Insufficent warnings?

Aug. 31 (Bloomberg)—New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin said Hurricane Katrina probably killed hundreds and “most likely, thousands” of residents as officials sought to evacuate 23,000 refugees to Houston.

A reader who lives in the South and has been following the hurricane closely comments:

I think Mayor Ray Nagin probably killed hundreds and “most likely, thousands” of residents of New Orleans, while expecting a category five hurricane, by neglecting to tell them that they would most likely not be allowed, or able, to return to their homes for a matter of many weeks or months, if ever. They left with backpacks and pillows, and not much else. Nearly as many received no information because they lost power. Instead of capable leadership, one hears the mayor complaining of there being “too many frickin’ cooks in the kitchen” on national TV. He had no disaster plan, even though New Orleans was known for many years to be extremely vulnerable in such a scenario. A former mayor stated they have never had a disaster plan. In 2000, FEMA said a category five hurricane in New Orleans would be one of the three worst catastrophes that could happen in the US. It is that. I ask why.

Posted by Lawrence Auster at August 31, 2005 05:28 PM | Send