"What I'm hearing which is sort of scary is that they all want to stay in Texas. Everybody is so overwhelmed by the hospitality. And so many of the people in the arena here, you know, were underprivileged anyway so this (chuckle) this is working very well for them." Former First Lady Barbara Bush, on the hurricane evacuees at the Astrodome in Houston, Sept. 5, 2005 (Source)
Effect of Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans 911review From Wikipedia new orleans flood maps worst disaster in US photos Katrina What really happened at the Danziger Bridge ? FEMA and the levee systems Kathryn Cramer More about the levee systems and Hurricane Katrina FEMA, the government, levee's reponse and failures at all levels Prejudices and issues of race, class and color HURRICANE KATRINA storm images and weather maps
Hurricane Katrina hit the New Orleans area on August 27th-28th 2005. There was a large scale devastation, some have said it was the worst natural disaster in the history of America As it approached, the storm grew in strength from a catagory 3 to a catagory 5 hurricane overnight. This was the worst flooding ever recorded in New Orleans. These storms are not newcomers for New Orleans, but nothing could have prepared us for this catastrophe. HOWEVER, for 30 years there has been talk of how New Orleans is a bowl, mostly below sea-level (see MAP)
The Bush administration had previously denied a request for 60 million dollars to strengthen the levies. New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin and several other parish and local officials pleaded for help, many before the storm hit. By Wednesday, many were angry, and rightly so. FEMA had not sent any provisions, and had said that they hadnt received a "formal request". Though many officials had pleaded for help publicly for days. Aaron Brousard was heard saying that the Red Cross was not even welcome (they had not shown up for several days) It would be several days before government help arrived, even though it was asked for before the hurricane even hit. I had stayed for the storm at my residence in Kenner. Though the wind was bad, it did not flood until over 24 hours after the hurricane had passed.
In New Orleans, it was much worse and the water rose. It continued to flood the city for days. The pumping stations that pump the water out of the city were not manned. The workers were evacuated for safety, then brought back in. Many have said that they arrived much too late. Several levee's broke sending water into the city. Some had thought that the worst was over, only to find their homes flooded days later. The Canadian Royal Mounted Police were on the scene in St. Bernard the day after the storm hit. 1 week later FEMA arrived St. Bernard is one of the most populated areas affected, and is also one of the areas which flooded the most. House speaker Dennis Hastert had said suggested that New Orleans not be rebuilt, this sent residents and officials up in arms. Governor Blanco demanded and apology. A week after the hurricane, the California HWY patrol, and law enforcement from around the U.s. were in charge of much of the city streets.
Before the hurricane hit, the mayor (Ray Nagin) had wanted to announce a forced evacuation, but did not right away. Though he did at some point, still before the storm hit. (story coming) The only form of communications working in the whole metro area was 1 radio station Parish officials came on the radio condemning people for not leaving when asked 10's of thousands of people had to be evacuated
Many people could not leave because they did not have the money for hotels which they would have to stay at for months Many had no transportation, and no options were available to them at the time. In Jefferson, parish president Broussard said that he would let people in even though the local department of homeland security advised otherwise. The re-entry dates were set to Monday through Thursday from 6 am to 6 pm. (sept 4-8th) Those caught after 6 pm will be believed to be looters and arrested. Many people do not have radios, and since electricity was out, did not hear this announcement After this time, people MUST leave, and can not re-enter the parish for 3 weeks. This comes at the time that Home Depot, Wall Mart and other businesses are re-opening for business, and many points of the city are getting electricity back.
There have been numerous reports from officials and media stating that people may NOT re-enter once they have left. This has caused confusion and frustration. Many people want to return to their homes. With reports of looting, they are scared their homes have been broken into. Jefferson sheriff Harry Lee said that anyone who was in Jefferson was "in the way".
The first reports were that no one could come back until power and water were restored.
supposedly about 1 month. Then reports were on the media and from ___ that people would be let back in on Monday Sept 5th (5 days after the storm) This was to be for people to come in and assess the damage to their homes then to leave the same day. We were told we MUST leave the same day, though there was no mention of how we would be tracked. Then (Wednesday) over the only radio channel available, we were told that this was a mistake, and that no one could enter the city until further notice. Then on Thursday, we were told again that we could re-enter the city, though, it was unclear as to when and what ID was needed.
a neighbor told me that his brother tried to get through to bring him supplies, but he was turned back and could not enter. There are very few roads to enter New Orleans. (see MAP) Though Governor Blanco stated that looting would not be tolerated, there were no police or national guard on the street that i saw during the 3 days I was there. Many radio callers wer trying to get back into the city to get friends and family, to donate food and water, or to provide assistance and were not let into the city
I was appalled when i found out i could not re-enter the city after i had endured the storm, and the first 3 days. I had gas and food, but had to leave to look for my mother whom i hadn't heard from. Since phone lines were not existent, i needed to drive to find her. (i did later find out that she was safe) I spoke with many others in Baton Rouge who felt the same way. I had left my dog behind, and needed to go back to get her, once i secured a place to stay outside of New Orleans. Luckily for me, i had friends who were nice enough to help, most were not so fortunate. Since i saw no law enforcement while in the city, i was wondering where the thousands of military and national guard were, and why they were brought in. It would seem to make much more sense to let people in to secure their own property, than to send military in.
Thousands of military people consume resources like food, water and electricity that could be used by residents, instead of outsiders. I will refer to police and others and "emergency services" from here out Emergency services have "commandeered" food, electricity, Deisel, and anything they wanted, from wherever they wanted There was no ability to say "NO". If they wanted it, they took it, they had machine guns. All emergency services took their orders from DHS (department of Homeland Security). I had a police scanner during the disaster, and heard state police say they were treated like "step-children", and that they were to provide security for FEMA, but then were not needed. I have lived in different sections of the New Orleans area for my 43 years.
I have gone through several large storms, and local police, fire, hospitals and others have worked together on hurricanes before These people know how to work together and know the area. there is now an "extra step", that being Homeland security, and FEMA whom local have to take their directions from.
My personal experience when i left the city on Wednesday (3 days after the storm) was that people that did not leave were walking the streets into the neighborhoods. I did not want to leave, but had to find my mother. communications were totally down for landlines and cell phones. Monday: Jefferson parish residents can NOT enter into Jefferson Parish, as per the local news and, as per Aaron Broussard, re-entry will be Mon Tue and Wed (Sept 5-8) Residents must have ID with Jefferson or Orleans address
Power was out for the whole metro area for a prolonged time. Backup Generators were used for the hospitals, Aaron Brousard (Jefferson Mayor) said that FEMA had deisel, but were not releasing it. He did not know why Gasoline was at a shortage in many outlying areas, and price gouging went to $6 a gallon
Gasoline was not available in any of the effected areas, which was most of New Orleans. People had to drive almost 100 miles to get gas in some cases. Gas is reported to be "commandeered" by emergency services by the Washington Parish Mayor Power
Laplace is a city on the outskirts of Greater New Orleans, and one person reported that a state policeman told them that the power grid was "commandeered" for emergency services , when she asked why the City of Laplace was still dark. Laplace suffered very little damage comparatively
The bridge which connects New Orleans to the west bank was one of the first structures to get power. The "Crescent City Connection" had lights, though no one could use it to drive on.
Fires several fires broke out in the downtown area, and on the westbank of the Mississippi. An Entergy representative said that these were not due to gas leaks New Orleans fire department has stated that the fires WERE due to gas leaks though. Over 350 NYFD firefighters (New York Fire Department) were on the scene as well. One fire took place behind the New Orleans Fire Department supply shop
Water toxicity the Media has called the standing water a "toxic soup", stating that disease outbreaks could be a severe problem. Gasoline, oil, lead, and fecal matter have been found in water quality tests. The CDC publicly stated that there were no immediate threats to heath associated with disease. Outlying areas such as St. Bernard are industrial, and many chemical and petroleum plants were under water. The center for disease control stated that fecal matter was 10x the acceptable level and lead levels are also high. 4 people have died association with bacterial infections.
click for large... 17th st levee break no barge
"I don't want to alarm everybody that, you know, New Orleans is filling up like a bowl. That's just not happening." ?Sen. David Vitter (R-LA), in a press briefing from Baton Rouge, Aug. 30, 2005
The dead Thousands of dead bodies lie unattended, emergency personnel are tying them to stop signs and light poles in order to pick them up at a later time. Many of the bodies were swept into the lake or river and may never be found Emergency personnel are going house by house in New Orleans and St. Bernard, finding carcases in homes, schools and other buildings. They mark the building with the number of people they have found dead and alive In St. Gabrial they have setup a temporary center to identify the dead. They are using fingerprints, dental records, DNA and other methods. Thousands may never be identified, or accounted for. Refrigeration trucks and temporary morgues are setup on site. about 1000 people a day are being found (FEMA) as of Sept 7th.
Several levee's broke releasing waters that flooded New Orleans. The 17th st canal which separated New Orleans and Metairie broke on the New Orleans side. These breaks flooded the city, and reports said that it would be 30 days after the breaks were fixed, before they could pump the water out. Other breaks were at the industrial canal near the Mississippi river, and also near Lake Ponchartrain
17th street "blocking the water from the lake" 7000lb sand bags, built a road to get closer to the breach. also large pieces of concrete and more metal sheeting
First let me apologize for my writing skills, and not having all of the links to the quotes here Read on and you will understand why. I will bring you through every detail of the experience, so this may be lengthy. To prepare you, the experience has to do more with what happened after, this is the real disaster.
I live in Kenner, while this area did not receive as much attention, it was inundated with water. Kenner is part of greater New Orleans on the west side. Let me start from the day the hurricane hit, or actually a day before. The day before the storm hit, it was a category 3 hurricane. New Orleans has seen quite a few of them. Overnight, the storm went from a category 3 to a category 5. All day Saturday, people scrambled to get out of the city. I stayed in my home which is a solidly built brick house, and had never had flooded. There were high winds for a few hours, it lasted longer than other storms i have been through. There was no serious damage to my home, but after the winds stopped, the water started to rise. The power went out during the storm, and the water soon after.
ABout 24 hours after the hurricane was over, it started to flood. For the first few hours, the water stayed at the sidewalk area, but then started to rise. Radio reports informed me that the people who manned the generators and pumps were evacuated. They had to be flown back in to get to the pumps. I have never heard of this happening before. Some emergency personnel had volunteered to work the pumps, but were refused because they were not certified. The waters continued to rise, even though the wind and rain had subdued hours before.
About an inch of water entered my home, and i slept on the couch, I had to leave the front and back doors open becuase of the heat. The first night (before the water rose) wasnt that bad, there was a crosswind, and it was about 75-80 degrees. I had put the front wheels of my car on stands, but i only had 2 stands for my front wheels, the back of my car was starting to get water, so i tried to use a jack stand to raise it. It was dark, and i wasn't able to get it to work. The cars computers were on the floorboard, so I took them out, and opened them up, I had to work by candle light, drying the electronics with the candle. I couldn't get to the one under the seat, and when i was able to get in my car and start it, the seat moved forward and crushed me against the steering wheel. Good thing I also have a jeep which was high enough to stay out of the water. This may all sound insignificant, but at the time, it was what was needed. My 94 jaguar was more dependable and carried more fuel than the jeep, it had air conditioning, my jeep did not. My phone service only worked sporadically at best, and I didnt know if my mother was OK. She was my first priority.
I knew where my mother was, but could not contact her, so I feared the worst, and wanted to get to her. I had to wait for the water to go down before i could leave though, it took about 24 hours. During that time, i was able to find an old police/fire scanner and passed my time that way. I had an old 12v battery from a security system, and was able to get the scanner to work. I just had to charge the batteries by using battery (jumper) cables. The first thing I heard was a state trouper complaining that they were being treated like step children.
I learned that FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security were running the show. There were several emergency personnel who sounded frustrated.
The trouper said he was there to provide security, but then he wasnt needed and told to leave. He sounded like he didnt know where to go, or what to do. From my prior experiences, this had never happened before the Department of Homeland Security was charge.
Monday I walked around taking pictures of the the damage. I walked to Loyola and West Esplenade (a few blocks) and saw only 1 military type vehicle, and no one on the street. It was a war zone. It looked like the B-52's carpet bombed the whole city. I was up to my waist in water while on the sidewalk. It was time to wait. I spent some time getting a suntan on my roof, it was cooler there, the house smelled and was hot. I knew i wouldn't be able to stand the smell another night, so i took a knife and started to cut carpet. I took as much as I could out, at least from the living room, where I had been sleeping on the couch.
I watched a military vehicle (deuce and 1/2) as well as airboats go down the main street (Loyola Dr.) near my house. I had no radio, but relied on my neighbor, who is retired and somewhat disabled for news updates. It was at least 90 degrees the second night, the water stopped moving started to smell.
"And in all fairness to the Department of Homeland Security right now, I mean this is a brand new Department that was formed after 9/11. In many ways this is a 'learn by our mistakes and figure out what to do better' type of scenario." -CNN anchor Kyra Phillips, Sept. 9, 2005
Govenor Blanco Speaking on security and prisons, mentioned the people who were arrested at this time were being put into a new prison or holding facility at an undisclosed location (for security reasons) - state trouper She also asked that they "ramp up" military presence" and the "National guard will answer to her" "people are feeling the military presence, and its safe at night,though there are still grave concerns"
The Senate approved some 10 Billion (Blanco sept 9th) "The President said he would give us anything we needed" Gov Blanco said she "requested soldiers" General (un-named) said that the request was NOT MADE Gov Blanco sent a letter to Pres Bush about non profit org's, for education and housing but did not know that there were still people on the interstate (waiting to be transported) "she was asked about body counts and could not respond"
(Washington Parish President)?Toye? Taylor, quoted as saying... "our government cant do it, private industry will be our salvation" signed executive order that "Fuel could NOT BE SOLD" in Washington parish Federal Gov 48hrs after the storm hit were "ramping up to help" "over 50% of homes not inhabitable" "not 1 bag of ice has been delivered" "Very little FEMA response" "Didnt know red cross needed anything" (Red Cross to Wash parish president) thought there were FEMA reps there. "If its spotted, it is commandeered and taken" "the poor people are taking the brunt of this storm" (speaking about emergency operations taking food and supplies for New Orleans, and other areas) "we are 100% without power" spoke of his brother not having food or gasoline, (broke into tears)
45,000 people in Washington parish + 1000 evacuees "Our Federal Government can not help"
We are asking the world, our government cant do it (Garland Robinette)
"the New Orleans Police evacuated, they picked up and left" from a Baton Rouge police officer I spoke with
Aaron Brousand says... "we are on target, we are committed to a re-entry plan for labor day sept 5th" "electricity is not coming for 4-6 weeks" "were going back to the days of the ol patrol boys, the street lights are not working" "we will let you know what type of ID you will need to provide for re-entry" "If you don't have ID's you will have to wait till thursday." "the interstate highways are to be used only for police, security and to get refugees out" FEMA has a presence and are monitoring everything coming into Jefferson Parish. "I welcome everything that comes to us without remorse"
Phil Capitano (Kenner Mayor) remarks... "all of our main thoroughfares are cleaned up" "we have electricity on Williams Blvd" "as far as the state and national assistance, we haven't received it, we did it ourselves" "our contractor came in 12 hrs after the storm" "today the Salvation Army rode in" (Sept 2nd) "We followed the leadership of the parish, he (Arron Brousard) declared Marshall Law." "You cant even go to Mc Donald's, i dont know what they would come back to" as far as I know we are coming back on Monday" "75% of kenner was underwater" "as long as the water wants to go out of there, they are letting it out" (Blanco)
Bush and Government leaders "i understand the devastation requires more than 1 days attention" The President asked for 60 million in flood protection levies were requested but denied by the Bush administration in the years preceding the storm. The reason given was that the money was needed for Homeland Security, and the war on Iraq. the people of the world... we just came from the 17th st ummm levee, the people from the gov are working to fill that breach, they are telling me how important it is to fill that breach. i am gonna fly out here in a minute, but i will not forget what ive seen. "i belive the great city of new Orleans will rise again" if you wanna help , contribute cash, to the Salvation Army and the Red Cross. ( We have seen neither... sept 02 2005)
Condolessa Rice had told Mexico's President Fox not to come to New Orleans due to security concerns.(Sept 8th) Maps... gismaps.fema.gov
"What didn't go right?" -President Bush, as quoted by House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), after she urged him to fire FEMA Director Michael Brown "because of all that went wrong, of all that didn't go right" in the Hurricane Katrina relief effort
"I don't think anybody anticipated the breach of the levees." -President Bush, on "Good Morning America," Sept. 1, 2005, six days after repeated warnings from experts about the scope of damage expected from Hurricane Katrina
What is not explained by the transcripts is what the White House actually did apart from express concern. Some observers point to the damning fact that Mr Chertoff, just 12 hours before Katrina struck, went to Atlanta for a bird flu conference.
In the 48 hours before Hurricane Katrina hit, the White House received detailed warnings about the storm's likely impact, including eerily prescient predictions of breached levees, massive flooding, and major losses of life and property, documents show. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/23/AR2006012301711.html A DAY before Hurricane Katrina struck President George Bush and his Homeland Security chief, Michael Chertoff, were warned in a special video briefing that the New Orleans levees could be breached and if that happened, the consequences would be devastating. Mr Bush was still on holiday at his ranch in Texas when he received the briefing from Federal Emergency Management Authority officials. According to a video obtained by the Associated Press, he did not ask a single question during the briefing. Instead, he assured the officials that the federal government was ready to move if Katrina caused a breach of the levees. "I'm concerned about their [disaster teams] ability to respond to a catastrophe within a catastrophe," Mr Brown told Mr Bush and Mr Chertoff on the afternoon before Katrina made landfall. http://tinyurl.com/zsh5g
This was a familiar scene on the outskirts of the city. Since there were a million people plus, that had left New Orleans to nearby areas, the businesses there like gas, and food were in high demand. Lines of people formed just to shop for food NOTE: as of August 2006, there is still a larger line than normal at most shopping centers, banks , and many businesses. The city of New Orleans, is less than %50 back I have recently driven through parts of the city, where i would go for miles and see no one, except an occasional worker picking up debris.
There is something called the Road home project which sould help most people Though it is not currently giving grants to small business. All i can receive for my New Orleans based business, is a grant (with interest) from the SBA My opinion, is that this will be a HUGE impediment to growth in the area. I may decide to take my business and move elsewhere, even though i love this city !