You think you can get 100,000 people out of a city in 30 hours?
Evacuations began on Saturday. "The state has opened two medical needs shelters in the state, one in Alexandria (800-841-5778) and one in Monroe (866-280-7287)." The Superdome was announced as a shelter of last resort. New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin, in a joint afternoon news conference with Gov. Kathleen Blanco, warned residents to take Katrina seriously. Hoping for yet another near miss could be deadly, he said. “This is not a test. This is the real deal,” Nagin said. Mandatory evacuation is done 30 hours before expected landfall, Nagin started urging people to leave before that.
http://www.nola.com/newslogs/breakingtp/index.ssf?/mtlogs/nola_Times-Picayune/archives/2005_08_27.htmlSunday - more evacuations, mandatory evacuation "To help keep them fed and hydrated, the Louisiana National Guard delivered three truckloads of water and seven truckloads of MREs — short for "meals ready to eat." That'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."
"Children’s Hospital on Sunday night started moving patients and departments off the first floor. “We’re moving all our patients up to the second through sixth floors,” said Medical Director Alan Robson. “The generators are on the second floor, and we’ve got enough fuel to last us two or three weeks ... I am told the hospital is five feet above sea level, and we’re calculating that if there’s a wall of water like they are predicting, that we can survive." Landrieu & Vitter "They also urged the president "respectfully but in the strongest possible terms to tour the devastated area as soon as practical," a visit they said would reassure residents that federal agencies are focused on helping the area recover." "The facilities, operated by the departments of Social Services and Health and Hospitals, are designed for people who are homebound, chronically ill or disabled; need medical or nursing care; and have no other place to receive treatment." Phone numbers & transportation to these shelters provided. "RTA buses will be picking up citizens for free and take them to these shelters."
http://www.nola.com/newslogs/breakingtp/index.ssf?/mtlogs/nola_Times-Picayune/archives/2005_08_28.html