In New Orleans, no shelter for those who stay

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(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-08-30 10:26

Those in most need of help, the elderly, sick, and those without transportation, will be moved first. Mayor Ray Nagin said buses and trains would begin to evacuate those people beginning early Saturday morning. Several parishes announced plans for evacuations beginning Saturday. By early Sunday, Nagin said officials would look at the potential for a mandatory evacuation.

In Mississippi, Gov. Haley Barbour had already called for the evacuation of residents along the Katrina-scarred coast, many of whom still live in temporary housing. And in Louisiana, residents of low-lying Grande Isle were under a voluntary evacuation order beginning Friday. The community is traditionally one of the first to vacate when tropical weather threatens.

Making the decision about exactly when and where to evacuate was tough. Gustav confounded emergency preparedness officials as its forecast track shifted through the day. Authorities also wanted to avoid creating any unnecessary panic.

In New Orleans, the locations of the evacuation buses were not made public because people who need a ride are supposed to go to designated pickup points, not to the staging area.

Lamont Dersone sorts belongings as he prepares to possibly evacuate from Hurricane Gustav in the Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans, Louisiana August 28, 2008. [Agencies]

But that approach worried some residents. Elouise Williams, 68, said she called the city's 311 hot line Thursday until she was "blue in the face."

She was concerned about getting a ride to the pickup point and about what would happen to those who left. As of late Friday afternoon, she planned to remain in the Algiers neighborhood and look in on any other residents who stayed behind.

"My thing is, my fright is, if we have somebody in these houses and they're not able to get out, they're going to perish," she said, "And we had enough of that in Katrina."

Critics said New Orleans was waiting too long. Bob Wheelersburg, a former Army Reserve major and liaison officer for emergency preparedness, said National Guard units are suffering from equipment and manpower shortages.

"If I was the governor of Louisiana, I'd give the evacuation order as soon as possible," Wheelersburg said. "I think it's going to be a huge disaster."

Some residents weren't waiting for a formal call, they left Friday, long before the storm was even close to the shoreline.

"I'm getting out of here. I can't take another hurricane," said Ramona Summers, 59, whose house flooded during Katrina. She hurried to help friends gather their belongings. Her car was already packed for Gonzales, nearly 60 miles away.

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