Hurricane Katrina

[SuperJerk 0]

Leadership vacuum stymied aid offers

Doctor: Officials gave hospital staffers mops as people died

 

Programming note: Wolf Blitzer anchors live coverage of President Bush's prime-time address from Louisiana, at 9 p.m. ET Thursday

 

(CNN) -- As violence, death and misery gripped New Orleans and the surrounding parishes in the days after Hurricane Katrina, a leadership vacuum, bureaucratic red tape and a defensive culture paralyzed volunteers' attempts to help.

 

Doctors eager to help sick and injured evacuees were handed mops by federal officials who expressed concern about legal liability. Even as violence and looting slowed rescues, police from other states were turned back while officials squabbled over who should take charge of restoring the peace.

 

Warehouses in New Orleans burned while firefighters were diverted to Atlanta for Federal Emergency Management Agency training sessions on community relations and sexual harassment. Water trucks languished for days at FEMA's staging area because the drivers lacked the proper paperwork.

 

Consider the stories of these frustrated volunteers:

 

 

Dr. Bong Mui and his staff, evacuated with 300 patients after three hellish days at Chalmette Medical Center, arrived at the New Orleans airport, and were amazed to see hundreds of sick people. They offered to help. But, the doctor told CNN, FEMA officials said they were worried about legal liability. "They told us that, you know, you could help us by mopping the floor." And so they mopped, while people died around them. "I started crying," he recalled. "We felt like we could help, and were not allowed to do anything." (Watch the video of hundreds languishing sick at the airport -- 4:16)

 

Steve Simpson, sheriff of Loudoun County, Virginia, sent 22 deputies equipped with food and water to last seven days. Their 14-car caravan, including four all-terrain vehicles, was on the road just three hours when they were told to turn back. The reason, Simpson told CNN: A Louisiana state police official told them not to come. " I said, "What if we just show up?' He says, 'You probably won't get in.' " Simpson said he later learned a dispute over whether state or federal authorities would command the law enforcement effort was being ironed out that night. But no one ever got back to him with the all-clear.

 

FEMA halted tractor trailers hauling water to a supply staging area in Alexandria, Louisiana, The New York Times quoted William Vines, former mayor of Fort Smith, Arkansas, as saying. "FEMA would not let the trucks unload," he told the newspaper. "The drivers were stuck for several days on the side of the road" because, he said, they did not have a "tasker number." He added, "What in the world is a tasker number? I have no idea. It's just paperwork and it's ridiculous."

 

Firefighters who answered a nationwide call for help were sent to Atlanta for FEMA training sessions on community relations and sexual harassment. "On the news every night you hear 'How come everybody forgot us?' " Pennsylvania firefighter Joseph Manning told The Dallas Morning News. "We didn't forget. We're stuck in Atlanta drinking beer."

The government's response to Hurricane Katrina has been sharply criticized. Elected officials -- chiefly President Bush, Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco and New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin -- have acknowledged flaws in the response.

 

Some take responsibility

"To the extent that the federal government didn't fully do its job right, I take responsibility," Bush said earlier this week. He is expected to unveil the largest disaster relief program in history in an address to the nation Thursday night from New Orleans.

 

"There were failures at every level of government -- state, federal and local," Blanco told Louisiana legislators Wednesday evening in Baton Rouge. "At the state level, we must take a careful look at what went wrong and make sure it never happens again," she said. "The buck stops here, and as your governor, I take full responsibility."

 

Nagin, once angry and embattled, was also conciliatory.

 

"I think now we are out of nuclear crisis mode, it seems as though myself, the governor and president have done some retrospection as far as what we could have done better, and ultimately we're all accountable at the level of local state and federal government," he told CNN. "And that's what leadership is all about. We should take responsibility and we should try and do better."

 

While Blanco did not elaborate on her mistakes, Nagin said he mistakenly assumed that if New Orleans could hold out for a day or two, help would surely come.

 

"I am not going to plan in the future for the cavalry to come in three days," he told CNN. "I'm going to buy high water vehicles, helicopters, whatever I can do to make sure that I am in total control ... of the total evacuation process."

 

Vice Admiral Thad Allen, of the U.S. Coast Guard, is now heading the federal government's recovery effort. On Wednesday, he encouraged state and local officials to bring their issues to him.

 

"Whether you're a person or an agency, whatever you're doing, if you have concerns and they're not stated where somebody can act on them, that's just going to fester," he said. "And I, as the principal federal official in this response, am encouraging any leader that wants to talk to me about real or perceived problems of what's going on out there to do that."

 

Where was Chertoff?

But the men in charge of the federal Department of Homeland Security and FEMA in the critical days immediately after the hurricane haven't shared the blame.

 

Michael Chertoff, the Homeland Security secretary, has offered no explanation as to why he waited three days after the National Hurricane Center predicted a catastrophic hurricane to declare Katrina an incident of "national significance."

 

In a memo written the day after Katrina made landfall, Chertoff said the Department of Homeland Security will be part of the task force and will assist the [bush] administration. But the National Response Plan, designed to guide disaster recovery and relief, dictates that the Homeland Security secretary leads the federal response. ( Watch video on Chertoff's delays -- 3:09)

 

Chertoff appointed Michael Brown, then director of FEMA, as the federal official in charge in the Gulf states. Brown was relieved of his post late last week and resigned from FEMA Monday after taking the brunt of the criticism over the response.

 

Ex-FEMA boss blames governor

Speaking to The New York Times, his first public comments since he was relieved, Brown laid the blame on Blanco and Nagin. He told the newspaper he frantically called Chertoff and the White House in the hours after Katrina hit, telling them Blanco and her staff were disorganized and the situation was "out of control."

 

"I am having a horrible time," Brown said he told his superiors. "I can't get a unified command established."

 

Brown told the Times that he had such difficulty dealing with Blanco that he communicated with her husband instead.

 

"I truly believed the White House was not at fault here," he told the Times.

 

On August 30, the same day Chertoff wrote his memo, Brown said he asked the White House to take over the response from FEMA and state officials.

 

A Senate panel launched the first formal inquiry into the response on Wednesday. But the Senate's Republican majority defeated a bid by Democrats to establish an independent commission to investigate the disaster response.

 

Maine Republican Sen. Susan Collins, the panel's chairwoman, said the response to Katrina was plagued by confusion, communication failures and widespread lack of coordination despite the billions of dollars spent to improve disaster response since the terror attacks.

 

'Sluggish' response

"At this point, we would have expected a sharp, crisp response to this terrible tragedy," Collins said. "Instead, we witnessed what appeared to be a sluggish initial response."

 

One of the issues the committee will examine is whether FEMA should stay under the Department of Homeland Security instead of operating as a separate agency as it had in the past.

 

Sen. George Voinovich, a Republican from Ohio, said the committee would "get into the bowels" of Homeland Security as its members investigate how the federal government, specifically FEMA, planned for and responded to the disaster.

 

Members of the former 9/11 commission blasted Congress and the Bush administration for inaction on some of its recommendations. Had they been in place, lives could have been saved, they said.

 

"If Congress does not act, people will die. I cannot put it more simply than that," said former New Jersey Gov. Thomas Kean, referring to what could happen in the next major disaster or terrorist attack.

 

http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/09/15/katrina.response/index.html

[Stephen Joseph 0]

All Hail Big Government!

[swan 0]

FWIW, in my closed thread, the writer was NOT a doctor. Just a racist.

 

http://floppingaces.blogspot.com/2005/09/g...generation.html

[Ripper 0]

Besides, once he said some 20 year old black kids called him Cracka, I knew something was wrong. They just would have said bitch ass white boy or something like that.

 

...

 

Cracker....PLEASE.

[snuffbox 0]

All Hail Big Government!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Its sad that this administration feels it so necessary to spend billions fighting marijuana terrorism, a bizarre war in Iraq, and cutting certain individuals taxes that when something like this hurricane comes up and the money actually is needed...every working person can expect a few less dollars every week.

 

Privacy? - Checked off.

Huge spending? - Big ass check.

Gigantic beauracracy? - Check here, here, here and here....and here.

Cowboy hats? - Check pardner!

 

Yay conservativism.

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

Micheal Moore is supposedly already making a Documentary about Katrina right now as I type..

 

Farenheit 9/11 Part Deux - When Mother Nature Attacks

 

..bleh..that sucks..someone comeup with something better.

[SuperJerk 0]

Katrina: What Happened When

 

It will take months to get the full story, but meanwhile here are some of the key facts about what happened and when officials acted.

 

September 16, 2005

 

Modified:September 16, 2005

Summary

 

 

 

Multiple investigations are likely into the response by federal, state, and local officials to the disastrous flooding of New Orleans from Hurricane Katrina.  New facts are still emerging, and we expect it will be months or years before a full picture can be properly assessed.

 

In response to numerous requests, we present here a brief timeline of events, as best as we can document them from public records and the best news reporting from the scene. We do not blame or excuse anyone, and leave it to others to judge what, if anything, could or should have been done differently. All times are converted to Central Daylight Time.

Analysis

 

 

 

July 23, 2004 - 13 Months Before Katrina

 

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) conducts "Hurricane Pam" exercise to assess results of a theoretical Category 3 hurricane. It assumes that a storm with 120-mph winds would force Lake Pontchartrain's waters over the tops of the New Orleans' 17.5-foot levees and through a gap in the levee system would flood major portions of the city and would damage up to 87 percent of the city's homes. The Times-Picayune reports that officials expect up to half the city's residents won't evacuate and that many will be trapped in attics, on rooftops, and in makeshift shelters for days.

 

—"In Case of Emergency," New Orleans Times-Picayune, as posted  on the website of the Louisiana Homeland Security & Emergency Preparedness, 20 Jul 2004.

 

Friday, Aug 26 2005 - 3 Days Prior to Katrina's Louisiana Landfall

 

Hurricane Katrina strikes Florida between Hallandale Beach and North Miami Beach as a Category 1 hurricane with 80 mph winds.  Eleven people die from hurricane-related causes.

 

—"A chronology of Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath," Associated Press, 3 Sep 2005.

 

The storm heads into the Gulf of Mexico and by 10:30 am CDT is reported to be "rapidly strengthening."

 

—"Hurricane Katrina Special Advisory Number 13 ," National Hurricane Center, 26 Aug 2005.

 

Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco declares a State of Emergency in Louisiana.

 

—"Governor Blanco Declares State of Emergency,"  Louisiana Governor's Office, 26 Aug 2005.

 

Saturday, Aug 27 2005 - 2 Days Prior

 

Blanco asks President Bush to declare a State of Emergency for the state of Louisiana due to Hurricane Katrina.  Bush does so, authorizing the Department of Homeland Security and FEMA "to coordinate all disaster relief efforts…" and freeing up federal money for the state.

 

—"Governor Blanco asks President to Declare an Emergency for the State of Louisiana due to Hurricane Katrina,"  Louisiana Governor's Office , 27 Aug 2005.   

 

—"Statement on federal Emergency Assistance for Louisiana," Office of the White House Press Secretary, 27 Aug 2005.

 

Katrina is a Category 3 storm, predicted to become Category 4. At 4pm CDT, it is still 380 miles from the mouth of the Mississippi.

 

—"Hurricane Katrina Special Advisory Number  18,"  National Hurricane Center  , 26 Aug 2005.

 

Director of the National Hurricane Center, Max Mayfield, calls the governors of Louisiana and Mississippi and the mayor of New Orleans to warn of potential devastation. The next day he participates in a video conference call to the President, who is at his ranch in Crawford, Texas.

 

—Tamara Lush, " For forecasting chief, no joy in being right  ," St. Petersburg Times , 30 Aug 2005.

 

Sunday, Aug. 28 2005 - 1 Day Prior

 

1 a.m. - Katrina is upgraded to a Category 4 storm with wind speeds reaching 145 mph.

 

—"Hurricane Katrina Special Advisory Number 20,"  National Hurricane Center, 28 Aug 2005.

 

7 a.m. - Katrina is upgraded to a "potentially catastrophic" Category 5 storm. NOAA predicts "coastal storm surge flooding of 15 to 20 feet above normal tide levels."

 

—"Hurricane Katrina Special Advisory Number 22,"  National Hurricane Center , 28 Aug 2005.

 

—"New Orleans braces for monster hurricane,"  CNN.com, 29 Aug 2005.

 

9:30 a.m. - With wind speeds reaching 175 mph, New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin orders a mandatory evacuation of the city after speaking with Bush.  The evacuation call comes only 20 hours before Katrina would make landfall – less than half the time that researchers had determined was necessary to evacuate the city.

 

—Gordon Russell, " Nagin orders first-ever mandatory evacuation of New Orleans ," New Orleans Times-Picayune , 31 Aug 2005.

 

—Lise Olsen, " City had evacuation plan but strayed from strategy ," Houston Chronicle , 8 Sep 2005.

 

10 a.m. - NOAA raises their estimate of storm surge flooding to 18 to 22 feet above normal tide levels. The levee protecting New Orleans from Lake Pontchartrain is only 17.5 feet tall; the Mississippi River levee reaches 23 feet.

 

—"Hurricane Katrina Special Advisory Number 23 ,"  National Hurricane Center  , 28 Aug 2005.

 

The Associated Press reports that New Orleans could become "a vast cesspool tainted with toxic chemicals, human waste and even coffins released…from the city's legendary cemeteries."

 

"The storm threatened an environmental disaster of biblical proportions , one that could leave more than 1 million people homeless," the AP says.

 

—Matt Crenson, "Katrina may create environmental catastrophe on epic scale," Associated Press , 28 Aug 2005.

 

11:31 a.m. - The President – at his ranch in Crawford – speaks briefly to reporters. His statement contains 203 words about Katrina and 819 congratulating Iraqis on their new constitution. "We will do everything in our power to help the people in the communities affected by this storm," he says of the approaching hurricane.

 

—"President Discusses Hurricane Katrina , Congratulates Iraqis on Draft Constitution," Prairie Chapel Ranch, Crawford, Texas, 28 Aug 2005.

 

8:30 p.m. - An empty Amtrak train leaves New Orleans, with room for several hundred potential evacuees. "We offered the city the opportunity to take evacuees out of harm's way…The city declined," said Amtrak spokesman Cliff Black. The train left New Orleans no passengers on board.

 

—Susan Glasser, " The Steady Buildup to a City's Chaos ," The Washington Post , 11 Sep 2005.

 

Two weeks later, Nagin denies on NBC's Meet the Press  that Amtrak offered their services. "Amtrak never contacted me to make that offer," the mayor tells host Tim Russert.  "I have never gotten that call, Tim, and I would love to have had that call. But it never happened."

 

—" Interview with Mayor Nagin  ," Meet the Press, NBC, 11 Sep 2005.

 

Monday August 29, 2005 - Day of Katrina

 

6 a.m. - Katrina makes landfall on Louisiana coast as a strong Category 4 storm, with sustained winds of nearly 145 mph and predicted coastal storm surge of up to 28 feet. The National Hurricane Center warns that "some levees in the greater New Orleans area could be overtopped." It says a weather buoy located about 50 miles east of the mouth of the Mississippi river had reported waves heights of at least 47 feet.

 

—"Hurricane Katrina Intermediate Advisory Number 26A …Corrected,"    National Hurricane Center  , 29 Aug 2005.

 

8.a.m. - The storm surge sends water sloshing up the Industrial Canal, and local officials immediately report flooding on both sides. Winds break a barge loose and it strikes the levee.

 

—John McQuaid, "Katrina trapped city in double disasters," New Orleans Times-Picayune, 7 Sep 2005.

 

9 a.m. - The eastern part of the city and Bernard Parish are already flooded several feet deep, even before the eye of the storm has passed. Thousands of survivors are trapped. But worse flooding is to come: within hours, city canal floodwalls will also collapse and a second, slower wave of flooding will take place.

 

—John McQuaid, " Katrina trapped city in double disasters ," New Orleans Times-Picayune , 7 Sep 2005.

 

11 a.m. - New Orleans is spared a direct hit, as the center of the storm passes over the Louisiana-Mississippi state line 35 miles away from the city. Maximum sustained winds are now reduced, but still a strong Category 3 storm with 125 mph winds.

 

—"Hurricane Katrina Advisory Number 27,"  National Hurricane Center , 29 Aug 2005.

 

11:06 a.m . - Bush promotes his Medicare prescription drug benefit at a 44-minute event in El Mirage, Arizona. He devotes 156 words to the hurricane, among them: "I want the folks there on the Gulf Coast to know that the federal government is prepared to help you when the storm passes. I want to thank the governors of the affected regions for mobilizing assets prior to the arrival of the storm to help citizens avoid this devastating storm."

 

—"President Participates in Conversation on Medicare ,"  White House  , 29 Aug 2005.

 

Late Morning (exact time uncertain)  - The vital 17th Street Canal levee gives way, sending the water from Lake Pontchartrain into the city in a second, slower wave of flooding. A full day will pass before state or federal officials fully realize what is happening.

 

—John McQuaid, " Katrina trapped city in double disasters ," New Orleans Times-Picayune , 7 Sep 2005.

 

Eventually, engineers will find five separate places where concrete floodwalls gave way. They will still be debating and studying the causes of the failures two weeks after the storm.

 

—John McQuaid, " Mystery surrounds floodwall breaches; Could a structural flaw be to blame ?" New Orleans Times-Picayune , 13 Sep 2005.

 

About 11 a.m. (exact time uncertain) - Roughly five hours after Katrina strikes the coast, FEMA director Michael Brown sends a memo – later obtained and made public by The Associated Press – requesting an additional 1,000 rescue workers from the Department of Homeland Security "within 48 hours" and 2,000 more within seven days. It is addressed to his boss, Michael Chertoff, Secretary of Homeland Security. Brown refers to Katrina as "this near catastrophic event" (our emphasis.) He proposes sending the workers first for training in Georgia or Florida, then to the disaster area "when conditions are safe." Among the duties of the workers, Brown proposes, is to "convey a positive image of disaster operations to government officials, community organizations and the general public." (Emphasis added.)

 

—Michael D. Brown, " Memorandum to Michael Chertoff, Secretary of Homeland Security ," 29 Aug 2005.

 

Later Brown will say FEMA itself has only 2,600 employees nationwide, and normally relies on state workers, the National Guard, private contractors and other federal agencies during disaster relief operations.

 

—David D. Kirkpatrick and Scott Shane, " Ex-FEMA Chief Tells of Frustration and Chaos ," New York Times, 15 Sep 2005: A1.

 

4:40 p.m.  - Bush appears in Rancho Cucamonga, California for another Medicare event. He again devotes a few words to Katrina: "It's a storm now that is moving through, and now it's the time for governments to help people get their feet on the ground. . . . For those of you who are concerned about whether or not we're prepared to help, don't be. We are. We're in place. We've got equipment in place, supplies in place. And once the -- once we're able to assess the damage, we'll be able to move in and help those good folks in the affected areas."

 

—"President Discusses Medicare, New Prescription Drug Benefits  ,"James L. Brulte Senior Center Rancho Cucamonga, California, 29 Aug 2005.

 

Time uncertain - Blanco calls Bush, saying, "Mr. President, we need your help. We need everything you've got." Bush later assures her that "help is on the way."

 

—James Carney et al, "4 Places Where the System Broke Down," Time , 11 September 2005.

 

—Evan Thomas, "How Bush Blew It," Newsweek , 19 September 2005.

 

Tuesday August 30, 2005 - 1 Day After Katrina

 

Dawn - Water has continued to rise overnight and is coursing through the city's central business district, still rising. Eventually, at least least 80 percent of New Orleans is under water. Reports of looting surface.

 

—John McQuaid, " Katrina trapped city in double disasters ," New Orleans Times-Picayune , 7 Sep 2005.

 

11:04 a.m.  - In San Diego, California, Bush delivers a 31-minute speech marking the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II. Of Katrina, he says, "we're beginning to move in the help that people need."

 

—"President Commemorates 60th Anniversary of V-J Day" Naval Air Station North Island San Diego, California 30 Aug 2005.

 

Immediately after the speech, White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan tells reporters that Bush will return to Crawford, then cut short his Texas stay and go to Washington. McClellan says, "This is one of the most devastating storms in our nation's history. I think that's becoming clear to everyone. The devastation is enormous."

 

—"Press Gaggle by Scott McClellan ," Naval Air Station North Island San Diego, California, 30 Aug 2005.

 

3 p.m. - With water still pouring into the city, officials report that the Army Corps of Engineers has surveyed the damage to levees and will soon attempt repair.

 

At a Baton Rouge briefing, Sen. Mary Landrieu reports that "most of the roads and highways are impassable, and water is still coming into the city of New Orleans. The water is up to the rooftops in St. Bernard and Plaquemine. We think there may be only one major way into the city right now and it has to be used for emergency personnel to get food and water and rescue equipment to people who are in desperate need."

 

But even now, federal and state officials alike seem unaware of the full extent of the unfolding disaster.

 

US Sen. David Vitter said of the still-rising water:

 

    Sen. Vitter: In the metropolitan area in general, in the huge majority of areas, it's not rising at all. It's the same or it may be lowering slightly. In some parts of New Orleans, because of the 17th Street breach, it may be rising and that seemed to be the case in parts of downtown.

 

    I don't want to alarm everybody that, you know, New Orleans is filling up like a bowl. That's just not happening.

 

None of the officials present at the press conference correct the mistaken remark. And Blanco seems puzzled when a reporter asks the governor about the water pollution that will later emerge as a major public health risk:

 

    Q: Does the water that's downtown -- does this represent what everyone feared before the hurricane would come, that you would have this toxic soup that has overrun the city?

 

    Blanco: It didn't -- I wouldn't think it would be toxic soup right now. I think it's just water from the lake, water from the canals. It's, you know, water.

 

    Q: Well, something could be underneath that water.

 

    Blanco: Pardon?

 

—"The Situation Room; Hurricane Katrina Aftermath ; Rescue Efforts and Assessing the Damage," Transcript, CNN,  30 Aug 2005.

 

Wednesday August 31, 2005 - 2 Days After

 

Morning - Bush, still in Crawford, participates in a half-hour video conference on Katrina with Vice President Cheney (who is in Wyoming) and top aides. Later, he boards Air Force One and flies over New Orleans on his way back to Washington. His press secretary tells reporters: "The President, when we were passing over that part of New Orleans, said, 'It's devastating, it's got to be doubly devastating on the ground.'"

 

—"Press Gaggle with Scott McClellan " Aboard Air Force One, En Route Andrews Air Force Base, MD,  31 Aug 2005.

 

Looting intensifies in New Orleans.  Nagin orders most of the police to abandon search and rescue missions for survivors and focus on packs of looters who are becoming increasingly violent.  The AP reported, "Police officers were asking residents to give up any guns they had before they boarded buses and trucks because police desperately needed the firepower."

 

—"Mayor: Katrina may have killed thousands ," Associated Press , 31 Aug 2005

 

Late Afternoon  - Bush, back at the White House, holds a cabinet meeting on Katrina and speaks for nine minutes in the Rose Garden to outline federal relief efforts. He says FEMA has moved 25 search and rescue teams into the area. As for those stranded at the Superdome, "Buses are on the way to take those people from New Orleans to Houston," the President says.

 

—"President Outlines Hurricane Katrina Relief Efforts ," The Rose Garden, 31 Aug 2005.

 

Thursday September 1, 2005 - 3 Days After

 

7 a.m. - Bush says "I don't think anybody anticipated the breach of the levees." His remark comes in a live interview on ABC's Good Morning America :

 

    Bush: I want people to know there's a lot of help coming. I don't think anybody anticipated the breach of the levees. They did anticipate a serious storm. These levees got breached and as a result, much of New Orleans is flooded and now we're having to deal with it and will.

 

—“Good Morning America,” Transcript, ABC News, 1 September 2005.

 

Time Uncertain - Red Cross President Marsha Evans asks permission to enter the city with relief supplies, but Louisiana state officials deny permission.

 

—"Red Cross: State rebuffed relief efforts: Aid organization never got into New Orleans, officials say"  CNN.com , 9 Sep 2005.

 

Thirty-thousand National Guard Troops from across the country are ordered to report to the Gulf Coast, but many do not arrive for several days.

 

—"More Navy Ships, National Guard troops head to the Gulf Coast ," Associated Press, 1 Sep 2005.

 

The first buses arrive at the Superdome to take evacuees to the Astrodome in Houston, 355 miles away. But the evacuation goes slowly and will take several days.

 

—Evan Thomas, "The Lost City," Newsweek , 12 September 2005.

 

Associated Press photographer Phil Coale makes an aerial shot of scores of school buses sitting unused in a flooded New Orleans lot. Many will later question why city officials did not use these busses to evacuate residents who lacked transportation prior to the hurricane, or at least move them to higher ground for use later.

 

—AP Photo/Phil Coale "Aerial view of flooded school busses," Yahoo News, 1 Sep 2005.

 

Evening - In a special report that is typical of the picture that television is conveying to the world, CNN Correspondent Adaora Udoji reports: "Three days after Hurricane Katrina, and the situation is getting more desperate by the minute. Thousands are still stranded in misery.  . . . They are marching in search of food, water and relief. They're surrounded by a crumbling city and dead bodies. Infants have no formula, the children no food, nothing for adults, no medical help. They're burning with frustration, and sure they have been forgotten."

 

And CNN's Medical Correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, reports live from Charity hospital in New Orleans: "It doesn't appear to be safe now, but it seems that a sniper standing atop one of the buildings just above us here and firing down at patients and doctors as they were trying to be evacuated, unbelievable. It just boggles my mind, actually."

 

—"Anderson Cooper 360 Degrees, Special Edition: Hurricane Katrina ,"  CNN Transcripts  , 1 Sept 2005.

 

Brown says FEMA officials were unaware for days that – besides the hurricane victims stranded in the Superdome – thousands more had taken refuge in the New Orleans Convention Center nearby. Speaking from Baton Rouge in a live interview with CNN's Paula Zahn, he says:

 

    Brown : And so, this -- this catastrophic disaster continues to grow. I will tell you this, though. Every person in that Convention Center, we just learned about that today . And so, I have directed that we have all available resources to get to that Convention Center to make certain that they have the food and water, the medical care that they need...

    Q: Sir, you aren't telling me...

    Brown : ... and that we take care of those bodies that are there.  . . .

    Q: Sir, you aren't just telling me you just learned that the folks at the Convention Center didn't have food and water until today, are you? You had no idea they were completely cut off?

    Brown: Paula, the federal government did not even know about the Convention Center people until today.

 

—Paula Zahn Now, "Desperation in New Orleans; Interview With FEMA Director Mike Brown,"  Transcript , 1 Sep 2005.

 

Later, Brown will say he was wrong and that FEMA actually knew about the victims at the Convention Center 24 hours earlier but was unable to reach them until Thursday.

 

—David D. Kirkpatrick and Scott Shane, "Ex-FEMA Chief Tells of Frustration and Chaos," New York Times 15 Sep 2005: A1

 

Evening - Nagin delivers a rambling diatribe in an interview with local radio station WWL-AM, blaming Bush and Blanco for doing too little:

 

    Nagin : I need reinforcements, I need troops, man. I need 500 buses, man.  . .

    I've got 15,000 to 20,000 people over at the convention center. It's bursting at the seams. The poor people in Plaquemines Parish. ... We don't have anything, and we're sharing with our brothers in Plaquemines Parish.

    It's awful down here, man.

    . . . Don't tell me 40,000 people are coming here. They're not here. It's too doggone late. Now get off your asses and do something , and let's fix the biggest goddamn crisis in the history of this country.

 

—"Mayor to feds: 'Get off your asses,'" Transcript of radio interview with New Orleans' Nagin, CNN.com, 2 Sep 2005.

 

Friday September 2, 2005 - 4 Days After

 

The Red Cross renews its request to enter the city with relief supplies. "We had adequate supplies, the people and the vehicles," Red Cross official Vic Howell would later recall. Louisiana officials say they needed 24 hours to provide an escort and prepare for the Red Cross's arrival. However, 24 hours later, a large-scale evacuation is underway and the Red Cross relief effort never reaches New Orleans.

 

—"Red Cross: State rebuffed relief efforts: Aid organization never got into New Orleans, officials say"  CNN.com , 9 Sep 2005.

 

8:02 a.m. - Bush leaves the White House to tour the hurricane area. He says, "A lot of people are working hard to help those who have been affected, and I want to thank the people for their efforts. The results are not acceptable ."

 

—"President Heads to Hurricane Katrina Affected Areas,"  The South Lawn , 2 Sep 2005.

 

10:35 am - Bush, arriving in Alabama to tour the disaster area, says of the FEMA director at a live news conference: "Brownie, you're doing a heck of a job. The FEMA director is working 24 -- (applause) -- they're working 24 hours a day. Again, my attitude is, if it's not going exactly right, we're going to make it go exactly right. If there's problems, we're going to address the problems."

 

—"President Arrives in Alabama, Briefed on Hurricane Katrina,"  Mobile Regional Airport Mobile , Alabama 2 Sep 2005.

 

Noon - A convoy of military trucks drives through floodwaters to the convention center, the first supplies of water and food to reach victims who have waited for days. Thousands of armed National Guardsmen carrying weapons stream into the city to help restore order. Commanding is Army Lt. Gen. Russel Honoré, a cigar-chomping Louisiana native who soon wins praise for his decisive style of action.

 

—Allen G. Breed, "National Guardsmen Arrive in New Orleans," The Associated Press, 2 Sep 2005.

 

5:01p.m. - Bush speaks at New Orleans airport, saying, "I know the people of this part of the world are suffering, and I want them to know that there's a flow of progress. We're making progress."

 

—President Remarks on Hurricane Recovery Efforts , Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport 2 Sep 2005.

 

 

Saturday, September 3, 2005 - 5 Days After

 

10:06 am - Bush announces he is ordering additional active duty forces to the Gulf coast. "The enormity of the task requires more resources," he says in his Saturday radio address. "In America we do not abandon our fellow citizens in their hour of need." He says 4,000 active-duty troops are already in the area and 7,000 more will arrive in the next 72 hours. Those will add to some 21,000 National Guard troops already in the region.

 

—President Addresses Nation , Discusses Hurricane Katrina Relief Efforts, The Rose Garden , 3 Sep 2005.

 

Sunday, September 4, 2005 - 6 Days After

 

The President issues a proclamation ordering the US Flag to be flown at half-staff at all federal building until Sept. 20 "as a mark of respect for the victims of Hurricane Katrina."

 

—"Proclamation by the President: Honoring the Memory of the Victims of Hurricane Katrina," 4 Sep 2005.

 

Monday September 5, 2005 - One Week After

 

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers repair the levee breach on the 17th Street Canal and begin to pump water from the city.

 

—"Pumps begin to drain New Orleans."  CNN.com , 6 Sep 2005.

 

Tuesday September 6, 2005 - 8 Days After

 

FEMA asks reporters to refrain from taking pictures of the dead. Reuters quotes a FEMA spokeswoman as sending an email saying, "The recovery of victims is being treated with dignity and the utmost respect and we have requested that no photographs of the deceased be made by the media."

 

—Deborah Zabarenko, " Media groups say FEMA censors search for bodies ," Reuters , 7 Sep 2005

 

Nagin orders police and law enforcement officials to remove everyone from the city who is not involved in recovery efforts.  Despite this order, many residents remain in New Orleans, refusing to leave.

 

—Cain Burdeau, " New Orleans Mayor orders Forced Evacuation ," Associated Press , 7 Sep 2005.

 

Wednesday September 7, 2005 - 9 Days After

 

FEMA brings in Kenyon International Services from Houston to assist in recovering  bodies, many of which have been left in the open since the storm hit. A week later, state and federal officials will still be bickering over who is to pay the $119,000 daily expense of the outside mortuary specialists, and many bodies will still lie uncollected in the open and in drained buildings two weeks after the storm.

 

—Michelle Krupa, " Louisiana hires firm to help recover bodies ; Blanco says FEMA moved too slowly," New Orleans Times-Picayune , 14 Sep 2005.

 

A bipartisan joint Congressional Committee is announced to investigate the response to Hurricane Katrina at "all levels of government," as federal, state, and local officials continue to blame each other for the slow response in dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

 

—"GOP leaders agree to joint Katrina hearings,"  CNN.com , 8 Sep 2005.

 

Friday September 9, 2005 - 11 Days After

 

Chertoff removes Brown from his role in managing the Katrina relief effort, and puts  Coast Guard Vice Admiral Thad W. Allen in charge.

 

—Peter Baker, " FEMA Director Replaced as Head of Relief Effort ," Washington Post , 10 Sep 2005:  A01.

 

Monday September 12, 2005 - Two Weeks After

 

Brown resigns as head of FEMA saying, "it is important that I leave now to avoid further distraction from the ongoing mission of FEMA."

 

—"Statement by Michael D. Brown, Under Secretary of Department of Homeland Security Emergency Preparedness & Response and Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency,"  News Release , FEMA, 12 Sep 2005.

 

September 13, 2005

 

11:30 a.m. – Bush takes responsibility for the federal government’s failures while speaking at a press conference with Iraqi President Talabani.

 

    Bush: Katrina exposed serious problems in our response capability at all levels of government. And to the extent that the federal government didn't fully do its job right, I take responsibility. I want to know what went right and what went wrong.

 

—“President Welcomes President Talabani of Iraq to the White House,” The East Room, news release , 13 Sep 2005.

 

Thursday, September 15, 2005

 

Brown, in an interview published in the New York Times , says the governor and her staff had failed to organize a coherent state effort in the days after the hurricane, and that his field officers in the city were reporting an "out of control" situation to his superiors. He says he asked state officials, "What do you need? Help me help you. . . . The response was like, 'Let us find out,' and then I never received specific requests for specific things that needed doing." A spokesman for the governor said, "That is just totally inaccurate."

 

—David D. Kirkpatrick and Scott Shane, " Ex-FEMA Chief Tells of Frustration and Chaos ," New York Times 15 Sep 2005: A1

 

8:02 p.m. - Bush says, in a prime-time, televised speech from New Orleans, that "the system, at every level of government, was not well-coordinated, and was overwhelmed in the first few days." He says the military should have a greater role in reacting to future large disasters.  "Congress is preparing an investigation, and I will work with members of both parties to make sure this effort is thorough." He promises massive aid, tax breaks, and loan guarantees to aid rebuilding, saying that "there is no way to imagine America without New Orleans, and this great city will rise again."

 

—President Discusses Hurricane Relief in Address to the Nation, Jackson Square,  New Orleans, Louisiana 15 Sep 2005.

 

Correction, Sept. 16: In our original article, we said that the empty Amtrak train left with room for thousands of potential evacuees. Actually, the Washington Post article cited reported that the train had room for several hundred passengers.

 

Update, Sept. 16: We originally identified the official who said on Aug. 30 that New Orleans was not filling up "like a bowl" as FEMA's David Lokey, which was incorrect. We relied on a CNN transcript of that news conference naming Lokey as the speaker. FEMA later contacted us with video of the news conference showing that the speaker was actually Sen. David Vitter, who was standing next to Lokey at the time.

 

http://factcheck.org/article348.html#

[NoCalMike 0]

Haliburton AWARDED contracts to rebuild Nawlins, and wow the best part is that Bush suspended a federal regulation requring Haliburton to pay minimum wages to their employees who work on this New Orleans project......WTG BUSH......UGH

[SuperJerk 0]

You, know...if the Bush Administration isn't totally corrupt, they certainly are doing nothing to prevent people from drawing that conclusion. Doesn't anyone in the administration ever stop and think, "This looks wrong."

[Dobbs 3K 0]

Look at what the war whore, Cindy Sheehan, had to say about New Orleans (from Drudge):

 

Celebrity anti-war protester, fresh off inking a lucrative deal with Speaker's Bureau, has demanded at the HUFFINGTON POST and MICHAEL MOORE'S website that the United States military must immediately leave 'occupied' New Orleans.

 

"I don't care if a human being is black, brown, white, yellow or pink. I donÕt care if a human being is Christian, Muslim, Jew, Buddhist, or pagan. I don't care what flag a person salutes: if a human being is hungry, then it is up to another human being to feed him/her. George Bush needs to stop talking, admit the mistakes of his all around failed administration, pull our troops out of occupied New Orleans and Iraq, and excuse his self from power. The only way America will become more secure is if we have a new administration that cares about Americans even if they donÕt fall into the top two percent of the wealthiest."

 

"Sheehan is in the middle of a bus trip across America in support of her cause. "

 

I guess she'd rather us not have troops there, and let the people fend for themselves, or what? If you are going to say something that stupid, at least present an alternative. She doesn't even do that. I'm sorry your son died, but could you quit being a stupid bitch, Cindy?

[Vampiro69 0]

Ugh, I guess it was only a matter of time till she had to worm her way back into the news.

[Dr. Zaius 0]

"Pull his troops out of occupied New Orleans"? I thought people were supposed to be mad at him for not sending them there fast enough. And as much as I agree invading Iraq was a mistake, a sudden pull-out would make the sacrifice of all the Americans who died there meaningless. Pulling out now will rip whatever silver lining the cloud of the Iraq War might have had.

[Big Ol' Smitty 0]

And as much as I agree invading Iraq was a mistake, a sudden pull-out would make the sacrifice of all the Americans who died there meaningless.  Pulling out now will rip whatever silver lining the cloud of the Iraq War might have had.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

I think I learned in microeconomics that, when making a decision, you shouldn't consider time or resources already spent (opportunity cost?). That is, if the decision was wrong to go to war (as you stated) then continuing on the same course won't somehow make it right.

 

It's more important to make the right decision now, whatever that may be, than to make the wrong decision because of previous lives lost.

[The Czech Republic 0]

And as much as I agree invading Iraq was a mistake, a sudden pull-out would make the sacrifice of all the Americans who died there meaningless.  Pulling out now will rip whatever silver lining the cloud of the Iraq War might have had.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

I think I learned in microeconomics that, when making a decision, you shouldn't consider time or resources already spent (opportunity cost?). That is, if the decision was wrong to go to war (as you stated) then continuing on the same course won't somehow make it right.

I think those are sunk costs. Don't ask me, I got a 2 on my AP macro because my essay was just "macroeconomics can be rearranged to spell ice raccoon moms." How did I not get a 1? I drew a shitty graph in which a guy was skiing down a demand curve. Test fatigue, I guess.

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

Rita headed towards the Gulf of Mexico

 

Well, the good news is, if Rita heads towards New Orleans, they wont need to worry about evacuating.

 

BUT..since the track has it possibly going towards TEXAS, Im guessing that if it even looks like its headed to Texas, people will be evacuated in plenty of time.

 

And oh the Irony if it heads towards Houston...

[Big Ol' Smitty 0]

And as much as I agree invading Iraq was a mistake, a sudden pull-out would make the sacrifice of all the Americans who died there meaningless.  Pulling out now will rip whatever silver lining the cloud of the Iraq War might have had.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

I think I learned in microeconomics that, when making a decision, you shouldn't consider time or resources already spent (opportunity cost?). That is, if the decision was wrong to go to war (as you stated) then continuing on the same course won't somehow make it right.

I think those are sunk costs. Don't ask me, I got a 2 on my AP macro because my essay was just "macroeconomics can be rearranged to spell ice raccoon moms." How did I not get a 1? I drew a shitty graph in which a guy was skiing down a demand curve. Test fatigue, I guess.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Ah, the ol' pictures on the AP test. I drew pictures on all my AP Comparative Politics essays and somehow managed a 3 despite not knowing any of the multiple choices, either. One of the essays was about French government. My response was as follows:

 

Charles de Gaulle once said, "how can you govern a country with 265 different cheeses?"  This statement demonstrates conclusively that France, in fact, has no government.

[SuperJerk 0]

And as much as I agree invading Iraq was a mistake, a sudden pull-out would make the sacrifice of all the Americans who died there meaningless.  Pulling out now will rip whatever silver lining the cloud of the Iraq War might have had.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

I think I learned in microeconomics that, when making a decision, you shouldn't consider time or resources already spent (opportunity cost?). That is, if the decision was wrong to go to war (as you stated) then continuing on the same course won't somehow make it right.

I think those are sunk costs. Don't ask me, I got a 2 on my AP macro because my essay was just "macroeconomics can be rearranged to spell ice raccoon moms." How did I not get a 1? I drew a shitty graph in which a guy was skiing down a demand curve. Test fatigue, I guess.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

At least you remember the direction the demand curve goes.

 

Remember, kids, the supply curve goes up towards the sun, while the demand curve goes down.

[The Czech Republic 0]

I think my graph had a sine wave

[The Czech Republic 0]

BUT..since the track has it possibly going towards TEXAS, Im guessing that if it even looks like its headed to Texas, people will be evacuated in plenty of time.

So if he gets off his ass and comes up with a better gameplan, it'll be "OHH well of COURSE he'd save TEEEEEEEXAS!", but if he didn't jump on it, it'd be "YOU MONSTER! how can you put the country through this again? HALLIBURTON!!!"

 

Guy can't win

[Dr. Zaius 0]

Guy can't win

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

**insert 2000 presidential election joke here**

[Anakin Flair 0]

I got this story on my PDA the other day, and found it to be a powerful read. Here is a LINK to an article from the Washington Post that went in-depth into what happened at the Convention Center. I'd post the article itself, but as it's something like 5 pages...

[Stephen Joseph 0]

btw,

 

Resources already being used are sunk costs. You don't consider them. You only consider the opportunity cost of any new action.

 

Thus, what's the opportunity cost of staying in iraq vs. the opportunity cost of leaving.

 

CIndy is crazy!

[Stephen Joseph 0]

I read that whole timeline. It really doesn't come across that Bush did that bad of a job here. He went about doing what it is that Presidents do, and relied on his directors to handle it. When they didn't, he accepted the responsiblity for the fed's failure.

 

It also seems like the LA government and NO government were MORE incompetent than that of the Fed.

 

Jesus, you don't accept aid packets from the Red Cross??!!

[2GOLD 0]

It also seems like the LA government and NO government were MORE incompetent than that of the Fed.

 

Jesus, you don't accept aid packets from the Red Cross??!!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

If the aid packets were big screen televisions and cash bribes, they would have accepted them with open arms.

[Big Ol' Smitty 0]

Jesus, you don't accept aid packets from the Red Cross??!!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

(Red Cross Head) Evans and the Red Cross, the organization made clear that it concurred with the assessment by officials on the ground that New Orleans proper was unsafe...in a September 2 interview with CNN's Larry King, Evans agreed that the Red Cross had not entered New Orleans because "it was not safe to be in the city, and it's not been safe to go back into the city. ... We were asked -- directed -- by the National Guard and the city and the state emergency management not to go into New Orleans because it was not safe."

[SuperJerk 0]

btw,

 

Resources already being used are sunk costs.  You don't consider them.  You only consider the opportunity cost of any new action.

 

Thus, what's the opportunity cost of staying in iraq vs. the opportunity cost of leaving.

 

CIndy is crazy!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Am I the only person who realizes we're not talking about money?

[Guest Brian]

btw,

 

Resources already being used are sunk costs.  You don't consider them.  You only consider the opportunity cost of any new action.

 

Thus, what's the opportunity cost of staying in iraq vs. the opportunity cost of leaving.

 

CIndy is crazy!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Am I the only person who realizes we're not talking about money?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Well, people have value in economic terms. What is a human life worth, $1 million or so?

[The Czech Republic 0]

Yours sure isn't

 

 

BURN

[Red Hot Thumbtack In The Eye 0]

New Orleans: Choose your own adventure!

 

You are an African-American living in a crack house in a New Orleans slum. You decided to stay and weather out Hurricane Katrina since you were not sure if you could score crack at any of the evacuation centers. The windows of the crack house were already boarded up, you had a couple days worth of rocks and some Fiddy Cent CDs to listen to on a portable boom box. In addition, most of your fellow crack heads had abandoned the house, leaving you to rummage through their stuff for stray crack rocks. You find a couple.

 

When the worst seems to be over, the levee breaks and water floods into your crack house. That's okay. You grab your boom box and crack pipe and run up to the attic. You are lucky and water doesn't reach to the roof like it does the houses down the block.

 

http://www.kuro5hin.org/story/2005/9/6/34041/87727

[CheesalaIsGood 0]

Guy can't win

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

 

 

More like "has run out of excuses for being a suckbag".