Re: NBC: New Orleans
- From: "Gumboman" <noemail@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 31 Aug 2005 15:43:01 -0500
Great article. People better begin to take the global warming problem a lot
more seriously. In terms of storms it's only August and we're already up to
the K's when it comes to names. That's way too many storms for this time of
year and as the article stated they are getting larger and more dangerous
because of the water temps in the Gulf.
JH
<LuvTheBoss@xxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:1125511444.750818.284540@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
You'll appreciate this Jack, it was forwarded to me by a friend this
morning and includes the report of a rescue worker from yesterday.
http://www.americanprogressaction.org/site/apps/nl/newsletter2.asp?c=klLWJcP7H&b=917053
WEATHER
Here's the Story of a Hurricane
In 2001, the Federal Emergency Management Agency ranked a major
hurricane strike on New Orleans as "among the three likeliest, most
catastrophic disasters facing this country," directly behind a
terrorist strike on New York City. Yesterday, disaster struck. One of
the strongest storms in recorded history rocked the Gulf Coast,
bringing 145 mph winds and floods of up to 20 feet . One million
residents were evacuated ; at least 65 are confirmed dead . Tens of
thousands of homes were completely submerged. Mississippi's governor
reported " catastrophic damage on all levels ." Downtown New Orleans
buildings were " imploding ," a fire chief said. Oil surged past $70 a
barrel . New Orleanians were grimly asking each other, " So, where did
you used to live? " (To donate to Red Cross disaster relief, click here
or call 1-800-HELP-NOW). While it happened, President Bush decided to
.... continue his vacation, stopping by the Pueblo El Mirage RV and Golf
Resort in El Mirage, California, to hawk his Medicare drug benefit
plan. On Sunday, President Bush said, "I want to thank all the folks at
the federal level and the state level and the local level who have
taken this storm seriously . Hes not one of them. Below, the Progress
Report presents "How Not to Prepare for a Massive Hurricane," by
President Bush, congressional conservatives, and their corporate
special interest allies.
SLASH SPENDING ON HURRICANE PREPAREDNESS IN NEW ORLEANS: Two months
ago, President Bush took an ax to budget funds that would have helped
New Orleans prepare for such a disaster. The New Orleans branch of the
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers suffered a " record $71.2 million "
reduction in federal funding, a 44.2 percent reduction from its 2001
levels. Reports at the time said that thanks to the cuts, "major
hurricane and flood protection projects will not be awarded to local
engineering firms. ... Also, a study to determine ways to protect the
region from a Category 5 hurricane has been shelved for now." (Too bad
Louisiana isn't a swing state. In the aftermath of Hurricane Frances --
and the run-up to the 2004 election -- the Bush administration awarded
$31 million in disaster relief to Florida residents who didn't even
experience hurricane damage.)
DESTROY NATURAL HURRICANE PROTECTIONS: The Gulf Coast wetlands form a "
natural buffer that helps protect New Orleans from storms," slowing
hurricanes down as they approach from sea. When he came into office,
President Bush pledged to uphold the " no net loss " wetland policy his
father initiated. He didn't keep his word. Bush rolled back tough
wetland policies set by the Clinton administration, ordering federal
agencies "to stop protecting as many as 20 million acres of wetlands
and an untold number of waterways nationwide." Last year, four
environmental groups issued a joint report showing that administration
policies had allowed "developers to drain thousands of acres of
wetlands ." The result? New Orleans may be in even greater danger:
"Studies show that if the wetlands keep vanishing over the next few
decades, then you won't need a giant storm to devastate New Orleans --
a much weaker, more common kind of hurricane could destroy the city too
.."
GUT THE AGENCY TASKED WITH DEVELOPING HURRICANE RESPONSES:
Forward-thinking federal plans with titles like "Issues and Options in
Flood Hazards Management," "Floods: A National Policy Concern," and "A
Framework for Flood Hazards Management" would be particularly valuable
in a time of increasingly intense hurricanes. Unfortunately, the agency
that used to produce them -- the Office of Technology Assessment (OTA)
-- was gutted by Gingrich conservatives several years ago. As Chris
Mooney (who presciently warned of the need to bulk up hurricane
defenses in New Orleans last May ) noted yesterday, "If we ever return
to science-based policymaking based on professionalism and expertise,
rather than ideology , an office like OTA would be very useful in
studying how best to save a city like New Orleans -- and how Congress
might consider appropriating money to achieve this end."
SEND OUR FIRST RESPONDERS TO FIGHT A WAR OF CHOICE: National Guard and
Reserve soldiers are typically on the front lines responding to
disasters like Katrina -- that is, if they're not fighting in Iraq.
Roughly 35 percent of Louisiana's National Guard is currently deployed
in Iraq , where guardsmen and women make up about four of every 10
soldiers. Additionally, "Dozens of high water vehicles, humvees,
refuelers and generators" used by the Louisiana Guard are also tied up
abroad. "The National Guard needs that equipment back home to support
the homeland security mission," Louisiana National Guard Lt. Colonel
Pete Schneider told reporters earlier this month. " Recruitment is down
dramatically , mostly because prospective recruits are worried about
deployments to Iraq, Afghanistan or another country," the AP reported
recently. "I used to be able to get about eight people a month," said
National Guard 1st Sgt. Derick Young, a New Orleans recruiter. "Now,
I'm lucky if I can get one."
HELP FUEL GLOBAL WARMING: Severe weather occurrences like hurricanes
and heat waves already take hundreds of lives and cause millions in
damages each year. As the Progress Report has noted , data increasingly
suggest that human-induced global warming is making these phenomena
more dangerous and extreme than ever. "The hurricane that struck
Louisiana yesterday was nicknamed Katrina by the National Weather
Service," science author Ross Gelbspan writes. " Its real name is
global warming ." AP reported recently on a Massachusetts Institute of
Technology analysis that shows that "major storms spinning in both the
Atlantic and the Pacific ... have increased in duration and intensity
by about 50 percent" since the 1970s, trends that are "closely linked
to increases in the average temperatures of the ocean surface and also
correspond to increases in global average atmospheric temperatures
during the same period." Yet just last week, as Katrina was gathering
steam and looming over the Gulf, the Bush administration released new
CAFE standards that actually encourage automakers to produce bigger,
less fuel efficient vehicles, while preventing states from taking
strong, progressive action to reverse global warming.
END
below is an e-mail by a rescue worker that was forwarded to me. i'm
leery
of forwarding unattributed material because wild tales spread via
internet,
but this comes from a good source.
i have refrained from any political commentary thus far, but i will say
this, re the penultimate paragraph:
the poorest 20% (you can argue with the number -- 10%? 18%? no one
knows)
of the city was left behind to drown. period. and this was the plan.
forget the sanctimonious bullshit about the bullheaded people who
wouldn't
leave. the evacuation plan was strictly laissez-faire. it depended on
privately owned vehicles, and on having ready cash to fund an
evacuation.
the planners knew full well that the poor, who in new orleans are
overwhelmingly black, wouldn't be able to get out. the resources --
meaning, the political will -- weren't there to get them out.
white per capita income in orleans parish, 2000 census: $31,971
black per capita: $11,332
median *household* income in B.W. Cooper (Calliope) Housing Projects,
2000:
$13,263.
and now here's the rescue worker, whose name i don't know:
* * *
There are dead animals floating in the water, pets left behind. Surely
people thought they would be back to collect the pets. Not so. The
rescuers smell like gas when they come back in; there's gas in all of
the
water that consumes the area. Fires are burning all over the place.
Our
teams are tired and they are thirsty and they are hungry. And they have
a
place to sleep and water to drink and food to eat. I can only imagine
how
the people without these "luxuries" are feeling right now.
Each night will be a race against time. When night falls, people can't
get
picked up from roofs, the rescuers can't chop into people's roofs to
check
the attics for anyone alive or for anyone dead (sadly, there are dead).
At
night we can't see power lines we can't see obstacles, we can't see any
of
the things that will bring down a helicopter or pose a danger to boats
rescuers.
One of the teams came in today after having been out for hours at a
time.
One particular rescuer went straight to a corner and collapsed into
tears.
I went directly to him and just held his hand. What else could I do?
I
said nothing. He said it all. They lowered him 26 times and he pulled
26
people to safety. He wants to be back out there but there are
mandatory
rest periods. His tears are tears of frustration.
Entire teams are working on nothing but evacuating the hospitals. All
four
of the major hospitals are beginning to flood. Critical patients have
to
get out or surely they will be lost. Generators cannot run forever;
that's
just the way it is. There are limited facilities to take those that
are
rescued and those that need to be evacuated. Anything that leaves by
air
leaves by helicopter. There are no runways for planes that aren't
under
water. Only one drivable way in and out.
Water everywhere and more keeps coming. Until they can do something
about
the three levees that are broken, more water will come and more water
will
kill. The water poses major health threats. Anyone with even a small
open
cut is prone to infection. Anyone who touches this water and touches
his
eyes, nose or mouth without find a way to "clean" himself first will be
sick
with stomach problems before long. It's bad and it's getting worse.
It's
not going to be anything better than devastating for days or weeks at
best.
I wish I could tell you that I'll check in again soon. I can't. I
don't
know when my next message will get out. We'll be leaving where we are
within just an hour or so.
.
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