Hurricane Katrina

Evacuation and emergency shelters

"Not since the Dust Bowl of the 1930s or the end of the Civil War in the 1860s have so many Americans been on the move from a single event."

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http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/12617095.htm

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At a news conference 10 a.m. on August 28, shortly after Katrina was upgraded to a Category 5 storm, New Orleans mayor C. Ray Nagin, calling Katrina "a storm that most of us have long feared," ordered the first ever mandatory evacuation of the city. Contraflow lane reversal on Interstate 10 leading west and Interstates 55 and 59 leading north from New Orleans was ended that afternoon.http://www.gov.state.la.us/Press_Release_detail.asp?id=983

Related Topics:
August 28 - C. Ray Nagin - Mandatory evacuation - Contraflow lane reversal

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Two weeks after the storm, over half the States were involved in providing shelter for evacuees. By four weeks after the storm, evacuees had been registered in all 50 states and in almost half the Zip codes of the U.S.http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/usatoday/20050929/ts_usatoday/katrinaexodusreachesallstates Three quarters of evacuees had stayed within 250 miles but tens of thousands had located more than 1000 miles away.

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The Louisiana State Evacuation Plan http://www.ohsep.louisiana.gov/plans/EOPSupplement1a.pdf declares "The primary means of hurricane evacuation will be personal vehicles. School and municipal buses, government-owned vehicles and vehicles provided by volunteer agencies may be used to provide transportation for individuals who lack transportation and require assistance in evacuating" in Part 1 Section D. The state evacuation plan also assigns the responsibility of evacuation to each Parish with the language "Conduct and control local evacuation in parishes located in the risk area and manage reception and shelter operations in parishes located in the host area" in Part 1 Section D. The state evacuation plan also assigns the responsibility of evacuation of the sick and those needing assistance to the owners of the facilities with the language: "Hospitals, nursing homes, group homes, etc. will have pre-determined evacuation and/or refuge plans if evacuation becomes necessary. All

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facilities will have approved Multi-Hazard Emergency Operations Plans as mandated by the State of Louisiana, Dept. of Health and Hospitals (DHH). Before operating permits are given to homes/hospitals, emergency precautions are to be taken, such as the placement of emergency supplies and equipment (i.e., generators and potable water) on upper floors.." in Part 1 Section D. As many of these facilities relied on the same bus companies and ambulance services for evacuation, several were unable to evacuate before the storm hit, resulting in the deaths of their occupants.

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Roughly 150,000 people were not able to evacuate, partially because hundreds of available New Orleans school buses were not used in the evacuation http://washingtontimes.com/national/20050909-113107-3180r.htm. According to NBC's veteran reporter Lisa Myers, "A draft emergency plan, prepared by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and obtained by NBC News, calls for '400 buses to ... evacuate victims.' Yet those 400 buses were left in Katrina's path." Myers reports New Orleans Mayor Nagin refused comment on the matter. http://msnbc.msn.com/id/9231926/

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While some have claimed school bus drivers were not available, the very first bus to arrive at the Reliant Astrodome with New Orleans evacuees was a New Orleans school bus driven by an evacuee, 20 year old Jabbar Gibson, who commandeered it.http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/topstory2/3334317 Any licensed driver is suitable in an emergency.

Related Topics:
Reliant Astrodome - Jabbar Gibson

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The bus situation was not lost on at least one New Orleans evacuee, Connie London, interviewed by ABC Reporter Dean Reynolds at the Reliant Astrodome. The evacuee cites the bus flooding as her major criticism of the performance of city and state officials in handling Hurricane Katrina.http://newsbusters.org/media/2005-09-15-ABCPSP.wmv Video (wmv file, 00:54 seconds)

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http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Controversy_over_whether_New_Orleans_Mayor_failed_to_follow_hurricane_plan The Governor used her authority to utilize public school buses from other parishes long after the levee broke. http://www.gov.state.la.us/Press_Release_detail.asp?id=991

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In addition to residents, many tourists were stranded. Fuel and rental cars were in short supply; also, Greyhound bus and Amtrak train service were halted well before the hurricane made landfall http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050905/NEWS01/509050309/1009&theme=. Future analysis of motor vehicle registration, census and Social Security Information, and death certificates may help to provide more clarity. During the Hurricane Ivan evacuation, 600,000 people remained in the city http://www.blackpressusa.com/News/Article.asp?SID=3&Title=Hot+Stories&NewsID=4744.

Related Topics:
Greyhound - Amtrak - Motor vehicle registration - Census - Social Security - Death certificate - Hurricane Ivan

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Mandatory evacuations were also ordered for Assumption, Jefferson (Kenner, Metairie, as well as Grand Isle and other low lying areas), Lafourche (outside the floodgates), Plaquemines, St. Charles and St. James parishes and parts of St. Tammany, Tangipahoa and Terrebonne parishes in Louisiana.

Related Topics:
Assumption - Jefferson - Lafourche - Floodgate - Plaquemines - St. Charles - St. James - St. Tammany - Tangipahoa - Terrebonne

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In Alabama, evacuations were ordered for parts of Mobile and Baldwin counties (including Gulf Shores). In Mississippi, evacuations were ordered for parts of Hancock, Harrison and Jackson counties.

Related Topics:
Alabama - Mobile - Baldwin - Gulf Shores - Mississippi - Hancock - Harrison - Jackson

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New Orleans shelters

Louisiana Superdome

On August 28, as Hurricane Katrina grew into a Category 5 storm that had yet to make landfall, Nagin established several "refuges of last resort" for citizens who could not leave the city, including the massive Louisiana Superdome. The New Orleans Times - Picayune reported that the Louisiana National Guard delivered three truckloads of water and seven truckloads of MRE's, enough to supply 15,000 people for three days according to Col. Jay Mayeaux, deputy director of the Department of Homeland Security's Office of Emergency Preparedness http://www.nola.com/newslogs/breakingtp/index.ssf?/mtlogs/nola_Times-Picayune/archives/2005_08_28.html#074657. The Superdome housed over 9,000 people along with 550 National Guard troops when Katrina came ashore http://www.wwltv.com/local/stories/WWL082705nagin.b7724856.html. On August 29, Katrina passed over New Orleans with such force that it ripped two holes in the Superdome roof. A National Guard official said on Thursday, September 1, that as many as 60,000 people had gathered at the Superdome for evacuation, having remained there in increasingly difficult circumstances http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20050901/ts_nm/weather_katrina_dc, http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/australians-tell-of-panic-and-squalor-among-refugees/2005/09/01/1125302683884.html, http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/despair-inside-the-superdome/2005/09/01/1125302683872.html. Air conditioning, electricity, and running water all failed, making for very unsanitary and uncomfortable conditions. There have been widespread reports of murders, rapes, beatings, robberies, and general mayhem in the Superdomehttp://www.theage.com.au/news/World/Australians-tell-of-New-Orleans-horror/2005/09/02/1125302728417.html?oneclick=true, though most reports appear in the foreign press, as mainstream U.S. media have omitted the more serious reports. http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N03464940.htm

Related Topics:
August 28 - Louisiana Superdome - National Guard - August 29 - September 1

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Most of these reports were determined to be based on unverified rumors and myths http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-na-rumors27sep27,0,5536446.story?track=hpmostemailedlinkhttp://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/29/national/nationalspecial/29crime.html?ei=5094&en=74a33a33d7d7f26e&hp=&ex=1127966400&partner=homepage&pagewanted=print. By late September, it had become clear that nearly all of the murder, rape, and other crime rumors were false http://www.nola.com/newslogs/tporleans/index.ssf?/mtlogs/nola_tporleans/archives/2005_09_26.html#082732

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On August 31, it was announced that evacuees would be moved to the Astrodome in Houston, Texas. By September 6, the Superdome was completely evacuated. Officials say that the flood damage, debris, human waste and bodily fluids in the Superdome is a "potential biohazard," and that it is too early to tell what the final fate of the structure will be, although demolition has been cited as a possible outcome.

Related Topics:
August 31 - Astrodome - Houston, Texas - September 6

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New Orleans Convention Center

The New Orleans Convention Center was broken into by August 30th, and by September 1, the facility, like the Superdome, was overwhelmed and declared unsafe and unsanitary. Reports of violence, beatings, and rape among those gathered in the convention center were widespread. Several people died while sheltered within. Reports indicated that up to 20,000 people had gathered at the Convention Center, many dropped off after rescue from flooded areas of the city. Others were directed to the center by the police, headed by Eddie Compass, as a possible refuge. However, even though there were thousands of evacuees at the center, along with network newscasters, pleading desperately for help on CNN, FOX, and other broadcast outlets, FEMA head Michael Brown and Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff both claimed to have no knowledge of the use of the Convention Center as a shelter until the afternoon of September 1 (CNN Video), although later Brown said he misspoke and had learned of them 24 hours earlier.http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/15/national/nationalspecial/15brown.html?adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1126803643-4cdGKNZ1Z5Rsk3GiPf/trg For two days, still, the evacuees' pleas were ignored. Those able to walk the distance could have left the Convention Center, and the city, via the Crescent City Connection Bridge, but were prevented from doing so at gunpoint by Gretna, LA sheriffs http://www.thisamericanlife.org/pages/descriptions/05/296.html. The Convention Center was completely evacuated by September 3. By September 8 there were reports that the claims of rape and murder at the Convention Center and the Superdome could be false http://www.reason.com/links/links090605.shtml. By late September, it was found that nearly all of these claims were in fact false. http://www.nola.com/newslogs/tporleans/index.ssf?/mtlogs/nola_tporleans/archives/2005_09_26.html#082732

Related Topics:
August 30 - September 1 - Eddie Compass - Michael Brown - September 3 - September 8

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Shelters in Texas

On August 31, the Harris County, Texas Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management and the State of Louisiana came to an agreement to allow at least 25,000 evacuees from New Orleans, especially those who were sheltered in the Louisiana Superdome, to move to the Astrodome until they could return home. The evacuation began on September 1.

Related Topics:
August 31 - Harris County, Texas - Louisiana - New Orleans - Louisiana Superdome - September 1

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However, as of September 2, officials declared the Reliant Astrodome full and unable to accept additional hurricane refugees from the disaster. The Reliant Astrodome was reopened a few hours later, and it was announced that the Reliant Center would have all events cancelled through December so as to open the building to ~11,000 additional evacuees. The George R. Brown Convention Center was announced as an additional shelter site at the same time, but was not opened for use until September 3.

Related Topics:
September 2 - Reliant Astrodome - Reliant Center - George R. Brown Convention Center - September 3

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When the Houston shelters began to reach capacity on September 2, Texas Governor Rick Perry activated an emergency plan that made space for an additional 25,000 in each of San Antonio and the Dallas/ Fort Worth/Arlington,TX Metroplex and smaller shelters in communities across Texas. Beginning with a convoy of 50 buses (2,700 people) that arrived at the Dallas Reunion Arena at 3:00 a.m. CST September 3, a wave of over 120,000 additional evacuees began pouring into Texas at a rate, such that as of September 5, it was estimated there are roughly 139,000 evacuees in official shelters in the state, adding to the estimated 90,000 already in hotels and homes.

Related Topics:
September 2 - San Antonio - Dallas - Fort Worth - Arlington,TX - September 3 - September 5

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By the afternoon of September 5, with a total estimated number of over 230,000 evacuees in Texas, Governor Perry ordered that buses begin being diverted to other shelters outside the state resulting in 20,000 being sent to Oklahoma and 30,000 being sent to Arkansas. By Labor Day, September 6, Texas had an estimated 250,000 evacuees and Governor Perry was forced to declare a state of emergency in Texas and issued an impassioned plea to other states to begin taking the 40,000-50,000 evacuees that were still in need of shelter.

Related Topics:
September 5 - Texas - September 6

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