or did this catastrophic event unfold too quickly, so that even with sufficient staffing, it would be impossible to have evacuated ahead of time?
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/former-national-weather-service-leaders-letter-noaa-cuts/#:~:text=And%20the%20proposed%20budget%20released,for%20new%20satellites%2C%20they%20said.
former National Weather Service leaders wrote and released an open letter to the American people warning about the impact of staffing and program cuts to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, saying their "worst nightmare" is the cuts will lead to "needless loss of life."
Since the beginning of the year, more than 550 employees have left the National Weather Service, leaving it down 10% of its staffing levels ahead of hurricane season and the busiest time of year. And the proposed budget released by the White House will cut NOAA, the parent agency of the National Weather Service, by nearly 30%, virtually eliminating NOAA's research functions for weather, limiting ocean data observations and decreasing funding for new satellites, they said.
The five signatories — Louis Uccellini, Jack Hayes, Brigadier General D.L. Johnson, Brigadier General John J. Kelly Jr. and E.W. (Joe) Friday — worked under both Republican and Democratic administrations.
"Our worst nightmare is that weather forecast offices will be so understaffed that there will be needless loss of life," their letter said. "We know that's a nightmare shared by those on the forecasting front lines — and by the people who depend on their efforts."
Some forecast offices might be so short-staffed they have to function only part-time, they warned.
"The Houston office has lost all three of its senior meteorologists," Friday told CBS News.
"We have many offices across the country that are now having to close at night because they don't have sufficient staff," he said.