Drowning New Orleans [2001]A major hurricane could swamp New Orleans under 20 feet of water, killing thousands. Human activities along the Mississippi River have dramatically increased the risk, and now only massive reengineering of southeastern Louisiana can save the city
By Mark Fischetti
posted by Postroad
on Sep 1, 2005 -
91 comments
National Data Buoy Center (Google cache), "the premiere source of meteorological and oceanographic measurements for the marine environment" in the U.S., is located at the
NASA Stennis Space Center on the Mississippi gulf coast, is a primary source of hurricane observational data, and is currently
offline. At present, the U.S. spends only $50 million annually on ocean observations of vital socio-economic impact. The latest
national commission for ocean policy recommended $4 billion annually, including the construction of a distributed, disaster-proof,
national ocean observing system, as a component of a
global system. The previous ocean commission report in 1969 resulted in the formation of
NOAA and the passage of the
Coastal Zone Management Act. Will Congress act? The E.U.
has.
posted by 3.2.3
on Aug 31, 2005 -
6 comments
Gas at $4 a gallon? A quick
summary of the current reasons gas remains high ("Not I!" squawks the refiners, "Not I!" squawks producers). The EPA is easing restrictions in affected areas and the national oil keg is
being tapped (WSJ), yet despite the whole doom-and-gloom scenerios the
Economist remains perky about the cause of rising prices, "higher oil prices [now] reflect strong demand, ... they are the product of healthy global growth."
posted by geoff.
on Aug 31, 2005 -
122 comments
Let the bush bashing begin. Funding for work on New Orleans' flood prevention system slowed to a trickle in 2003, and many people (long before Monday) claimed that was due to the Iraq war. [more inside]
posted by delmoi
on Aug 30, 2005 -
181 comments
Live Local Coverage Of Hurricane Katrina New Orleans television stations
WWL
and
WDSU
are providing nonstop live coverage of Hurricane Katrina. The
Mississippi Department Of
Transportation has live cams along the major highways which show the massive evacuation of the coastal areas of Louisiana and Mississippi including the metropolitan areas of New Orleans and the Mississippi Gulf Coast. With gusts of 207 MPH this could set a new record for the largest hurricane to ever hit the United
States.
posted by robliberal
on Aug 28, 2005 -
624 comments
Katrina targets New Orleans. Mandatory evacuations have been declared, and contraflow evacuation routes are in effect near New Orleans, as
Hurricane Katrina, a very wet, drenching hurricane,
approaches the city from the Gulf of Mexico, where it is gaining in size and strength, with an estimated
45% chance of making landfall as a category 4 or 5 hurricane. The
computer models suggest that New Orleans will sustain a direct hit from Katrina, which could be
"The Big One" warned about by experts, capable of
flooding the city, polluting it with industrial waste, and even flooding the pump stations, leaving it incapable of pumping out the water. The hurricane is predicted to make landfall early Monday near
Port Fourchon, which handles approximately
13% of U.S. oil imports, and 27% of U.S. domestic production.
posted by insomnia_lj
on Aug 27, 2005 -
272 comments
