On Saturday Morning the Mayor called for an evacuation and by Sunday morning the evacuation was mandatory.
On Saturday Morning the Mayor called for an evacuation and by Sunday morning the evacuation was mandatory Ok, conceeded. But then there was this too:
Mayor Nagin issued a voluntary evacuation request late in the day on August 27. He was hesitant to order a mandatory evacuation
because of concerns about the city's liability for closing hotels and other businesses. [6] Saturday, the President also issued a statement that an emergency existed for the State of Louisiana.
It's like the local officials couldn't do anything without being prodded first by Washington.