I had not realized how thoroughly and accurately the scene of events which are now taking place in New Orleans had been predicted. According to the LA Times (in a story which for some reason is dated Sept. 2),
Three years ago, New Orleans’ leading local newspaper, the Times-Picayune, National Public Radio’s signature nightly news program, “All Things Considered,” and the New York Times each methodically and compellingly reported that the very existence of south Louisiana’s leading city was at risk and hundreds of thousands of lives imperiled by exactly the sequence of events that occurred this week. All three news organizations also made clear that the danger was growing because of a series of public policy decisions and failure to allocate government funds to alleviate the danger.
It continues later,
One of the separate stories in that first installment — each part consisted of multiple pieces supported by compelling graphics — began: “The risk is growing greater and no one can say how much greater.”
The series’ second part began: “It’s a matter of when, not if. Eventually a major hurricane will hit New Orleans head on, instead of being just a close call. It’s happened before and it’ll happen again.” In that installment, McQuaid and Schleifstein reported that “a major hurricane could decimate the region, but flooding from even a moderate storm could kill thousands. It’s just a matter of time…. Evacuation is the most certain route to safety, but it may be a nightmare. And 100,000 without transportation will be left behind…. Hundreds of thousands would be left homeless, and it would take months to dry out the area and begin to make it livable. But there wouldn’t be much for residents to come home to. The local economy would be in ruins….
“People left behind in an evacuation will be struggling to survive. Some will be housed at the Superdome, the designated shelter in New Orleans for people too sick or infirm to leave the city. Others will end up in last-minute emergency refuges that will offer minimal safety. But many will simply be on their own…. Thousands will drown while trapped in homes or cars by rising waters. Others will be washed away or crushed by debris. Survivors will end up trapped on roofs, in buildings or on high ground surrounded by water, with no means of escape and little food or fresh water, perhaps for several days.”
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