Posted on 09/02/2005 2:22:21 PM PDT by joinedafterattack
Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco said that it was President Bush that had called and urged the state to order the evacuation.
New Orleans orders evacuation Hurricane Katrina's winds nearly 175 mph
Sunday, August 28, 2005; Posted: 11:47 a.m. EDT (15:47 GMT)
NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (CNN) -- New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin declared a state of emergency on Sunday and ordered a mandatory evacuation of the city as Hurricane Katrina churned toward the city with maximum sustained winds of nearly 175 mph.
All of Orleans Parish falls under the order except for necessary personnel in government, emergency and some other public service categories.
People who are unable to evacuate were told to immediately report to a designated shelter.
"I wish I had better news for you, but we are facing a storm that most of us have feared," Nagin said. "I do not want to create panic, but I do want the citizens to understand that this is very serious and it's of the highest nature."
Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco said that President Bush had called and urged the state to order the evacuation.
About 485,000 people live in the city, and many began evacuating before sunrise.
Blanco said that westbound traffic was heavy and that the state police was urging people to travel to the north or east.
Shelters have been set up at 10 sites, including the Superdome, for people who cannot leave the city for medical or other reasons, but Nagin said they should be used only as a "last resort." (See video from New Orleans, where not all are ready to leave)
He said people who must stay in the shelter should bring enough food, water and supplies to last several days.
The National Hurricane Center in Miami said low-lying areas along the Gulf Coast could expect storm surges of up to 25 feet as the Category 5 storm makes landfall early Monday.
Officials fear New Orleans is vulnerable because it sits an average of 6 feet below sea level. (Watch video of how New Orleans reacted to warning)
Nagin said the storm surge would likely topple the levy system that protects the city.
"It has the potential for a large loss of life," said Max Mayfield, director of the NHC. (Watch CNN meteorologist explain storm outlook)
Katrina is blamed for at least seven deaths in Florida, where it made landfall Thursday as a Category 1 hurricane. As much as 18 inches of rain fell in some areas, flooding streets and homes. (See video of the damage floodwaters left in one family's new house)
At 10 a.m. ET, Katrina was centered about 225 miles south-southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River. It was moving to the west-northwest at about 12 mph.
NHC forecaster Ed Rappaport said Katrina's strength could fluctuate before it reaches shore but noted the difference between a high Category 4 and a low Category 5 was practically inconsequential.
"There will be extensive to potentially catastrophic damage to many structures ... and inland," he said. "We'll have a lot of trees that are going to come down, perhaps millions of trees. But the first threat is going to be the storm surge. You must get away from the coast now."
By 8:30 a.m. ET, the first bands of rain were falling over southeastern Louisiana.
CNN meteorologist Brad Huffines said the Katrina would come ashore "sometime between 5 a.m. and 8 a.m." Monday.
"The news doesn't get good, unfortunately," he said. "These rain showers will slow down the evacuation process, and that means you need to hit the road quickly, very quickly."
Worst-case scenario In worst-case scenarios, most of New Orleans would end up under 15 feet of water, without electricity, clean water and sewage for months. Even pumping the water out could take as long as four months to get started because the massive pumps that would do the job would be underwater.
"People in New Orleans tend to think that the storm we've always planned on would never come," Louisiana National Guard Lt. Col. Pete Schneider said. "But people need to heed that warning."
Rappaport cautioned that New Orleans was not the only area threatened -- the storm's hurricane winds spread out as far as 100 miles. As far east as Mobile, Alabama, forecasters warned of storm surges reaching 8 to 10 feet.
Hurricane warnings were posted from Morgan City, Louisiana, eastward to the Alabama-Florida state line, including New Orleans and Lake Pontchartrain. A hurricane warning means hurricane conditions, including winds of at least 74 mph, are expected in the warning area within the next 24 hours.
A tropical storm warning and a hurricane watch were issued from the Alabama-Florida state line eastward to Destin, Florida, and from west of Morgan City to Intracoastal City, Louisiana. Another tropical storm warning was issued Sunday from Intracoastal City, Louisiana, west to Cameron, Louisiana, and from Destin, Florida, eastward to Indian Pass, Florida.
A tropical storm warning means tropical storm conditions, including winds of at least 39 mph, are expected within 24 hours. A hurricane watch means hurricane conditions are possible, usually within 36 hours.
Governors of both Louisiana and Mississippi declared emergencies Friday in anticipation of the strengthening storm.
Robert Latham, director of the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency, said the state was recommending evacuations along the coast "and even several counties inland." Mandatory evacuations could follow later, he said.
Category 5 is the highest category on the Saffir-Simpson scale of hurricane intensity. Only three Category 5 hurricanes have made landfall in the United States since records were kept. Those were the Labor Day hurricane of 1935, 1969's Hurricane Camille and Hurricane Andrew, which devastated the Miami area in 1992. Andrew remains the costliest U.S. hurricane on record, with $26.5 billion in losses.
Camille came ashore in Mississippi and killed 256 people.
Oil production cut U.S. energy companies said U.S. Gulf of Mexico crude oil output was cut by more than one-third on Saturday due to the threatening storm, Reuters reported.
The Gulf of Mexico is home to roughly a quarter of U.S. domestic oil and gas output, with a capacity to produce about 1.5 million barrels per day of crude and 12.3 billion cubic feet per day of gas. (Full story)
Many oil platforms and rigs in the Gulf of Mexico have been evacuated. ((Watch the video of drilling crews securing rigs and seeking safety.)
CNN's David Mattingly, Susan Candiotti, Jacqui Jeras and Rob Marciano contributed to this report.
The most important story I've seen all day.
Don't expect the MSM and the Democrats saying much about it. It's all Bush fault.
In Pensacola during the last year we have learned some very hard lessons. One of those facts is that unless you leave at least three days before the storm hits you have a very good chance of being stuck on he highway, The gas stations don't carry enough gas for mass evacuations.If those buses had been caught out on the highway during the storm the occupants would have been in grave peril.
There is no excuse for FEMA's failure to airdrop food and water into New Orleans. The administration is criminally negligent for their failures.
The only bright spot the Federal Governments response to the disaster is in the Department of Transportation. By Wednesday they were convoying huge concrete bridge beams toward New Orleans. They were able to find the materials and organize the convoys within two days but FEMA couldn't even manage to ask the Army to airdrop food and water.
That is criminal negligence.
You win! CNN has reposted the linked story saying "New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin declared a state of emergency Sunday and ordered a mandatory evacuation of the city."
http://www.cnn.com/2005/WEATHER/08/28/hurricane.katrina/?section=cnn_topstories
bttt
No real plan or attempt to evacuate the poor or anyone else.
bttt
Why would a city that no longer exists need an incompetent Mayor?
He should do everyone a favor and just disappear.
Great find.
FREEPERS ROCK!!!!
From the link lapsus calami provided in #104:
"Nagin said late Saturday that he's having his legal staff look into whether he can order a mandatory evacuation of the city, a step he's been hesitant to do because of potential liability on the part of the city for closing hotels and other businesses"
Drives me crazy every time I see the buses under water but...
They would have complained they were not air-conditioned just like the woman complaining she didn't have a hot meal in the Superdome. In the dark!
Nagin is in big trouble himself. I think that's why he's ranting about everyone else letting him down.
Bush: Move to 'Safe Ground'
Nagin exempted hotels from the evacuation order because airlines have already canceled all flights.
Gov. Blanco said President George W. Bush called and personally appealed for a mandatory evacuation for the low-lying city, which is prone to flooding.
Speaking Sunday, Bush said that he "cannot stress enough the dangers this hurricane poses to Gulf Coast communities."
"I urge all citizens to put their own safety and the safety of their families first by moving to safe ground," he said.
WDSU meteorologist Dan Thomas said the dangers from the hurricane cannot be overstated.
"I've told some people in the newsroom, I think this is going to be the scariest moment of your life," he said.
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/083005Q.shtml (bottom of page)
It was Sunday. You can go back in the Katrina threads and see everyone who was posting about this mayor and governor getting people killed because of their inaction.
Definitely impossible if you don't try. But that's not the point. Can you get all out who couldn't on their own? No, but you could get some. What is it with this all or none mindset?
The problem wasn't with "governors" it was with THE LA Governor and THE N.O. Mayor.
I didn't get to see it, but I hope he reamed both of them a new one. They killed many of their own citizens. He's taking the heat for it. They'll be lucky if an ass chewing is all they get. At the very least, they deserve to be driven from public office as political lepers.
Bump for a Bush "I told you so"
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