Current Affairs Hurricane Katrina

Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama were hit by Katrina, a large category 5 hurricane. It slammed into the coast with winds at about 140 mph. My state (Alabama) has not really mentioned in the news due to the overwhelming destruction and loss of life that has occurred in New Orleans and Biloxi. There are at least one hundred confirmed deaths in Mississippi and somewhere between 50 and 100 confirmed in Louisiana. The counts are suspected to go up once all survivors have been evacuated and the grim task of recovering and counting bodies begins. New Orleans looked as though it had been relatively spared until a levee on Lake Pontchartrain broke, flooding the city even further.

I feel that I can not do the subject justice… so for more information please visit MSN.


Edit: I really wish I could help the people who have suffered so much because of this storm, but as of right now there is little I can do.

 

There's little any of us can do, seeing as the place is flodded, and nearly destroyed. I've seen some buildings that have every single window destroyed. And not those 4 floor ones, I'm talking about 25 floor hotels with rooms on every angle.

All we can do now is hope for the best, and pray more people get rescued, since i've heard that there's even people trapped in their homes...

-Seishin

 

I really want to help. Quick someone tell me where I can sign up for a crew to work on rebuilding the Levees... wait I'm in Alabama... how am I gonna get there? Interstate ten is shattered like a glass dropped from 5 stories up and only emergency crews are allowed into the area(its a large area). They pedict that people will be in shelters for months and I am guessing based on the fact Gulf Shores hasn't recovered from Ivan yet that the reconstruction of New Orleans and Biloxi will take years. They say that the New Orleans as we knew it is no more... The historic French Quarter will hopefully be better off due to the fact that it is 5 feet above sea level. Unfortunatly most of New Orleans is below sea level and 80% is twenty or more feet below water.

 

news articles

Here is a more recent article from the UK. http://www.guardian.co.uk
pictures
Asian Tribune

 

http://news.yahoo.com/ - theres more stuff on yahoo news.

gaw! go crazy!

 

The effects of the hurricane are very devastating. It hit New Orleans, and I'm feeling the effect even though I'm on the other side of the state. Some of our gas tanks are completely out of gas from people filling their tanks and driving away. We have refugees staying in some people's houses here, and more of them are even taking shelter in the Junior High School here.

My sister had just moved back into New Orleans when the hurricane warnings started. She had to pack up all of her stuff and move with a friend of hers to Slidel, which is somewhere on the Pearl River. Problem is, the hurricane went there, too. We haven't been able to contact her so we don't know if she's ok.

Edit: I just found out my sister is ok. She and the people who she was staying with have to find a place to stay. So now they're gonna travel across the state and stay in my house for however long they need to.

 

It's been a sad week, with Katrina and today the stampede that happened in Iraq. I pray that their souls find rest and that the survivors are taken good care of, and are able to live a decent and good life again.

 

This is a redcrosss link for anyone that wants to help:

https://www.redcross.org/donate/MMRedir.ASP?CID=HUR-MSN

For anyone that wanted to help, you can make a donation on that site.

They're also doing blood donations, but i'm not sure exactly where, gomen.

-Seishin

 

blood donations can be given at your local red cross blood bank. If you give to a red cross bank they will take the blood where it is most needed, as opposed to say my local life south blood bank which would keep it in the community.

 

I heard that sections of the Louisiana state have been literally cleared off the global map. My sympathies to those affected, I sincerely hope our members here who live/were in the area are safe and well.

Here's a pictorail view of the area affected and some other details.



image courtesy from BBC website

- Shen

 

It's a sad week, indeed. Let's hope that the beloved ones will find each other in these tragical events.

- Teddz

 

It is just behond sad to me.. so many people have to restart there lifes, and try to move on with out nothing to start with. There are still people just trying to get off there houses, it makes me feel like crying because of all these hardships these people are going through day and night.

My school is collecting donations I know for the redcross, and I am planning on donating some money to it, and also I can't remeber the right location right now, here is getting like Baby food, food, dipers and all sorts of stuff of the people there.

Just this is a sad time, I never really gave much thought into what Mother Nature could bring upon us..

 

Atlanta isn't the only place going bad because of the hurricane.

Due to lack of transportation, we're running out of gasoline. By the second actually. At the moment, there's some gas stations that don't have any more gasoline, and it's expected to be done by late friday. Not only that, but the gas prices have reached up to 3 U$D a gallon. When it used to cost 15 to fill it, it now takes some people even 60, AND it's running out for now.

Looking at the bright side for us Floridians, we didn't get hit by Katrina. And also thankful that even though it killed a lot of people, it spared lots of lives. Let's be thankful for what we have at the moment.

-Seishin

 

Today I donated $3 to the red cross... I know it's not much but I intend to add to that small amount.
Just imagine if everyone in the U.S. gave at least three dollars, imagine what it could do.
I learned today that there had been two people murdered in the super dome. I also learned of how these people in a hotel each gave $75 dollars so that the manager could rent a bus to get them out of there but that the bus never made it to them... it was hijacked (New Orleans). I have also heard of gangs who have guns and are firing at people in the streets... but that is only what I heard from some one and the words of some people are exaggerated.... sharks yeah right.
a more promising article here
interesting aspect
Anarchy, death and relief for some in New Orleans
Other than the internet I have no good source of news.


"The truth is, a terrible tragedy like this brings out the best in most people, brings out the worst in some people," said Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour.

Edit: donations are being accepted at your local red cross and I found out today that best buy is taking donations for the red cross. =D
I'm not sure if this is true else where but my friend wrote this on her diary

Please check and see if any businesses near you are doing something similar. If I can manage it I will donate blood...
also from my friend

 

This is definitely a sad thing. It has to be one of the biggest natural disasters. My local newspaper has been reporting on it. It has been reporting on the people who have decided to stay. Like one family did because their grandma was wheel chair bound and they couldn’t get her out. Luckily they did before her oxygen ran out. I think this is a very sad time.

 

It's good that relief is being given, but I hope that the people going around shooting those helping get what's coming to them.. That wouldn't happen here in Canada, but then again we don't have guns here.. lol.

I know that we've offered assistance in this matter, but what about other countries? I haven't seen too much in the news, but I'm sure there is relief coming from around the world.

 

As far as it goes and ive seen in the papers, New Orleans is mostly anarchy. Shootings, rapes, and even corpses lying on the street. The situation there is critical, and those people need some help before things start getting worse, and supplies in local stores begin to run out.
Hopefully people there will accept help, and not shoot helicopters, as they've already done.

I wish i could help more than i have, but Ive already gone to the Florida mall and gave all the money I could on the local radio Fundraiser.

Things here in Florida arent looking well either with the gas situation (as Sakata said). "The gasoline (mainly Diesel) is starting to run out, and school activities may already be closed after this labor day."- Orlando Sentinel
While we dont know exactly how much there's left here, fuels deliveries are still coming in so things may start looking up.
"While gasoline was $2.16 a gallon kast month ($2.51 this month), after Katrina's strike it rose to over $2.85 the minimum."- Orlando Sentinel

Kinda sucked going to school today since all we talked about was the damage Katrina had done, not only to New Orleans, but everywhere around it...not just florida.
My teacher already started talking about how we may have another Great Deppression on our hands here, and that bummed me out even more.

It seems Katrina has been affecting more than where it has hit, but the nation around it.


- Kaiyon