[skr]

I understand that the school buses don't have lavatories (neither do cars, Mr. Nagin), which is one of the reasons he gave for not using them, but what a stupid waste of gasoline to bring in Greyhounds when buses are already in the vicinity. If you don't know whose fault it is that the National Guard wasn't available as drivers by now, Mr. Mayor, you certainly don't need to be in charge of a city. If an 18 year-old who didn't know how to drive a bus managed to anyway, how is it there weren't any other evacuees who were capable?

[NoControllingLegalAuthority]

The mayor or governor could easily have called for volunteer bus drivers in radio and TV announcements. The buses need only have been driven seventy-nine miles to waiting shelters in Baton Rouge. They could have been shuttled back and forth 24 hours a day and easily have taken tens of thousands to safety.

What was missing was common sense and presence of mind of leadership in a time of crisis. The mayor and governor were demonstrably too emotional to lead an evacuation. We saw video of a crying governor and a cussing mayor, both wringing their hands and demanding somebody (else) do something.

Time and time again throughout history, those who remained calm in a crisis are the ones who have saved lives and provided leadership.

[Muzzle_em]

How would HE have the authority to ORDER a PRIVATE company to bring in their busses to evacuate his city rather than order the resources for which HE IS in charge to be used?
What an idiot!

[Paleo Conservative]

I understand that the school buses don't have lavatories (neither do cars, Mr. Nagin), which is one of the reasons he gave for not using them, but what a stupid waste of gasoline to bring in Greyhounds when buses are already in the vicinity. If you don't know whose fault it is that the National Guard wasn't available as drivers by now, Mr. Mayor, you certainly don't need to be in charge of a city. If an 18 year-old who didn't know how to drive a bus managed to anyway, how is it there weren't any other evacuees who were capable?

I think they solved that problem by making several fuel/restroom stops. In fact, due to the shorter range of that shool bus compared to a Greyhound, they had to make three fuel stops along the way to the Houston Astrodome.

Nagin should not be let off the hook about the buses being under water. The New Orleans evacuation plan specifically called for their use, and so did the Louisiana state evacuation plan.

Blanco is the one most at fault. She would not order a mandatory evacuation till it was too late to do one. It's too bad the mayor of NO didn't have the authority to begin a recommended or optional evacuation 48 hours before land fall. If people who wanted to leave had been given that option, then the late mandatory evactuation order would not have been as big a problem.

[HairOfTheDog]

I understand that the school buses don't have lavatories (neither do cars, Mr. Nagin),

Neither did the Superdome or the convention center.