I'll just day this without digging up that whole part of my life: 80% of the people you should feel sorry for never had their stories told the newspapers.
We had not had a storm of that magnitude hit this area in anyone's lifetime - 1915 was perhaps the closest.
The National Hurricane Center was calling for this storm to strike the Florida panhandle into Friday night/Sat morning. Also remember that it didn't "explode" in strength until Sunday morning. Up until then it was a 115mph storm, something we've dealt with before. Factor in the elderly, those who were too scared for their own safety to go to the Superdome (look up what happened in '98 when they opened it up for Georges.) On the other hand, many simply refused to leave or stayed behind to have free pickings after the storm. They had buses in the lower 9th ward to take evacuees Sunday - the NOPD combed the streets asking people to get on them - they didn't fill the first one. How about the grandmother who stayed and drowned with her handicapped immobile son because the ambulance who was supposed to transport him never came? They found her clung to him in his hospital bed. That was a few blocks from my house. Sorry I'm rambling, Katrina is way too deep and complicated of a subject to make blanket statements about.
And yeah, 26 blocks. Majority residential, lower-middle income, 100 year old houses, over 50% redone and occupied. More to do with LSU wanting a showpiece and nothing to do with fried foods. I know that's your obsession 17, but we don't need hospitals for that.
