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I still think you are underestimating the enormity of
this crisis. Comparing your hurricanes in NC to NO is not the
same... In the end, the hurricane (a Category 5), as tremendous as it
was, was not the most devastating event - the flood was. The Lake
Pontchartrain levee system is controlled by the US Army Corps of Engineers and
funded by US Congress and presidential legislation. That funding was
reduced drastically over the years, putting NO in this danger, which is why the
NO Times - Picayune wrote the article preceding last year's hurricane season,
and Natl. Geographic wrote it's article last October (which were mentioned
in previous article). Just think, the few million federal dollars to
shore up the levee system would have saved 10.5 billion in federal dollars
now. Good to have a plan.
This is not just about New Orleans - Biloxi and
Gulfport practically don't exist any more and that's something that's not
getting very much press. The people there are in the same kind of housing
situation as NO, but they are still doing better than NO because there
wasn't a flood, so they don't have to wade through toxic water filled with
alligators, snakes, rats, feces, and sit on top of roofs, etc.
Transportation does not have to be done by boat in Mississippi, and
everything is more accessible - supplies can get in, people can get out.
In New Orleans, you can't rebuild - even pick up - until the water's gone, which
will take another 3 months.
Another thought, for all the city/state/federal
planners out there: We have two more months of hurricanes left - what if we have
another one? Weren't there 4 or 5 in a row in Florida last
year?
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