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October 2005                                                                                Volume 9 - Number 1

Hurricane Katrina Related Activities...

       THIRD TIMES A CHARM? LESSON APPARENTLY NOT LEARNED
BY SHANDI STRACKE

Using the Louisiana Superdome as a refuge of last resort during Hurricane Katrina was not the first time the city of New Orleans has done so.

In September 1998, as Hurricane Georges, a category 3 was bearing down on the city; the Superdome was open to the public as a shelter for the first time. Shelterees were told to bring their own food and water, as there was no guaranteed it would be provided for them.

The Superdome, built in 1975,  was ostensibly estimated to be able to withstand winds with speeds of up to 200 mph and apparently built to withstand most catastrophes. However, flood waters could still possibly reach the second level, 20 feet from the ground, making it unreliable to use as a shelter during a severe hurricane.

At 1 pm on Sunday, September 27th, people started moving into the Superdome. 14,000 people eventually took shelter in the giant dome many of which did not heed the warning to bring food and water. The storm eventually shifted to the northeast, just clipping New Orleans with tropical force winds and rain. Within 24 hour of being in the Superdome, the shelterees were getting restless, and those who did not bring food were getting hungry; only having been served hotdogs and cornflakes with condensed milk.

By 4:00 pm Monday, September 28th, Hurricane Georges was north of Biloxi. Overall, the building did not suffer any storm related damage and had no other problems related to the weather. Unfortunately, those that took shelter in the dome did not leave it as they had found it; people raided the luxury suites, taking furniture and televisions on their way out. This looting significantly damaged the building.
Barely a year later, in September 1999, the city was faced with another potentially dangerous hurricane with Hurricane Ivan pin-balling through the Atlantic and Gulf Coast.
On Wednesday, September 29th, with Ivan just hours away, the Mayor decided to open part of the massive stadium initially to medical refugees, and later that day to the general public. By 6:30 pm officials locked the doors with only 1,100 people inside.
The shelterees were confined to one end zone and the concourse directly behind it. Again they were told to bring food and water with them, and again only a few did. A majority of the shelterees were homeless and had nothing to bring in the first place.
Unlike the mayhem with Hurricane Georges, the sheltering operation was more organized; rules were established in the beginning and were enforced, this time, by 300 National Guardsmen. A meal of spaghetti and meatballs was sent over by the sheriff’s department; snacks and water were also available to the shelterees.
Having downgraded significantly, the storm caused no damage to the building and added up to only a bad storm once over. The next morning people were handed a bag of food as they headed back into the city and in some cases back to their homes; a fairly uneventful stay, they had been sheltered from the storm.
Maybe the city officials had too many years between terrible storms, or maybe they had amnesia; as they prepared for Hurricane Katrina this year the lessons learned during Hurricane Georges and a seemingly positive response to Hurricane Ivan were not fresh in their minds.
The Superdome once again was used as a "shelter of last resort" for those unable to evacuate New Orleans on August 28, 2005. Approximately 9,000 residents and 550 National Guardsmen spent the night in the dome as Katrina came ashore. Security checkpoints were set up and guardsmen confiscate weapons, alcohal and illicit drugs. Once again shelterees were told to bring food and water to ride out the storm.
When the storm hit the city on August 29th, reports from inside the Superdome indicated that part of the roof was "peeling off," daylight could be seen from inside the dome as rain poured in. As expected with Hurricane Georges, this time flooding began on August 30 and the Superdome began to slowly fill with water at its lowest point.
With the storm over and search and rescue taking place, the number of people eventually taking shelter in the Superdome was around 15,000 to 20,000.
On August 31, it was announced that the shelterees in the Superdome would be moved to the Reliant Astrodome in Houston, Texas. By then the condition of the Superdome had rapidly deteriorated. Without power, water and proper sanitation, the shelterees were living in deplorable conditions. There had also been unconfirmed reports of rape, vandalism, violent assaults, crack dealing/drug abuse, gang activity and confrimed reports of inside three deaths within the Superdome: two elderly medical patients and a man who is believed to have committed suicide by jumping from the upper level seats.
Why was the city not prepared to use the Superdome as a shelter when it had been done in the past? They knew what wored and what didn’t they had plenty of time to pre-position commoditeis and personnel, third time should be a charm.