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Author Topic:   Hurricane Katrina
berberry
Inactive Member


Message 1 of 315 (237933)
08-28-2005 7:40 AM


This storm is scaring the hell out of me. It was just upgraded to a cat 5. I can't remember when the last cat 5 hit the Gulf Coast (have we had one since Camille?). If this thing doesn't weaken but does plow straight into New Orleans the way forecasters seem to be expecting (the Weather Channel has been using phrases like "the greatest nightmare New Orleans could ever imagine" and "forecasters worst fears are being realized"), this could be one of the greatest weather disasters ever in this part of the country.
New Orleans is a city close to my heart. I'm very worried.

Replies to this message:
 Message 2 by RAZD, posted 08-28-2005 7:49 AM berberry has replied
 Message 5 by Modulous, posted 08-28-2005 10:45 AM berberry has replied
 Message 6 by roxrkool, posted 08-28-2005 10:52 AM berberry has not replied
 Message 13 by jar, posted 08-28-2005 12:43 PM berberry has not replied
 Message 19 by coffee_addict, posted 08-28-2005 3:39 PM berberry has not replied
 Message 20 by Trixie, posted 08-28-2005 4:14 PM berberry has not replied
 Message 22 by arachnophilia, posted 08-28-2005 4:22 PM berberry has replied

berberry
Inactive Member


Message 3 of 315 (237935)
08-28-2005 8:00 AM
Reply to: Message 2 by RAZD
08-28-2005 7:49 AM


Could New Orleans be ruined?
Yeah, and if you'll check the fine print on the Camille storm you'll find that it's not always such a good thing to be on the immediate west side. Camille came in at Pass Christian, MS. If you'll look at a map, you'll see that the eastern edge of Plaquemines Parish, LA extends to a point almost due south of Pass Christian. Plaquemines was on the immediate west side of the storm, and yet the parish suffered massive flooding and destruction.
If Katrina should come in at the mouth of the Pearl River (the border between Mississippi and Louisiana at the coast), New Orleans would be on the immediate west side. With above-sea-level Lake Pontchartrain sitting on the north side of the city, and New Orlans and Metarie sitting largely below sea level, how much wind will it take to blow massive amounts of water out of the lake and into the city? That sort of damage could be almost as bad as a direct hit.

"I think younger workers first of all, younger workers have been promised benefits the government promises that have been promised, benefits that we can't keep. That's just the way it is." George W. Bush, May 4, 2005

This message is a reply to:
 Message 2 by RAZD, posted 08-28-2005 7:49 AM RAZD has replied

Replies to this message:
 Message 4 by berberry, posted 08-28-2005 8:24 AM berberry has not replied
 Message 10 by RAZD, posted 08-28-2005 11:43 AM berberry has not replied

berberry
Inactive Member


Message 4 of 315 (237936)
08-28-2005 8:24 AM
Reply to: Message 3 by berberry
08-28-2005 8:00 AM


Re: Could New Orleans be ruined?
Alison Stewart is talking to Mike Brown at FEMA right now on MSNBC and he said what I just said, only he said that landfall just to the east of NO could in fact be the worst case scenario since it would blow so much water out of the lake and into the city.

"I think younger workers first of all, younger workers have been promised benefits the government promises that have been promised, benefits that we can't keep. That's just the way it is." George W. Bush, May 4, 2005

This message is a reply to:
 Message 3 by berberry, posted 08-28-2005 8:00 AM berberry has not replied

berberry
Inactive Member


Message 7 of 315 (237950)
08-28-2005 10:54 AM
Reply to: Message 5 by Modulous
08-28-2005 10:45 AM


Make that the Big Uneasy
Modulous writes:
quote:
I can think of no city closer to my heart.
I can't either. New Orleans is my most frequent weekend getaway spot. It's the greatest oasis of culture anywhere in the Deep South.
Local officials are saying that this could be the worst storm in the city's history, and perhaps even the worst natural disaster ever in this part of the country.
If you want to keep up with what's going on in that apparently doomed city, check WWL-TV's site. It features frequent updates and a message board. There's also a link to a web simulcast of the station's live local TV coverage. It's a high quality simulcast, but you'll need broadband to use it.

"I think younger workers first of all, younger workers have been promised benefits the government promises that have been promised, benefits that we can't keep. That's just the way it is." George W. Bush, May 4, 2005

This message is a reply to:
 Message 5 by Modulous, posted 08-28-2005 10:45 AM Modulous has replied

Replies to this message:
 Message 12 by Modulous, posted 08-28-2005 11:58 AM berberry has not replied

berberry
Inactive Member


Message 25 of 315 (238043)
08-28-2005 4:47 PM
Reply to: Message 22 by arachnophilia
08-28-2005 4:22 PM


Re: cat5?
arachnophilia asks me:
quote:
holy crap! do you live in the target area?
No, not really. I live in Vicksburg MS, which is right on the Mississippi-Louisiana border at I-20 (same latitude as Jackson MS and Dallas TX). The storm is expected to be a cat 2 or 3 when it crosses this latitude. It's not expected to drop to tropical storm status until it crosses the Tennessee line.
This could be devastating to both LA and MS. Our gulf coast will be on the east side, and 20'+ storm surge is expected from NO all the way over to Mobile. Camille had a 25' surge; it obliterated the MS Gulf Coast and did massive damage in Plaquemines Parish, LA. It was more powerful than Katrina (at least in her current state), but it wasn't as large.
Areas of central Mississippi (and those areas haven't been precisely pinpointed yet) are expected to endure hours of tropical storm and hurricane force winds.

"I think younger workers first of all, younger workers have been promised benefits the government promises that have been promised, benefits that we can't keep. That's just the way it is." George W. Bush, May 4, 2005

This message is a reply to:
 Message 22 by arachnophilia, posted 08-28-2005 4:22 PM arachnophilia has replied

Replies to this message:
 Message 27 by arachnophilia, posted 08-28-2005 5:07 PM berberry has replied
 Message 34 by RAZD, posted 08-28-2005 6:48 PM berberry has not replied

berberry
Inactive Member


Message 26 of 315 (238046)
08-28-2005 4:50 PM


Hurricane Names
On a lighter note, I'm reminded of some research I did a few years ago about how the hurricane naming convention began. There had long been a need for a convenient way to distinguish one storm from another when there might be several tropical depressions, waves, storms and hurricanes at once. Military forecasters picked up the idea of naming them from a radio weatherman (this was before television) in Australia. That guy had a habit of naming the cyclones after politicians he didn't like. Thus, he might have named this one Hurricane Bush. Once the storm had passed, he'd drop the "hurricane" part and simply cover the news of all the death and destruction Bush had caused.

"I think younger workers first of all, younger workers have been promised benefits the government promises that have been promised, benefits that we can't keep. That's just the way it is." George W. Bush, May 4, 2005

Replies to this message:
 Message 28 by arachnophilia, posted 08-28-2005 5:09 PM berberry has not replied

berberry
Inactive Member


Message 31 of 315 (238073)
08-28-2005 6:00 PM
Reply to: Message 27 by arachnophilia
08-28-2005 5:07 PM


Re: cat5?
arachnophilia asks me:
quote:
are you guys prepared for that sort of thing up there?
About as prepared as we can be. We've moved our potted plants and put the garbage can in the storage shed. There's not much more that we can do.
Vicksburg has some extremely steep hills. The slope in some places (like my street) rivals the hills of San Francisco. I live just below the crest of one of these hills - second house down from the top. It's a three-story structure and I live in the basement. The house is just over 100 years old and has withstood tornadoes passing within a few yards (like one that destroyed a house two doors down a few decades ago). It's a very solid house, and flooding certainly won't be a problem since we're so far up the hill.
We're on the western edge of the storm forecast area, so the likelihood is that damage will be minimal here.

"I think younger workers first of all, younger workers have been promised benefits the government promises that have been promised, benefits that we can't keep. That's just the way it is." George W. Bush, May 4, 2005

This message is a reply to:
 Message 27 by arachnophilia, posted 08-28-2005 5:07 PM arachnophilia has not replied

berberry
Inactive Member


Message 33 of 315 (238080)
08-28-2005 6:44 PM


More inland info
I was just checking The Weather Underground website and found that the forecast for central MS has changed for the worse. Here in Vicksburg we're under an inland hurricane watch. Wind gusts of up to 60mph are expected here tomorrow.
Over in Jackson, there's an inland hurricane warning. Sustained winds of 35 to 50mph are expected with gusts up to 75mph.
We don't often see such high wind speeds here in central Mississippi unless it's a tornado or a straight-line windstorm, and those don't cover a very wide area nor do they last long. This will be different, and since we've never had anything like this before I have no idea what to expect.
If you're anywhere in Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama or Tennessee, I'd recommend going to the site I linked and typing in your zip code. Look at the forecast carefully, then scroll down to read the official NWS statement for your area.
If you don't live anywhere near here but want to see what I'm talking about, try zip code 39211 for Jackson or 39180 for Vicksburg. If you want to check on another city in this area, just type the city and state names.

"I think younger workers first of all, younger workers have been promised benefits the government promises that have been promised, benefits that we can't keep. That's just the way it is." George W. Bush, May 4, 2005

berberry
Inactive Member


Message 190 of 315 (239902)
09-02-2005 9:57 AM


Power finally restored at my house
What a week! We had a hurricane right here in Vicksburg, nearly 200 miles inland. My power went out during the blow and it just came back on about an hour ago. This is the longest period I've ever had to live without electricity, and let me tell you that you just don't know how much you depend on it until it's gone for more than a few hours. Water and gas service was maintained throughout, but no juice until now.
My suffering has been minor compared to what people are going through further south. I've met scores of people who've lost everything or nearly everything they owned. Many of them have loved ones who didn't or couldn't leave and some of those have died. The suffering of these people is palpable; I can only hope that I never have to go through anything close to it.
This is something I will never forget, not that I wouldn't like to.

"I think younger workers first of all, younger workers have been promised benefits the government promises that have been promised, benefits that we can't keep. That's just the way it is." George W. Bush, May 4, 2005

Replies to this message:
 Message 219 by RAZD, posted 09-02-2005 7:00 PM berberry has not replied
 Message 240 by Phat, posted 09-03-2005 12:45 AM berberry has replied

berberry
Inactive Member


Message 244 of 315 (240183)
09-03-2005 3:11 AM


At what point should we be ashamed to admit we're Americans?
I've been stunned by many of the stories I've seen on TV and read about on the internet since I got my electricity restored. Understand that even as biased against our president as I believe everyone knows that I am, I am not eager to heap blame on him anymore than any other irresponsible official for the response to this disaster. I think he deserves plenty of blame, but there's more than enough to go around, starting with the mayor of NO. I find it unconscionable that he would allow the Hyatt Hotel guests - with their luggage! - to butt in line ahead of the suffering, starving people who've been waiting at that god-forsaken Superdome for days to catch buses out of the city.
Another stunning story comes from none other than Fox News reporters Sheppard Smith and Geraldo Rivera on the Hannity & Colmes Show. Seems that the poor and destitute are being locked in the Convention Center Rape Rooms!
Another heaping helping of blame goes to Michael Brown of FEMA, who deserves to be fired immediately! More blame to Bush for praising this blithering dolt.
There's more, much more, but that's enough to chew on for the moment.

"I think younger workers first of all, younger workers have been promised benefits the government promises that have been promised, benefits that we can't keep. That's just the way it is." George W. Bush, May 4, 2005

Replies to this message:
 Message 245 by Nuggin, posted 09-03-2005 3:20 AM berberry has not replied

berberry
Inactive Member


Message 246 of 315 (240191)
09-03-2005 3:45 AM
Reply to: Message 240 by Phat
09-03-2005 12:45 AM


Re: Power finally restored at my house
You wouldn't believe, Phat! Vicksburg is full of evacuees. I've spoken to several of them. Virtually all of them know someone, either family or friends, who either couldn't or wouldn't leave and whom they've not been able to contact since the blow. Most of them have lost everything they owned. Some have the means to stay in a hotel, but with an interruption in their income they're unsure how long they'll be able to afford to pay to remain comfortable. They don't know what to do.
One elderly man I spoke with had me in tears and his story illustrates what we mean when we say "lost everything". His home was at one of the low points of the city and is completely flooded. He told me about all of the photos he's lost of things like his wedding nearly fifty years ago, of his children and grandchildren at various stages of their lives and the photos of his parents who've been long dead and of whom he has no other pictures. He told me about his father's WWI medals; he hopes he'll be able to recover those.
I urge anyone living in a city where shelters have been set up for these people to go by and visit with them. Even if you can't afford to do anything else, just go talk to them. It's cathartic for them to tell someone about their troubles, and it'll make you feel good to have been able to be some small part of their recovery.
Thanks for the kind words, btw.

This message is a reply to:
 Message 240 by Phat, posted 09-03-2005 12:45 AM Phat has not replied

Replies to this message:
 Message 250 by jar, posted 09-03-2005 11:02 AM berberry has not replied

berberry
Inactive Member


Message 247 of 315 (240198)
09-03-2005 4:00 AM


Thanks for the concern!
I've had time now to review this thread, and I see that several of you were concerned about me. Thanks to Faith, RAZD, Brad, Phat and anyone else I might have missed. Your kind words are much appreciated.

berberry
Inactive Member


Message 267 of 315 (240362)
09-04-2005 9:26 AM
Reply to: Message 262 by Lizard Breath
09-04-2005 9:03 AM


Re: Mayor Lashes out at Feds
Lizard Breath writes:
quote:
I don't believe that anyone anticipated the level of violence that is taking place to start putting federal troops in to stabilize it. Usually, the local police and National Guard augmentees can easily handle a few looters.
Yes, but usually that happens within hours of a disaster. When you wait days, when you leave people locked in filthy rape rooms, when you wait until survivors are either dead or dying, what the hell do you expect, a welcome wagon?

"I think younger workers first of all, younger workers have been promised benefits the government promises that have been promised, benefits that we can't keep. That's just the way it is." George W. Bush, May 4, 2005

This message is a reply to:
 Message 262 by Lizard Breath, posted 09-04-2005 9:03 AM Lizard Breath has replied

Replies to this message:
 Message 269 by Lizard Breath, posted 09-04-2005 9:57 AM berberry has replied

berberry
Inactive Member


Message 271 of 315 (240369)
09-04-2005 10:17 AM
Reply to: Message 269 by Lizard Breath
09-04-2005 9:57 AM


Re: Mayor Lashes out at Feds
Typical "blame the victim" bullshit. If the feds had been there from the start with water, food and medical supplies none of this would have happened. But as it did happen, you and other moralists have the opportunity to pass judgement on people less fortunate than you are.
If a disaster like this happens in any other large city anywhere in America (or any other country for that matter) and help doesn't arrive for FOUR GODDAMNED DAYS, the exact same sorts of things will happen.
The blame lies squarely with the authorities. It isn't a republican or democrat thing; the mayor, the LA governor, the FEMA director, the chief of Homeland Security and the president all failed those people. Not all of them were committing rapes, not all of them were stealing things (and many who were should be honored, not reviled, since many were stealing food for their babies or buses to get people the hell out of there since no one else was doing it), not all of them were behaving badly in any way whatsoever. But all of them were failed by their government.

"I think younger workers first of all, younger workers have been promised benefits the government promises that have been promised, benefits that we can't keep. That's just the way it is." George W. Bush, May 4, 2005

This message is a reply to:
 Message 269 by Lizard Breath, posted 09-04-2005 9:57 AM Lizard Breath has not replied

Replies to this message:
 Message 307 by nator, posted 09-05-2005 9:57 AM berberry has not replied

berberry
Inactive Member


Message 290 of 315 (240471)
09-04-2005 11:10 PM
Reply to: Message 287 by Lizard Breath
09-04-2005 10:45 PM


Re: Casinos at the waters edge.
Lizard Breath writes:
quote:
I can't believe there was no provision to tow them 20 miles out in calmer water to let a storm like this pass.
Actually, there was a plan years ago to move them into the Back Bay of Biloxi (look at a map and it'll give you an idea of how that would work). It was tried - if I recall correctly, which I'm not sure I do - during Hurricane Georges a few years back, but for some reason the plan was abandoned.
The legislature is all but certain to take up a bill this week to allow the coastal casinos to locate on land. Even the social conservatives now realize that leaving them on barges is not viable; the threat to other property is too great.

"I think younger workers first of all, younger workers have been promised benefits the government promises that have been promised, benefits that we can't keep. That's just the way it is." George W. Bush, May 4, 2005

This message is a reply to:
 Message 287 by Lizard Breath, posted 09-04-2005 10:45 PM Lizard Breath has not replied

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