Katrina

brammy · Post by **brammy** » Sun Sep 04, 2005 5:52 pm

Well said, Harley.

atomic_punk · Post by **atomic_punk** » Sun Sep 04, 2005 6:16 pm

Can I ask a question here, and keep in mind, my family was in Ocean Springs, MS when Hurricane Camille hit and my father stupidly ignored the repeated "Evacuate Now!" warnings and took us to the beach to watch people SURFING on the waves?

My question is, how could all of these people still be there when the authorities were allegedly begging them to evacuate? When I look back on the Florida hurricanes of the past few years, the roads were flooded with people going North and the casualties were very low.

I feel extreme sadness when I hear these stories of, well, basically, Thunderdome kind of conditions, people just fighting to survive, people taking advantage of others' misfortune, the conditions in the Superdome, it just tears me up. I might have missed something here, but why was there so little evacuation?

And the reaction of the government was about 3 days too late, in my opinion. It was known that the hurricane was going to hit, readiness procedures should have already been thought of for a worst-case scenario.

brammy · Post by **brammy** » Sun Sep 04, 2005 7:00 pm

Well, we all saw the interviews with the people who were partying on Bourbon street just hours before it hit. At the time I pointed them out to my son and tried to make some "lesson" about it telling him that those were the kind of people who will wind up in the morgue.

It happens every time. Maybe they are adrenaline junkies, maybe they are drunk, or maybe they are just plain stupid or have suicidal tendencies, but the general theme that I've picked up is that NONE of those people who stay behind have ever experienced a hurricane first hand. If they had, they'd be on the road. The most important thing they suffer from is inexperience.

stubby · Post by **stubby** » Sun Sep 04, 2005 7:22 pm

Or, maybe they have nowhere to evacuate to or the resources to get to that nowhere? Relatively easy to evacuate your home when you have an insurance policy and a nest egg in the bank. Maybe they weighed their options and thought that the risks of possible catastrophe were worth betting on vs. the alternatives? But what do I know? Either way, I hate to hear people suffering, period.

brammy · Post by **brammy** » Sun Sep 04, 2005 8:20 pm

Lots of people had nowhere to evacuate to. Thats still no excuse for sitting still in the face of a Cat 5 barreling down on you. Its especially no excuse for exposing kids to that immediate danger. But what do I know? Either way, I too hate to hear people suffering.

wmthor · Post by **wmthor** » Sun Sep 04, 2005 11:38 pm

In my opinion there are basically two answers to Steve's question, "...how could all of these people still be there when the authorities were allegedly begging them to evacuate?"

First, the official state & local plans for evacuation was based upon private transportation. No public and/or mass transit was used last Saturday (Aug 27) or Sunday (Aug 28). Many did not have access to transportation.

The second reason is what I would best describe as the “Camille Syndrome”. I know of four people on the Mississippi Gulf Coast who told me "since their home survived Camille, it could survive any hurricane." One evacuated because his wife was going to leave with or without him, another is confirmed dead, and we haven’t heard from the other two.

ozover50 · Post by **ozover50** » Mon Sep 05, 2005 4:52 am

Crikey, RCB. I'm truly sorry to hear that..... we don't know each other from a bar of soap, but my thoughts and best wishes are with you.

harley · Post by **harley** » Mon Sep 05, 2005 5:31 am

Two other reasons that people don't evacuate are that they believe it can't really be that bad PLUS if they leave without their stuff, their stuff won't be there when they get back.

There is a government computer facility in Slidell, Louisiana and it used to get shut down at least once every couple of years in anticipation of a hurricane. I've worked with the people down there for the last ten years. They've had flooding before but never anything approaching this kind of devastation. After evacuating a couple of times with limited damage, people naturally begin to believe that the potential disaster is "over-stated".

As for the looting, even if it is as bad as people think it can be, if my family and I survive the storm, we can always get more stuff. Some of the people in New Orleans are not financially positioned to replace the accumulations of a lifetime.

It's kind of ironic to think that two of the main reasons for these problems are the optimism that "it can't happen to us" and the pessimism of "if I'm gone, the thieves will clean me out".

From what I've heard, the vast majority of the people who work in the facility I mentioned have been accounted for. The workforce was made up of people who lived in New Orleans and all along the gulf coast area hit by Katrina. I pray that we didn't lose anyone.

wayang · Post by **wayang** » Mon Sep 19, 2005 6:33 am

Well, I have yet to verify this, but I just heard some additional very bad Katrina-related news...perhaps someone else can confirm or deny this...I was told by a friend last night that Clarence Gatemouth Brown was among the evacuees from New Orleans, but that he died of a heart attack, either in transit or after reaching Texas.

If this is true, I'm further enraged by the fact that I haven't heard a word in the mainstream media about this...Do any of you folks know anything about this?

I got to see him live just once, and it was a show I will never forget...

kevin · Post by **kevin** » Mon Sep 19, 2005 7:01 am

I did hear that a few times on a couple of different radio stations last week, so I'm guessing it's true.

jingle_jangle · Post by **jingle_jangle** » Mon Sep 19, 2005 7:57 am

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/metropolitan/3358531

winston · Post by **winston** » Mon Sep 19, 2005 8:16 am

Clarence Gatemouth Brown was a national treasure. He will be sorely missed

brammy · Post by **brammy** » Mon Sep 19, 2005 5:33 pm

This is from late Monday ... please say it aint so.

winston · Post by **winston** » Mon Sep 19, 2005 5:39 pm

Unfortunately Florida Keys is currently bracing for a Cat 1

wmthor · Post by **wmthor** » Tue Sep 20, 2005 1:53 am

I'm watching Rita very carefully.