Anonymous wrote:I know someone who spent six months in Biloxi after Katrina building houses for poor people who lost everything. Biloxi had no issues related to levees but had a huge amount of damage. I imagine this one will be the same. Very sad.

I meant in the case of the levees holding, will that cause stronger water surges or higher flooding levels elsewhere?

How bad will the storm be here in the dmv?

Anonymous wrote:I read that it went from tropical storm to massive hurricane incredibly fast, it skipped a bunch of typical storm/hurricane stages. They think it’s because the waters are warmer now.

I read that the water in the Gulf is in the upper 80s, which boggles the mind.

I have many friends in New Orleans, including several with young children. None of them are evacuating. Most people I know hunker down through all storms at this point.

My parents moved out of New Orleans last year, in large part because my mother didn't want to deal with hurricanes any more.

Our dear friends in New Orleans aren't evacuating. I hope they stay safe! Lot's of worry for New Orleans and the entire coast. Every storm eats up massive chunks of the coastline, which just leaves Louisiana more vulnerable in the next storm.

Global warming

2021 is worse than 2020!

I read that it went from tropical storm to massive hurricane incredibly fast, it skipped a bunch of typical storm/hurricane stages. They think it’s because the waters are warmer now.

I know someone who spent six months in Biloxi after Katrina building houses for poor people who lost everything. Biloxi had no issues related to levees but had a huge amount of damage. I imagine this one will be the same. Very sad.

Anonymous wrote:There is no time to evacuate all of New Orleans, the mayor said, and they are hoping the levee systems work this time.

Oh boy. Slightly tangential — how do the levees impact communities outside their zone of protection? Does it make it it better or worse for them?

There is no time to evacuate all of New Orleans, the mayor said, and they are hoping the levee systems work this time.

Well, hopefully they have a better plan in place for evacuating people this time around!

Winds building up around the center

Let's open a thread for Ida.


Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards said Ida "will be one of the strongest hurricanes that hit anywhere in Louisiana since at least the 1850s."
A dangerous storm surge of 10 to 15 feet is expected from Morgan City, Louisiana, to the mouth of the Mississippi River on Sunday as Ida makes landfall, the NHC said.
The storm surge, coupled with winds as strong as 150 mph, could leave some parts of southeast Louisiana "uninhabitable for weeks or months," according the to the latest hurricane statement from the National Weather Service in New Orleans. (CNN)

However, inside the new and improved levees of New Orleans, there should be little to no storm surge.
Crucially, hospitals with patients on ventilators will not be able to evacuate.