How can there still be 200,000-300,000 people in NO? I heard they evacuated 80% of the people BEFORE the storm. That would mean only about 100,000 didn't evacuate.
That number scared the bejeezus out of me as well. I have NO IDEA where WWLTV got that #.
Jefferson Parish and Orleans Parish each had a population of almost 500,000, with about 100,000 more in St. Bernard and Plaquemines Parishes combined. More than 1 million residents. Jefferson Parish estimated that somewhere between 200-300,000 of their residents didn't evacuate. Add in Orleans and the other parishes and there is a good chance that 500,000 rode out the hurricane down there. Afterwards a good number may have been able to get out on their own before the Tuesday levee break, and the areas south of the river(the West Bank) pretty much didn't have the massive flooding. But 200,000 remaining to be evacuated could certainly be possible.