Katrina

[catscradle]

I've lived in New Orleans for 2 years between '97-'99. Lived through, what at the time was considered an extremely active hurricane season. Seems like pretty small potatoes compared to the 2004 and 2005 seasons. I'm reading the reports on the devistation that is currently Lake New Orleans. The water is still rising and it's heavily contaminated. Though there hasn't been a preliminary release of the death count, the Mayor sounds grim. At least 300,000 people did not evacuate. Only 25,000 of those took shelter in the Super Dome.

I keep seeing in news article that many people "refused" to evacuate. Some did, sure. But if you understand the extreme poverty of that city, you know that many could not evacuate. It nice that there's a mandate to evacuate the city. It'd be even nicer to supply those without their own vehicles transportation out.

I have a lot of friends in the city. Most of them would have the means to get out. I'm hoping they were smart enough to do so. But then I think of the street buskers and the local color I daily passed by on my way to work or a night out in the French Quater...

Everytime I see the news I just cry.

Got double pay this week for my old job and the new one. I think I'll be heading to the stores to put together care packages for the survivors.

Comments

[babaca.livejournal.com]

I know that places like retirement homes loaded up residents on buses and took them to higher ground, but yes, it would have been nice if Greyhound volunteered to take the citizens out of the city as part of the mandatory evaculation. Most folks had to rent cars, which were all gone as soon as the announcement to leave was made.

Maybe in the future when things like this happen someone in the city will reevaluate how to get those who didn't have the means to get out a way to get out.

[catscradle.livejournal.com]

I think the bottom line was how much would it cost them later. I've never heard of a city actually provided a way out for people unless they were infirmed.

[zafiro-v.livejournal.com]

But if you understand the extreme poverty of that city, you know that many could not evacuate. It nice that there's a mandate to evacuate the city. It'd be even nicer to supply those without their own vehicles transportation out.

I noticed in the newspaper, those who had not evacuated seemed to be poor people...

I was thinking of you while I read the news. I know you don't live there anymore but it brought memories of the past. It's terrible to see a city flooded like that.

[catscradle.livejournal.com]

Yeah, it was :( I'm still numb about it.

[zafiro-v.livejournal.com]

((hugs)) Poor people and poor city...