In case you've been living under a rock, a Category 5 hurricane hit southern Louisiana yesterday. The damage is said to be catastrophic, especially in the northeastern sections of New Orleans, and the city of Slidell, which is said to be under 20 feet of water. I have been reading blogs most of the evening from those inside the "strike zone" of Katrina, and, to say that my heart goes out to those people is an understatement.
I do not fully comprehend the topography of New Orleans, however, I am told that it sits in a "bowl" that is contrcuted of natural topography, levees, and causeways. A two-block stretch of the 17th Street levee in New Orleans broke a few hours after the hurricane's passing, and, as Josh Britton, who lives in New Orleans (or close by) reports:
"According to Mike, WWL is reporting that “80% of the city is underwater, up to
20 feet deep” and “both airports are under, the yatch club is gone, water is
still entering, houses have broken off their foundations and are floating free.”
This is all presumably because of the delayed breach of the 17th Street canal
(see below). Lake Pontchartrain is entering the city and become Lake New
Orleans. The cable news networks have not really caught on yet to what is
happening. [...] If this is as serious as it sounds, the worst-case scenario is
happening. The bowl is filling."
