Wondering......

[Brett]

I have been thinking about this all day, especially after I was listening to the radio this morning, and one of the DJs was talking about an article he found on the web from a New Orleans paper from back in '01, and the article was about what would happen if a hurricane this strong hit them, and described of course exactly what is happening now......

I dont see how a city that has known for countless years this day would come did not better set themself to protect themselves. For instance the pumps.. If they knew water could reach 15-20 feet of water, why not have the pumps at a higher level ( Have them on large steel frames, and have the pump hose go down into the water to suck the water, why leave them at ground level so when it flooded they would be flooded to and become useless.

Why not build higher levee's? They had from around the 1960's to upgrade this wall and make it tougher and taller, Id think when you are 20 feet below sea level and have large lakes and rivers also around you, youd take this thought a bit more serious.

I am so hurt to see what these people have lost, and will not be able to even begin to clean up for months till they can get the water out, but why a city waits till the problem hits to do something about it amazes me...... The damage could have been so much less if they would have better prepared and took better steps to protect thier city.

[kilpatty43]

thats an excellent question brett...people always assume this sutff will happen but they never think it will happen to them...

but my problem lies in all the sympathy going to the new orleans victims, etc...they knew days in advance how bad it was going to be and to get out...and they stayed...i cant feel sorry for them...

[Brett]

^^ You would be suprised how much of New Orleans population lives below poverty level, many couldnt afford to leave, and had no way to get out and no place to go.

[Leisa]

well.. I have to say that I do have sympathy for them... we dont know what type of financial situation they are in... do they have transportation, a job, etc... sometimes we dont know how we will handle things until it happens to us.... Most of them Im sure are panic stricken

[kilpatty43]

then they shouldve gone to the superdome like the rest of them

[Kevykev]

well.. I have to say that I do have sympathy for them... we dont know what type of financial situation they are in... do they have transportation, a job, etc... sometimes we dont know how we will handle things until it happens to us.... Most of them Im sure are panic stricken

Well stated! :goodjob:

[Brett]

And look at the good it has done them, alot of them are suffering to, and now being shipped off to be "housed" like animals somewhere else, About 75% of the city of NOL I hear is below poverty level, many of these people im sure stayed behind to try and secure what little in life they have, and can you blame them for trying to stay with what little they do have in life? Watch the man in the video they have shown since yesterday who was on his roof, and the water pulled his wife from his hands and she yelled to him as it sucker her way to TAKE CARE OF THE KIDS and he was on the news crying telling how he has lost his wife and house, and everything he has to live for... then say you dont care about them cause they were stupid to stay.

People dont always make the right choices, but I can promise you none of these people expected all this to happen either.

[ProjectWidow]

And look at the good it has done them, alot of them are suffering to, and now being shipped off to be "housed" like animals somewhere else, About 75% of the city of NOL I hear is below poverty level, many of these people im sure stayed behind to try and secure what little in life they have, and can you blame them for trying to stay with what little they do have in life? Watch the man in the video they have shown since yesterday who was on his roof, and the water pulled his wife from his hands and she yelled to him as it sucker her way to TAKE CARE OF THE KIDS and he was on the news crying telling how he has lost his wife and house, and everything he has to live for... then say you dont care about them cause they were stupid to stay.

People dont always make the right choices, but I can promise you none of these people expected all this to happen either.
very well put brett. I feel very sorry for the people that couldn't leave and for all the people that were hurt and are still trapped! It was sad to hear about the story of the guy and saving his kids and leaving his wife behind

[Leisa]

then they shouldve gone to the superdome like the rest of them


what if they didnt have a way to get there?

[Brett]

Whats even worse they say they know its going to be in the 1,000's for the death toll just in NOL, and they say besides the bodys in the street MANY will be found in attics as they died in there trying to get from the rising flood water

[Leisa]

It was sad to hear about the story of the guy and saving his kids and leaving his wife behind


I work with his neice :( its so sad

[Mike]

ya it is very sad what is going on...

[Brett]

Could have been prevented wit better planning I think though

[YokotaS13]

my first thought is why build a city that far under hte sea level?

[C22H19N3O4]

but my problem lies in all the sympathy going to the new orleans victims, etc...they knew days in advance how bad it was going to be and to get out...and they stayed...i cant feel sorry for them...

I guess when one of your parents die from a MI via hyperlipidemia, we really shouldn't care since they knew well in advance a poor diet would eventually kill them?

[Scrappy]

im sorry, that is just wrong to say they should of gone to the superdome like the rest... even news sites and stations stated that some couldnt and waited on other vehicles and things to come get them as they could and it hit fast. Even the people in the superdome are in POOR condition due to it so its not a better life there for them either. I am with brett, they should of atleast made the lake levee higher and stronger considering that is at a higher altitude than the other water passways. But all we can do now is help with what we can and pray, atleast some of us will.

[5thgcelica]

i hear ya brett. i really think they could have set some stuff up better

it NEVER hurts to be safe rather than sorry. and right now..they are sorry for not setting things up better...

[A.P. Photography]

I just saw an Army Corp Engineer talking about the levee's and he said that they built them to withstand a Cat. 3 because it was cost effective. I am sorry but you build to meet the worst case scenario, espically when you are that close to the coast. I draw houses everyday and will tell you that FL has some of the toughest standards in regards to hurricanes compared to other areas like the AL, MS, LA cost.

What it all boils down to is the "It won't happen to me" syndrome. We have built ourselves some levee's and they have worked for us for the past xx years so why worry about spending money to fix something that is not broke. In reality it has always been broke but they have been blessed by not having a direct hit. I believe that a strong Cat. 3 with a direct hit would have done the same as Katrina did. It was poorly engineered and the city officals refused to accept the fact it should have been redesigned. Now N.O. is a victim of their own blindness since in a normal flood the waters would naturally receed, instead the levees have created a human made bowl. I feel sorry for the people there and my heart goes out to them but I lay a lot of the blame on the city engineers and poloticians.

[RISKYB]

little late for all the strategic planning they were going to do huh?

[A.P. Photography]

exactly, N.O. will never be the same. This should have been done years ago, not after the fact. They have interviewed so many people that lived in N.O. that said you had to look up to see the ships going by meaning that was how high up the miss river was compared to the dry land. It does not take a rocket scientist to figure out what would happen if a strong hurricane came through or a levee gave way.

[C22H19N3O4]

At this point, I am more concerned with getting people treated and preventing the spread of disease. We can point the finger later. I have friends down there now helping with the medical efforts, so we'll see how things pan out.

[A.P. Photography]

I agree, but unfortunatley it come back to the leve's. They have to be fixed, temporarliy, so that the water can be drained and get to more stranded victims. They said on the tv that not only is the disease, chemicals, and the like a hazard but now snake, alligators, etc are making their way into the city.

[ahmonrah]

I just saw an Army Corp Engineer talking about the levee's and he said that they built them to withstand a Cat. 3 because it was cost effective. ......... I lay a lot of the blame on the city engineers and poloticians. see that's the fucking problem...."cost effective this cost effective that ......" i can't stand it. it's always the same situation in just about every natural disaster when they occur and wreak havoc on the public. the city didnt plan for the worst case scenario and now people are dead.

it's like sending troops off to war, spending a projected trillion of or tax payer dollars , and the troops arent even properly protected in the vehicles they drive. :rant: sorry , i digress.

there should be no expense when it comes to the protection of life. it's like sending a police officer off too a shootout with toilet paper wrapped around his chest 'cause "HEY!! it's fucking "cost effective".

city officials: never mind our taxed citizens are floating around our....."hey, wasnt that john from bourbon street that just floated by ?? he always paid taxed on time, too bad.." we saved a bunch of money with that ill-designed levee we built.

i'm giving serious thought of going down when rebuilding begins so that i can lend a hand. nevermind school when that time comes.

[5thgcelica]

there should be no expense when it comes to the protection of life. it's like sending a police officer off too a shootout with toilet paper wrapped around his chest 'cause "HEY!! it's fucking "cost effective".


i'm giving serious thought of going down when rebuilding begins so that i can lend a hand. nevermind school when that time comes.


lol you killed me with that one comment..


but yeah. i really think we should get a whole group of IAers and just head down there soon. ive really been thinking about how i can get down there..and hell. just help cleaning and piling things up so it can be hauled off. every little bit helps.

[ahmonrah]

i'm really thinking about it man. i dont know when the clean-up (official) wil begin.

[technoteg97]

The Gov't or the officals knew one day something like this will happen..but not this bad..and No one in that city..or the U.S in that matter would of thought this would happen this bad in our lifetime

[ahmonrah]

that's why there's this thing called (planning for the WORST CASE SCENARIO) i dont know if i'll be involved in a situation with someone where my life may be literally in jeorpardy, but i do own a gun JUST in case.

[mp5o]

thats an excellent question brett...people always assume this sutff will happen but they never think it will happen to them...

but my problem lies in all the sympathy going to the new orleans victims, etc...they knew days in advance how bad it was going to be and to get out...and they stayed...i cant feel sorry for them...


Wow.... Im sorry, but after reading all of your comments... I feel that you are very very..... ......I can't even explain it. Lets just say its not nice.



Back on topic... I agree with you about this situation Brett.

[A.P. Photography]

The Gov't or the officals knew one day something like this will happen..but not this bad..and No one in that city..or the U.S in that matter would of thought this would happen this bad in our lifetime
No that is where you are wrong, it has been predicted for several, several years now that if it was struck head on by a cat. 4-5 hurricane that N.O. would be wiped out completly. Common sense tells you that most of your marsh lands that protected you from large storm surges are gone, the levee system was desgined back at the turn of the century through the 60's (so its outdated), and you are sitting below sea level in a big bowl but you choose to ignore the obvious. I still say that they planned for a cat. 3 protection but if they were ever hit head on by a high cat. 3 it would have been worse that what it is now.

Like Pharm said, we need to worry about getting the survivors out now but to do that the levee system needs to be pluged temporarily to start draining the water out. The biggest problems are boats can't go in alone because it goes from water to dry land back to water. I know a guy on one of the other boards I am on that is in the Coast Guard up in MI and he is heading down there now to help with the rescue efforts. This is def. one for the record books and the scary part is that Hurricae Season is not over yet.

[The Ren]

Thats what I was saying yesterday.. It's not like people cant fathom the idea of this happening.. and its the same as chattanooga with a tornado.. chattanooga is the same way.. a bowl surrounded by mountians if they ever got hit by a tornado it would be no more.. People knew N.O. had a chance of being hit by a hurricane, but Politicans werent too concerned about it obviously..but they can be concerned about banning pitbulls and other stupid shit.. Look how many lives we have already lost...who knows how many more will be lost after all the water is gone.. and they say it will take atleast 2 months for it all to be drained out.. then you have like pharm-teg says.. desise... This wont be over for a looonnngggg time..

I was watching the news yesterday and this guy who has made it up here to one of the shelters in alpharetta was crying.. he said that he has his 3 small kids in his car and the water was flooding his car... well... the water took his 3 kids and he survived...and he has no idea where they are.. I couldnt imagine the kind of hurt he is going through right now..

The only thing I can say is now it's time to give back.. I will help in whatever way possible.. I have already donated money to the red cross.. I can eat roman noodles for awhile.. atleast I have a roof over my head...I wanna go down there too.. Once the water is pumped out they will need help with everything... helping clean..people.. not to mention for my department the zoo and aqurium was ruined... You always hear people talk about how americans need to pull together.. well its true.. this is all we have.. if we cant even help each other.. were doomed anyways

[Bajjani]

heather im sorry but thats real shitty that you dont have sympathy for them...the fact that they had to be put in a situation like this PERIOD should be reason enough. Its easy to say well they had plenty of time to leave but if everything they have is there its not so easy to just pick up and leave knowing that everything you own have and love may not be there when/if you come back..

[rollin_hard]

all this talk about they didn't want to leave what little they had. ok well how about leaving with your life (or families) or staying and losing it (them)? we can't all speculate on this there were so many different situations. its bad, real bad and theres not too much else to say.

[chrisdavis]

all this talk about they didn't want to leave what little they had. ok well how about leaving with your life (or families) or staying and losing it (them)? we can't all speculate on this there were so many different situations. its bad, real bad and theres not too much else to say.

The majority that stayed behind couldnt leave. The poor with no money or transportaion. The sick and the elderly who could not make a trip because thier bodies couldnt handle it. Like Brett said poverty runs rampant down there.

[Brett]

alot stayed because they had no idea it would be this bad and stayed because they knew looters would steal what they did leave behind.