A second Andrew? In 1992 Hurricane Andrew caused $26,500,000,000 worth of damage (NOAA) but Katrina threatens to be even more costly. NOAA’s forecast advisory terms Katrina a ‘potentially catastrophic’ hurricane and predicts landfall today, with winds of 160mph over the next 24 hours. The city of New Orleans is directly in the path of the hurricane and a compulsory evacuation has been ordered. The biggest threat facing the city is that of flooding, caused by a storm surge which is predicted to be higher than the city’s flood protection levies, exacerbated by rainfall of anything up to 15 inches. Once water breaches the levies it will not flow back into the sea, since much of New Orleans is situated below sea level. According to CNN, in a worst-case scenario, most of New Orleans would end up under 15 feet of water, without electricity, clean water and sewage for as long as six months. This news story will be updated as events unfold. Refresh your browser to make sure you are reading the latest version. UPDATED: 7.46 GMT UPDATED: 15.00 GMT * Parts of New Orleans have been flooded with up to six feet of water, after some of the water extraction pumps failed. Power supplies have also been cut to large parts of the city * A large section of the New Orleans Superdome's roof has been torn off. * Crude oil contracts jumped almost $5 to a high of $70.80, before falling back slightly. UPDATED: 20.00 GMT * Extensive flooding is affecting the region. A damage assessment will start imminently. President Bush has authorised emergency assistance for Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. More information on this can be found at the following FEMA links: Declarations for Hurricane Katrina Other resources: Three day path CNN and BBC news resources Hurricane preparedness and specific business continuity advice can be found in the following Continuity Central articles: Hurricanes - basic business continuity advice Hurricane preparedness checklist Unexpected hurricane impacts - tips for businesses Top ten tips for 2005 hurricane season planning
•Date: 29th August 2005 • Region: US • Type:
Article •Topic: DR general |
