Posted on 03/03/2006 10:31:24 PM PST by Ellesu
The videotape of Governor Kathleen Blanco telling White House staffers the New Orleans levee had not breached was the talk of the Capitol on Friday. The videotaped, obtained by the Associated Press, was taken hours after the White House received confirmation from the National Weather Service that the levees had breached.
At noon on August 29th, Blanco's voice is heard on the tape telling staffers, "I think we've heard that we have not breached the levees. We have not breached the levees at this point in time." That was the same time Hurricane Katrina was flooding New Orleans East and St. Bernard Parish. A little later on the tape, Blanco said, "...where we have waters that are eight to ten feet deep and we have people swimming in..."
The White House staffers claim the National Weather Service confirmed the levee breaches at 9:12 that morning, three hours before the phone call from Governor Blanco.
Governor Blanco explained Friday that communications were down and it was tough to get any reports confirmed during the worst of the storm. She says the tape shows that she reported what was important, that New Orleans was flooding and that people were in trouble.
"In the middle of a hurricane, it is very difficult to understand exactly what is going on and, you know, I responded to the White House what I knew at the time, but also reassured the nation that things were changing dramatically," Blanco said.
On the tape, Blanco told White House staffers that water was overtopping the levees. Col. Jeff Smith, Louisiana Homeland Security, defended the governor Friday, saying, "It doesn't matter whether or not the water is from an overtopping or whether ot not it's from a breach."
Blanco says what was said then is not as important now as trying to rebuild the Louisiana coast. "A hurricane hit our state of great dimensions. A second one followed behind it and finished off the rest of the coastline. Our work is far too great to sit around and try to kick blame from one corner to another."
Col. Jeff Smith says the office of Homeland Security is working on fixing communication problems between emergency agencies. He's hoping the state gets a $35 million federal grant so all police, fire and EMS radios will be able to communication with each other.
Funny how she thinks that defense will work for her and Nagin -- but not for FEMA or the White House.
The panel's probe also found that Louisiana has not spent $58 million in first-responder grants dating back to 2003, Collins said. The state only uses 16 percent of its funding for communications, half the national average, she said.
State emergency preparedness officials who administer the program could not be reached to comment on the claims.
Communications firms cite problems in N.O. after Katrina
Advocate, The (Baton Rouge, LA)
February 7, 2006
Author: GERARD SHIELDS; WASHINGTON BUREAU
WASHINGTON - In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, Federal Emergency Management Agency workers commandeered gasoline from a company trying to restore telephone service to the hurricane-ravaged New Orleans area, a U.S. Senate investigative panel found.
The Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee on Monday released an e-mail obtained from Cox Louisiana Telecom LLC. The company was trying to restore service to 85,000 customers, according to Kay Jackson, director of regulatory affairs.
She complained about FEMA to the Louisiana Public Service Commission.
"Our efforts to get our telecommunications network back up and running is being severely hampered by FEMA," Jackson wrote.
"They are denying our field personnel fuel and taking any surplus we have, including gasoline in technicians' trucks in the field."
FEMA officials could not be reached for comment Monday evening.
The gasoline incident was held up by the committee as an example of how communications companies were often hampered by federal, state and local authorities from returning to New Orleans to repair a system vital to recovery efforts.
In another instance, e-mails showed that MCI was denied access to the New Orleans area by Louisiana State Police, who told company officials they needed a letter from Gov. Kathleen Blanco.
A State Police spokeswoman was unavailable to respond to the claim Monday evening.
Peter Fonash, deputy manager of the National Communications System with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, said such access issues are not unusual because the matter is not outlined in the National Response Plan.
"It's extraordinary to me that this wasn't recognized prior to Katrina or any other natural disasters," said U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, who chairs the committee.
The panel's probe also found that Louisiana has not spent $58 million in first-responder grants dating back to 2003, Collins said. The state only uses 16 percent of its funding for communications, half the national average, she said.
State emergency preparedness officials who administer the program could not be reached to comment on the claims.
Interoperability was a chief frustration during and after the storm, said Collins, who called it the "Achilles heel" of emergency response.
"Communications among first responders and with their headquarters were, at best, sporadic, inconsistent and overwhelmed by competing traffic," she said. "More often, it was non-existent."
The hearing also focused on law enforcement response, including whether the Department of Homeland Security and Department of Justice were fighting over the leadership role.
The committee unveiled e-mails that showed the two agencies skirmishing a week after the storm over who would take the lead.
"This lack of coordination slowed federal assistance, which could have avoided the breakdown of law and order that had serious consequences on the ground in the desperate and confusing aftermath of Katrina," said U.S. Sen. Joseph Lieberman, D-Conn.
But Michael J. Vanacore of the Department of Homeland Security denied the existence of tensions, saying the departments agreed to work jointly.
"Everybody on the ground was doing their job," said Vanacore, director of international affairs at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
The panel heard what Collins described as "chilling and eloquent" testimony from Warren Riley, superintendent of the New Orleans Police Department.
Riley, who was named police superintendent by Mayor Ray Nagin after Eddie Compass resigned, described a call from a panicked officer trapped in his attic who thought he was going to die and said his goodbyes before shooting out a vent to escape.
Riley also relayed 911 calls from pleading residents who were shouting "my babies can't swim" and "my husband has drowned."
http://www.2theadvocate.com
Ah, so things were confusing for someone right there, but President Bush was expected to fix everything right away even if he didn't have the information.
"Blanco says what was said then... "
Was BS just like now?
Hey, Blank-o! News flash: You didn't "reassure the nation" about anything...except your stupidity.
From what I can tell, Blanco is getting a bum rap on this.
But then... as you giveth, so shall ye...
I believe Blanco did not know...the first reports of the levee breaking were via shortwave...I remember listening via the internet....was also the first indication that Slidell was slammed...the ham at the EOC lost his house, and couldnt locate his family.....the extent of the flooding was not apparently until the winds died down and the first aerial helicopter was let in..... why that was a helicopter from Van Nuys, Ca, I dont know.
Strange, she doesn't want to point fingers now.
Susan Collins is an idiot.
>>>Interoperability was a chief frustration during and after the storm, said Collins, who called it the "Achilles heel" of emergency response.
Blaming everything on "interoperability" is a red herring.
Just what I was going to post.
Didn't the levees break in the wee hours of aug. 30, the day after Katrina struck? If memory serves, everyone breathed a sigh of relief on Aug 29th and then we woke up to a flooded New Orleans next day.
You have FR Mail
http://www.monitoringtimes.com/html/mt_interop_freqs.pdf
http://www.monitoringtimes.com/html/MT-Editorial-Nov05.pdf <<----must read
Blast from the past (1998):
NEW ORLEANS (Sept. 27) - The Big Easy was decidedly uneasy Sunday, as New Orleans prepared for its worst nightmare hurricane - a massive storm that would sit overhead for days, driving Lake Pontchartrain's waters over the levees and submerging the city.
''We're just waiting for the trigger to be pulled,'' said Lt. Col. Ronnie Jones of the Louisiana State Police, but thousands didn't wait for Hurricane Georges to arrive. They fled, turning Interstates 10 and 55 into bumper-to-bumper processions.
The storm, with winds of 110 mph, was expected to smash the Gulf Coast Sunday night or Monday; intermittant downpours started Saturday night, and flooding was already reported on the Florida Panhandle.
All told, forecasters predicted as many as 25 inches of rain would fall on New Orleans, coupled with a storm surge that could suck up millions of gallons of water and send it coursing like a tidal wave toward the city.
In a town that averages six feet below sea level - a city bordered by swamps, tidal lakes and the Mississippi River - the results could be catastrophic.
''We're the best city in America,'' said Mayor Marc Morial. ''But this may not have been the best place 300 years ago to place a city.''
I'm confused, the headlines have been screaming for days that Bush KNEW the levees had been breached - then this - so what is the story here?
Thank You.
Good reads, Karl. Thanks for the links!
Yes, the storm "missed" New Orleans, the reporters all said the city was saved...then early that evening the levees started breaking (as the waters upstream filled up Lake Ponchatrain, then the canals).....the first helo over the city showing extensive flooding was mid day, day 2.
If I recall, the winds had to drop below 50 mph or something like that.
I forgot to add that Monitoring Times is light years ahead of Popular Communicaiotns these days. Pop Comm has degenerated into a Bush-bashing rag, first in the editorials, and now in many articles. I haven't picked up a copy in months.
The press should switch back to the Port Deal. This Katrina thing has only managed to help one person and that is the former FEMA chief Michael Brown. I am glad he has gotten his due, the guy did nothing wrong and was scapegoated. He handled previous disasters just fine including Sept 11th as Deputy director.
http://www.sptimes.com/2005/09/10/Worldandnation/_Average__past_trails.shtml
Also the suggestion that he had an "average past" was just an empty attack. He had proven himself over and over with his actions and I know from personal experience that just because someone didn't "supervise" employees doesn't mean you didn't "supervise" employees. I for one have "supervised" government employees while in a contractor role. I assigned them work and they worked in a supporting role to me. I may have not been able to fire them or take action against them but in all other ways I indeed supervised them but in the government lookglass world things are often one way on paper and another entirely in reality. Regardless I was happy to see a good man who was beaten down and then hung out to dry get a fair shake.
I sent that clown at Pop Comm a letter....and a cancellation. Now that other Scanning USA Magazine is popping off too about domestic spying....citing ACLU studies and such!
Rerminding me that on 9/11, the NYPD and the NYFD could not talk to one anoither. Bureaucracies demand that everything be done from the top down, so this slows joint action among those in the field.
Isn't this typical of this administration? Standing up for demorats who don't have a problem blaming the administration for every ill? Makes me want to puke. She is caught saying something that contrasts what Bush is seen saying on video but she is not attacked like Bush is because why? Because she in an underling demorat? Sheesh.
They started the blame game. The sword cuts both ways.
"Overtopping" stops when the storm passes.
"A breach" continues to pour water through the levee until either it is patched or the water level in the city matches that in the canal (which is exactly what happened). Remember all of those pictures showing water flowing into the city AFTER the storm had passed?
If this guy doesn't understand the difference, he should be fired from his position in LA Homeland Security.
Yeah ... as if that is all she will say on the subject and not to bother her any further. Besides, the President and Federal agencies located 1,500 miles away in Washington should know the minute to minute update, not the local mayor or state governor. That call by the President to evacuate was just a power-grab thing!
You notice in the copy of the story how white house staffers "claim" while Gov. Blanco "explained"? The writer learned well at "Leading,Slanted Reporting 101" at Radio Moscow U.
That is what I tried to explain to some libs I work with, but they think Bush should have known everything. I asked them how they could blame Bush, when he was getting flawed info from Blanco. They had no answer, once I confronted them with FACTS.
I was really PO'ed at the Austin paper yesterday. The day before, they had the "Bush Knew" story on the front page above the fold. Where was this story hidden? On A-2 in the National Digest section. A one or two sentence blurb in an area very few people even look at, much less read.
I intend to write a letter to the editor and chastise their liberal @$$es. I am close to canceling my subscription. They went up on prices last year, but I'm locked in at the student rate, since my daughter is still in college.
I am sorry, I am sick to death hearting about Katrina. I am just a housewife but here's the way I see it. They knew a cat 5 was coming to the area days before. Do not wait until the day before to tell people they should think about evacuating. Don't wait on Greyhound to get peoples butts out of there. Use school buses, bicycles whatever. Don't depend on people hundreds of miles away to do everything for you. If you can't think on your feet and use common sense you have no business being in any leadership roles. It was up to the leaders in Lousiana to get the people to safety and they failed, end of story.
Stupid.
Correction, the previous comment was made by Col. Jeff Smith, Louisiana Homeland Security.
The comment is still stupid.
Search4Truth was there for the whole thing. Perhaps he can share the timeline. He was in Lakeview by the 17th Street Canal breach.
"Our work is far too great to sit around and try to kick blame from one corner to another."
Spoken like a person who knows she is at fault....
along with several others.
It just KILLS ME how these NIT WITS are given a pass by the media. I would love to see the actual laws/procedures for evacuation and emergency management for LA that existed in the hours before the storm hit.
Here's the timeline. The storm was only 6 days from the beginning to the end. It was 2 days in FL and just a TS when it entered the gulf. 1.5 million people did get out of the way.
INDEPTH: HURRICANE KATRINA
Hurricane Katrina timeline
CBC News Online | Updated September 4, 2005
Aug. 24, 2005
Tropical Depression 12 strengthens into Tropical Storm Katrina over the Central Bahamas, and a hurricane warning is issued for the southeastern Florida coast.
Aug. 25, 2005
Hurricane Katrina strikes Florida between Hallandale Beach and North Miami Beach as a Category 1 hurricane with 130 km/h winds.
Aug. 26, 2005
Katrina weakens over land into a tropical storm, before moving out over the Gulf of Mexico. It grows to a Category 2 hurricane with 160 km/h winds, veering north and west toward Mississippi and Louisiana. 10,000 National Guard troops are dispatched across the Gulf Coast.
Aug. 27, 2005
Eleven people die in Florida. Katrina becomes a Category 3 storm, with 185 km/h winds, and a hurricane warning is issued for Louisiana's southeastern coast, including New Orleans and Lake Pontchartrain, and for the northern Gulf coast. New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin declares a state of emergency and urges residents in low-lying areas to evacuate. Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour declares a state of emergency. A mandatory evacuation is ordered for Hancock County, 65 kilometres east of New Orleans on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Coastal Gulf residents jam freeways and gas stations as they rush to escape.
Aug. 28, 2005
Katrina grows into a Category 5 storm with 260 km/h winds, and heads for the northern Gulf coast. Mayor Nagin orders a mandatory evacuation for New Orleans, but 10 shelters are also set up, including the Superdome, for those unable to leave. Evacuation orders are posted all along the Mississippi coast. Alabama Governor Bob Riley declares a state of emergency.
Aug. 29, 2005
Katrina, now a Category 4 hurricane with 230 km/h winds, makes landfall near Buras, La., at 6:10 a.m. CT (7:10 a.m. ET). U.S. President Bush makes emergency disaster declarations for Louisiana and Mississippi, freeing up federal funds. Katrina rips two holes in the Superdome's roof, with some 10,000 people inside. At least eight Gulf Coast refineries shut down or reduce operations. Airports close in New Orleans, Baton Rouge, La., Biloxi, Miss., Mobile, Ala., and Pensacola, Fla. Hundreds of flights are canceled or diverted.
Aug. 30, 2005
The death toll in Mississippi rises to more than 100. Two levees break in New Orleans and water pours in, covering 80 per cent of the city and rising in some areas to six metres deep. Many people climb onto roofs to escape. Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco says everyone still in New Orleans - an estimated 50,000 to 100,000 people - must be gotten out. Crowds swell at the Superdome and the convention centre in New Orleans. Rescuers in helicopters and boats pick up hundreds of stranded people in New Orleans, and reports of looting begin to emerge. About 40,000 people are in American Red Cross shelters, not including in New Orleans. President Bush cuts short his vacation.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/katrina/katrina_timeline.html
Reporting for duty sir.
I lived on Canal Blvd near the corner of Harrison avenue. It is about 1 mile from the 17th street canal breach, 2 miles from the London avenue canal breach and about 2 miles from the lake. I was there through the entire disaster.
I thought we had escaped this hurricane relatively unscathed. With the exception of a couple of tons of oak tree on the back of my house and lots of tree debris in the street. It seemed the worse had passed.
It was maybe 1 or 2 hours at the most, after the worst of the hurricane had passed, that I walked outside to survey the damage and to plan for the cleanup. There was lots of debris and wind damage, but not hardly a puddle of standing water. The areas near the lake and near the river are the highest in New Orleans. We have never had flooding here, ever. That is when I saw the surge coming down Harrison avenue from the east. I know now, it was the London avenue canal breach.
This was not a little water running along the streets, as if a sewer line had broken. It was a mass of water. It looked to be only about two feet high in front. But you could see the mass growing in the distance. It looked like a mountain of water. It was as if the whole lake was coming at me. This mass moved all at once - like an invading army, fanning out in every direction. Like it had a purpose. In this mass was every manner of debris. All the remnants of what the hurricane had torn apart, was being gathered my this mass of water and moved with it. I could hear the crashing as debris ladened water was being slammed into the buildings and houses in its path. It moved faster than a man could run. I couldn't believe what I was seeing.
As the surge approached Canal blvd - the Canal blvd median being 4-5 feet higher than the surrounding area - it turned and went down Canal blvd. There was a hope still in my mind at that point that some might be sparred this odious threat. But it was not more than an hour later, that another surge came down Harrison avenue from the west. Which I know now was from the 17th street canal breach. When these two surges met at Canal blvd I knew we were in deep trouble.
The living room of my home has a window which reaches floor to ceiling, wall to wall. So I had a panoramic view of everything that was happening on the street. As I sat there, trying to come to terms with what I was witnessing, I saw something moving along the Canal blvd median. At first I thought it was just debris. It was moving in the same direction as the surge. Which was now heading downgrade toward the center of the city. There was every manner of object now being carried in the surge. The to my horror, I realized it was 2 women and two children. After a moment of panic from what I saw, I ran as fast as I could to try to get to them. So I ran downstairs to go outside to call to them. But my progress was impeded by the fact that I had to swim under the water to get out of my house and then out into the open where they could see me. By the time I got out there, there were already almost out of ear shod. So I got up as much strength and air as I could muster, which is difficult when you are immersed in water, and yelled as loud as I could. To my great relief they turned and saw me.
I started then to swim to them. All the debris that was just below the surface of the water was constantly trying to ensnare me. When I got to them I asked the oldest, "were in the hell are you going". She said, "the bank". I told her "the bank is closed". I think she was in shock. Not only was the bank in the direction of the London avenue breach, it was under 8-10 feet of water. Worse still, the debris in the water was like a mine field - step in the wrong place and you would drown.
So I told them to come with me. As I led them back to my house, now about 50 yards away, I had to be mindful of the debris. Of the children with these two women, one was a 9 year-old girl, and the other an 18 month old baby. I tried to take the baby from her so I could carry her, but the baby started screaming which just raised the tensions further. So I gave the baby back to her. I was trying to find them a safe path back to my house. I was trying to find an area which was shallow enough and free of dangerous debris. As I was trying to feel my way, my foot become entangled in something. I fell forward and was under water and could not right myself. After a couple of tugs I was not able to free my foot. I remember a feeling of panic ran through me. Then I thought, while still under water, that I still have air in my lungs, I'm going to try to pull one more time to free my foot, if it doesn't work I'm going to use the stuck foot to pull myself down to where I'm snagged and free myself with my hands. So I pulled one more time as hard as I could, and the foot came lose. I then directed the women to walk around that area to another I was now walking.
After I got them in the house I dried them off and fed them. I had food and water for at least a month. Plus everything else I needed to survive. I know this drill well. They just sat there and stared out the window, not saying a word. I think they were in shock. Then when the rescue boats arrived, only a few hours later, and as they started to board the boat - my second story patio was now a boat dock - they broke down and cried. I knew then they would be alright. I decided not to go with the rescuers. I thought there might be more for me to do. I ended up leaving 3 days later. Which was the beginning of a 6 month struggle of survival. But that is another story.
I was witness to many acts of courage and humanitarianism. There are people to whom I owe a debt of gratitude I can never repay. God bless them for their kindness and generosity. These were people who had little to give, but gave generously. I will never forget them. I will write about them later.
This event brought out the best in good people, and the worst in the bad people.
God bless America.
Thanks for sharing your experience. I pinged the list so that they could read for themselves what it was like.
Wow, so the breaches were a couple of hours after the storm passed right?
FYI
Yes. That is exactly the way it happened. It was mere hours after the worst of the storm had passed that the city was inundated with surge water. And it would have taken only minutes after the breaches had occurred for the water to reach my pos.
If those two canals had been isolated from the lake with flood gates, where the canals meet the lake, then none of this would have happened. And they are still not putting flood gates there. Even though it would be easy to do because they are only drainage canals, not transit.
I will consider moving back to New Orleans only after they put flood gates on both of those canals, and any other canal that leads to the lake. Starting with the drainage canals. And when I see the heads of those responsible for this disaster on pikes.
I don't blame you for not wanting to move back until it's safe again. Are the canals even necessary?
Because the city is beneath sea level, all the rain has to be pumped out of the city. The canals are the medium through which the pumps remove the water from the city into the lake. The lake levees are huge earthen levees. There is no problem with them being breached. Being topped is a minor problem, if the pumps continue to run. Which they did not. The canals are protected with a relatively small levee with a flood wall atop them. They should have never been exposed to the mass of the lake water. I know now, it was inevitable that they would fail.
If those drainage canals had been isolated, none of this would have happened.
This disaster happened because of the depraved indifference and ruthless greed of evil men. I wont consider going back until we have had justice done. It will take years before this city is purged of the ruthless corruption that led to this unprecedented disaster. We will see what happens next hurricane season. There may be come a time when we will seek our own justice. This is the Deep South I remind you.
Whose idea was it to use floodwalls? I'm very familiar with the earthen levees. They did just fine from what I have gathered.
I know that the pumps failed which there needs to always be a backup.
I am quite aware of the Deep South justice system. No need to remind me at all. Do you think that the corruption will honestly be dealt with?
I HATE that nanny-bitch!
The Levee Board and the Corps of Engineers are responsible for flood protection.
The Levee Board is as corrupt as the day is long. My family has been fighting them in court for generations now; for a criminal land grab fraud called the Bohemian spillway. The Levee board seized property of ours, and many others, on the pretense that it was needed as a spillway for flood control. But instead of creating a spillway, they leased it out to the oil companies and have been receiving oil revenues from them for generations. We have beaten them in court continuously, but still we have not gotten our property back; property that Chevron is at this moment pumping oil out of and giving the royalties to the Levee board.
This is the reality of the situation. The overwhelming majority of the tax payers of New Orleans have left. One can not have a city without tax payers. These are the people who built New Orleans in the first place. And these are the people who can rebuild it. These people are already making new lives for themselves elsewhere. Which is what one would expect from those kinds of people.
One of two things are going to happen. The corruption will end, and those with the wherewithal to rebuild will return in time. Or the corruption will continue and New Orleans will remain a waste land of predominantly deadbeats whining for welfare handouts.
New Orleanians are prepared for either scenario.
Hey Blanco...not even a good try. All you have been doing is blame others for your incompetence.""
Did she and Nagin EVER put their requests for help into the proper form and run them thru the proper channels?
Does anyone have any proof that they EVER did that???
I heard that Blanco's staff had drawn up the necessary forms, and that she was still dithering about signing them on Tuesday night, after the hurricane hit.
Anybody know more details??
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