NEW ORLEANS (+ Casino Coast, others) EVACUEES FLEE

[Zynx]

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=514&e=2&u=/ap/20040914/ap_on_re_us/hurricane_ivan_15

>>NEW ORLEANS - More than 1.2 million people in metropolitan New Orleans were warned to get out Tuesday as 140-mph Hurricane Ivan churned toward the Gulf Coast, threatening to submerge this below-sea-level city in what could be the most disastrous storm to hit in nearly 40 years.

Residents streamed inland in bumper-to-bumper traffic in an agonizingly slow exodus amid dire warnings that Ivan could overwhelm New Orleans with up to 20 feet of filthy, chemical-polluted water. About three-quarters of a million more people along the coast in Florida, Mississippi and Alabama were also told to evacuate.


Forecasters said Ivan, a killer blamed for at least 68 deaths in the Caribbean, could reach 160 mph and strengthen to Category 5, the highest level, by the time it blows ashore as early as Thursday somewhere along the Gulf Coast.


"Hopefully the house will still be here when we get back," said Tara Chandra, a doctor at Tulane University in New Orleans who packed up his car, moved plants indoors and tried to book a Houston hotel room. Chandra said he wanted to ride out the storm, but his wife wanted to evacuate: "All the news reports are kind of freaking her out." <<

[Eloriel]

1. Hah! My part of GA has already been issued both a

High Wind alert for Thursday AND a Flash Flood advisory.

:-(

I still hope Ivan skips N.O. tho.

[Sparkle]

2. Don't come to Houston!

(just kidding) I love N'awlins!

[Eloriel]

3. Wow -- just watching a guy from aLouisiana State U on MSNBC --

Parts of N.O. are below sea level, and with the loss of wetlands and barrier islands, N.O. is in a very perilous situation. :-(

[tedoll78]

4. Yup.

If you're anywhere between Pensacola and Bossier City, get away from the Gulf! True, a pressure front might push it off to the east, but Category 4 and 5 hurricanes are notoriously unpredictable, and even powerful enough to sometimes overpower those kind of fronts..

Get moving! The highways will be even worse tomorrow!

[Spoon]

5. A major 'cane strike New Orleans is ranked #1 on the list of

potential natural disasters in the US. If Ivan misses, it isn't gonna be by much. Get out!

[Zynx]

6. Actually, I would say it would be #3

#1 Underground Yellowstone caldera going off. USA east of Rockies made uninhabitable.

#2 Major New Madrid Earthquake. Destroys St. Louis and Memphis, probably destroys Kentucky Lake and floods N.O. anyway. :nuke:

[mom cat]

7. Not to mention the Cape Anne (MA) earthquake which is overdue.

It is expected to equal the New Madrid quake which created Realfoot Lake and rang church bells in Bostom.

[Art_from_Ark]

11. Ah, so you saw "Making of a Continent", too?

Anyway, that first Cap Ann quake was a real zinger

[yardwork]

12. Yes, the New Madrid Earthquake is supposed to do us in in NC too

Ce la vie!

[soothsayer]

8. C'mon, Marie Laveaux----keep Ivan away! n/t

[Missy Vixen]

9. To quote the old song

Do you know what it means
To miss New Orleans...

I hope Ivan leaves her alone. In the meantime, I'll take some red beans and rice.

Love ya, N.O.

Julie

[Eye and Monkey]

10. or another - "Louisiana...They tryin' to wash us away" (I'm in SE LA)

Randy Newman's 'Louisiana 1929' -
What has happened down here is the wind has changed
Clouds roll in from the North and it start to rain
Rained real hard and it rained a real long time
Six feet o' water in the streets of Evangeline

My house is on the edge of a swamp, across Lake Ponchartrain from New Orleans. I finished buttoning-up about 7pm. I'm staying. So are my neighbors.

[yardwork]

13. Take care of yourself and please check in here tomorrow!

I'll be thinking about you.

[drdtroit]

14. Good luck

and god Bless you!

[Armand04]

16. Stay Safe

Good luck!. Stay safe. Don't forget that the real heroes are those who live to fight another day ... Please, everybody in the area in danger, don't doubt to flee if there's no alternative ...

:hi:

[Eye and Monkey]

17. Thank you all - it's appreciated

Everyone out here has a we're-in-it-together attitude. Whatever happens, we'll pull together.

[newyawker99]

18. Hi Armand04!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[Armand04]

19. Thank you

Thankx for your warm welcome.

[lpricanprynces]

15. Just Clean it up before Mardi Gras!

J/K! :P