Here’s something a little personal that I wrote for my NRDC blog:
On the three-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, the Gulf Coast states are stocking up water, readying the National Guard, and preparing to evacuate as another storm heads their way. As of 8 p.m. Thursday, Tropical Storm Gustav, expected to regain hurricane strength after weakening over Jamaica, was on track to pass over Cuba and head into the Gulf of Mexico this weekend.
The current most likely scenario from the National Hurricane Center predicts that Gustav could become a Category 3 storm and threaten Louisiana by early next week (although the track is starting to look more like Hurricane Rita’s than Katrina’s). If a Cat 3 comes within 60 hours of making landfall on New Orleans, officials plan to order a mass evacuation, the Associated Press reports — with no Superdome or other citywide shelter for those left behind this time.
All of this compels me to relive some rough memories. As Hurricane Katrina slammed ashore three years ago, I was one of the few people crazy enough to be driving full speed into the storm.
Tags: hurricanes
