The worst storm there ever was
People are calling Hurricane Katrina historic. They're also calling her "hellish". The death toll is climbing and experts are estimating it's going to be in the thousands before everyone is found. Right now, or at least yesterday and the day before, the bodies of those who didn't survive, are being left so that the survivors can be pulled from rooftops and attics. God bless the Coast Guard.
The SuperDome, which became a 'last resort shelter', quickly trapped its inhabitants as it lost power early in the morning on Tuesday. Then, Katrina started ripping pieces of roof off of the structure, leaving holes enough for rain to come pouring in. Since then the mayor of New Orleans has ordered a 100% evacuation of the city. The grateful shut-ins at the SuperDome are being bussed to the AstroDome in Houston, TX. Martial law has been declared and the looting has begun. This morning on NPR I heard that people are looting from grocery stores, pharmacies and homes ... and bringing their booty back to temporary shelters where they are selling things like bottled water and food for outrageous prices. There are also those who are just looting. The governor of Mississippi has declared that the looting will stop. Yesterday 10,000 more national guard were dispatched to the region and there's talk that New Orleans may be in sight of a recovery turning point.
Here in comfy North Carolina the worst we've seen of the effect of Katrina is the leap in gas prices. I filled up my tank on Monday morning for $2.54 a gallon. By yesterday afternoon gas was $2.99 and I suspect it will only keep rising. This morning I saw $3.10. Down in Georgia, my father-in-law says that people have started gouging for gas, asking for $5.50 a gallon and starting rumors that we're out of fuel. This morning on NPR I heard that there are stations with only premium fuel left ... the low and midgrade fuel supplies had already been depleted. Bill Weatherspoon, the director of the North Carolina Petroleum Council, assures the people that we don't have a fuel shortage. "We have a delivery problem," he says. This delivery problem comes from the fact that the pipelines that supply the state with gasoline don't have electricity. No electricity means no pumping. No pumping means no fuel. We'll just have to wait and see.
Over 1,000 people are listed as dead from a stampede in Baghdad, the result of a rumor that there was an incoming suicide bomber. Most of the people trampled and drowned were women and children.
Our prayers go out to everyone. May God's hand of peace reach you all.