Hurricane in US

Apparently the storm itself was 400 miles across, if that had hit the UK, it would have flattened or caused damage to most of the country between London and Newcastle. Storm surges of 30ft hit land.

The Mississippi has already reclaimed land along with people and houses and flood waters have some gone 5 miles inland. New Orleans is still filling up with water, with 80% under water and some parts 20ft deep. Just goes to show that for all mans control over so many things that when mother nature displays her raw power, even in the richest country on planet earth, there is very little that can be done.

 

It is horrendous looking at the TV footage, watching Fox News last night it was showing the coastguard helicopter winching people off the top of roofs, where the water was up to the roof, and almost every rooftop you could see had people sat on top.
New Orleans is a great city and I hope they can recover quickly from this, but I suspect it won' be as quick as mid October when I'm due to visit.
I've a friend in Louisiana that I've not been able to contact and also another friends parents live in that area.

 

The real problem is that because New Orleans sits in a bowl (the land has sunk since the French originally settled there) the water has nowhere to go and with the water levels still rising it won't stop rising until the water levels equalise or they plug the gaps in the breaches. However, even then you will only be able to remove it by pumping the water out, which is no easy task over tens of square miles of land. Attempting that isn't going to happen anytime soon because there is no electricty for the pumps. It's early days but id say some of New Orleans as a city is in jeopardy of surviving and other parts will have to be completely re-built.

http://forms.belointeractive.com/sharedcontent/datafiles/1125380695760_ORIGINAL_100_0861.jpg

 

so basically

its sea water that is coming through holes in the 'wall' around the city?

 

The water is coming from the Lake next to New Orleans

 

RE: The water is coming from the Lake next to New Orleans

It was the fear that, even if the city avoided a direct hit by the hurricane, it would lift the water from Lake Pontchartrain and dump it over the levees.
Furthermore there is the problem of salt water in freshwater systems, but theres a whole host of things further down the line.

http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/pontchartrain/figures/fig1.html

I heard a very good comment yesterday though from someone who had evacuated and was commenting on how many people got out of the way of the hurricane - he said "That's the value of the space programme". When people comment about money spent on going into space but without that we wouldn't be able to track and forecast hurricanes like we do.

 

RE: The water is coming from the Lake next to New Orleans

Apparently they have failed in their initial attempts to drop 3,000lb sandbags into the breaches, so the water is still pouring through and filling up New Orleans. They are trying to find a barge to block the hole according do ABC News. The Superdome has no electricity so they are going to have to evacuate the thousands of people inside it within the next two days.

I cant begin to imagine a 30ft tidal surge. At the EA we have warnings for 2ft tidal surges on the East coast which can cause poeple to be moved from their homes. The building of the Thames Barrier came about after a 3-6ft tidal surge back in 1953. That displaced some 25,000 people and killed 300.

 

ignore that!

I copied and pasted the wrong piece.........

Apparently they have failed in their initial attempts to drop 3,000lb sandbags into the breaches, so the water is still pouring through and filling up New Orleans. They are trying to find a barge to block the hole according do ABC News. The Superdome has no electricity so they are going to have to evacuate the thousands of people inside it within the next two days.

I cant begin to imagine a 30ft tidal surge. At the EA we have warnings for 2ft tidal surges on the East coast which can cause poeple to be moved from their homes. The building of the Thames Barrier came about after a 3-6ft tidal surge back in 1953. That displaced some 25,000 people and killed 300.

 

Isn't that the same piece?

 

I blame the government

... as I'm sure you do too.

 

RE: Isn't that the same piece?

erm yeah sorry, my brain has melted or something.

 

RE: I blame the government

Jesus dont be such a dick.

 

but with the refinerys etc the water to pump will be toxic - will they be allowed to pump back out?

Still cant believe the yanks are going crazy at having to pay 45ppl for petrol!! They should try it over here a while at double that now and we haven't had a disaster!

 

Acky, he was joking

Dunt be so confrontational.

 

RE: Acky, he was joking

Sorry, I just find it very unfunny that people are suffering and he uses the situation to make some piss poor joke about the situation.

Where was the punchline?

 

Where was the punchline?

You just provided it.

I bet your boyfriends ears are constantly ringing.

 

RE: but with the refinerys etc the water to pump will be toxic - will they be allowed to pump back o

Have a read of this - its from 2002 and explains what one scientist thought may happen if New Orleans was struck by a hurricane. Barring the fact there was no direct hit of the city, the rest of it is eerily prophetic.



http://americanradioworks.publicradio.org/features/wetlands/hurricane_print.html

 

FFS

PMSL
(babyhaha) (babyhaha) (babyhaha)

 

thats pretty eerie! Sounds just like the roman empire falling

When the rivers that fetched their boats silted up after the felling of trees for production left the soil to erode and ran into the rivers.

Whatever we take fromt he earth mother nature will take it back again - eventually!

 

He was" joking" but he's just not funny!

I totally agree Acky not funny as usual. Typical of EI Addio - I thought he 'd stopped posting after the TT incidents! Shame always cheapening the site