Waiting
There's nothing to do today but follow accounts of Hurricane Katrina. I don't know how involved I'd be if it weren't for Ms NOLA, whose parents have safely evacuated themselves all the way to Shreveport. A moot question, certainly. The storm came out of nowhere. Having deluged Florida without inflicting much wind damage, Katrina drifted into the Gulf of Mexico and promptly picked up steam, becoming stronger than ever.
For years, observers have remarked that New Orleans is in no shape to resist, or possibly even to survive, the blows of a Category 5 storm. (Katrina was a Category 5 storm yesterday, but weakened a bit - to Category 4 - as it hit the coast.) What has been done? Exactly nothing, it would appear. Pumps and levees were put in place after the last really big storm, in the Thirties. But New Orleans is as much as twenty feet below sea level, and surrounded by water. We're not talking about flooding by the rain or by the Mississippi. Lake Ponchartrain, to the north, is simply a vast tank waiting to dump its contents on the town, and if the levee is breached, that's that. The city's many old wooden buildings are at risk not only from winds but from falling trees.
Who knows how long it will take to restore the power needed to operate the pumps? Who knows how long it will take to restore the oil supply that has been upset by the storm?
How long before people start thinking about these things a little bit in advance?
Hello, socialism!
Comments
Please.
You are dealing with another country. No, New Orleans is another world.
Not to worry. After a period of hand-wringing and soul searching, after spending all the FEMA money and any other handouts from the Federal government, all will return to the normal lethargy endemic to and wonderful about New Orleans.
And to think otherwise, cher, is simply being fou.
Laissez les bon temps rouler...........
Posted by: PPOQ | August 29, 2005 01:38 PM
I sincerely hope that my childhood home has not been wiped off the map. This has been a strange experience. Feeling so closely tied to NOLA and yet I'm looking out the window at a sunny day in NYC.
I hope that when I go home for a friend's wedding in October, we will not only celebrate Marguerite and Chris' union, but also the survival of one of the most unique and wonderful places in the world. There is nothing like New Orleans.
To say I am broken hearted today is an understatement.
Posted by: Ms. NOLA | August 29, 2005 01:56 PM
Just as much a problem will be how long will it take to fix the broken 50-inch water main in N.O.?
Working with underground utilities is a _major_ project there.
So glad Ms NOLA's parents got out safely.
My older son, his fiance and her parents left out of N.O. early Sunday morning. I guess the marriage is still on: we will see. October 15, at an old Episcopal church in or near the Garden District.
I prefer the old N. O., but will take whatever is left after the pieces are picked up. I spent three years at the NAS NOLA from 59 to 62.
Posted by: Richard in Florida | August 30, 2005 01:25 PM
NOLA Update: The niece, a pharmacology grad student at Tulane, reports that classes are canceled until 7 Sept. She evaucated to College Station.
Posted by: George | September 1, 2005 12:48 AM