
Harrah's said on CNBC that they took all their money away.
Hard to know why they'd do this
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Drugs?
What animals. Who does this? This is right out of Dawn of the Dead.
...so someone explain to me why martial law was invoked. This is no different that someone robbing a bank's drive through. How the hell can either one happen. Oh, yeah I forgot. In this PC age, it's "let the pizza guy give over his money. He cannot arm himself. Let the taxi driver give up his life. He cannot arm himself, yet MUST take calls to areas deemed dangerous by law enforcement". Let the looters take the loot, we can replace it later. I guess their self-esteem must be protected at this time. They're angry and frustrated right now, don't ya know. And running away with a giant screen t.v. IS good exercise...
Enough, call out the troops at Ft. Hood and Ft. Polk. Time to end this insanity. Check points, curfews and summery arrests.
Have you been pinged to this yet?
Ok, I am officially agreeing with the "shoot to kill" brigade now.
Everyone seems to have a favorite movie comparison for what's going on. Dawn of the Dead was the first thing I thought of too.
I actually though the Re-Make was better than the original. The original was not scary, it was campy and cheap. The re-make was very well done and scary. I loved the little baby that turned into a zombie.
The ending was a bit scary right???
Was this firsthand or hearsay?
Here we are in "Lord of the Flies" territory again.
My nephew is a New Orleans policeman, please pray for him. He is a very good guy not a looter I do not know the circumstances of those officers who were recorded looting, was it food and water or were they taking TVs and DVDs?
Modern day Marshal Law isn't so marshal. Wait till the bodies really start piling up and half the city is in flames, then those same liberals will be begging for some government control, regardless of the cost.
Was the Tulane Medical Center story ever verified?
I saw photos on FOX and I swear, some of those on the bridge waiting for help were looters from Monday and Tuesday. Just what we need in Texas.
I will gladly take in a family or 2 to help them have a home for awhile, FREEPER or not, but... how do we know the good from the bad?
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