United States | Hurricane Katrina

[Odinson]

Private​

WASHINGTON D.C.
The White House
August 26, 2005
9:03 A.M. EST​

Yesterday, August 25, the President, the National Security Council, the Governor of Louisiana, and the Director of The National Weather Service held a meeting in the Oval Office at the White House - the Governor and Director joined the telephone. The likelihood of the hurricane hitting New Orleans in the worst way possible was discussed along with the urgent need to order mandatory evacuations for Orleans Parish, which included the entire City of New Orleans, as well as other nearby municipalities. Parishes Presidents throughout southern Louisiana had already begun ordering voluntary and mandatory evacuations, but New Orleans has so far not done so.

Louisiana Governor Vincent Avery later informed the President that Mayor Vincent Landry had concerns about focusing resources on evacuating the elderly, the sick, and others before the few transportation routes out of the city were totally clogged by normal people. This morning, Governor Avery stressed to Mayor Landry that time was of the essence and that he needed to order an evacuation now. Under Louisiana state law, only the Parish President of Orleans Parish, who was also the Mayor of New Orleans, could order the evacuation of the parish. Mayor Landry told Governor Avery that he was likely to make an announcement later in the day.

In Washington, President Sinclair signed an Emergency Declaration for the State of Louisiana the day before. However, he was concerned that any further delay of evacuating New Orleans would strand thousands of people in the city and possibly strand hundreds or thousands of people out in the open while trying to evacuate. He made the decision to call Mayor Landry directly.

"This is Mayor Landry."

"Mister Mayor, please stand by for the President."

"Mayor Landry?"

"Yes, sir."

"This is President Sinclair. Mister Mayor, I have spoken with Governor Avery. Yesterday I signed an Emergency Declaration for the State of Louisiana. We're going to give you folks all of the help that you need down there."

"Thank you, Mister President. I am sure that is going to be immensely helpful We are dealing with a lot."

"Mister Mayor, you need to order a mandatory evacuation of Orleans Parish. The time has come."

"Mister President, we are still trying to evacuate the most vulnerable people in the city before that decision is made."

"Mayor Landry, I have spoken extensively with the National Weather Service and representatives from NOAA. They are certain that this storm is going to slam into New Orleans, and the Amry Corps of Engineers thinks that most of the city is going to be underwater. Vincent, if they are right, this is going to be a tragedy. You cannot wait any longer, you need to order a mandatory evacuation of the city. I have spoken with the CEO of AMTRAK. We are going to send in special trains specifically for the evacuation of the elderly and the sick. Anyone who can't take the train will be taken by the Air National Guard to Baton Rouge."

"Mister President, I have not heard of these plans yet, we are going to need to review-"

"Vincent, we have made these plans so that we can get vulnerable populations out of New Orleans safely, and without concern for vehicular traffic on Highway 90 or Interstate 10. If you wait any longer to order the evacuation, you will only be harming the people of New Orleans. I know that you have their best interest at heart, so I am pleading with you to declare that mandatory evacuation."

"..."

"Mister President, I will issue the mandatory evacuation order in the next thirty minutes. Is there a number I can call you back at if we need anything down here?"

"Mayor Landry, if you need anything, have your office contact the White House and I will speak to you directly. The Federal Government is fully prepared and willing to work with you and Governor Avery."

"Thank you, Mister President."

"God speed, Mister Mayor."​

 

[Odinson]

The impact of hurricane Katrina on the Gulf Coast, and especially the City of New Orleans, was catastrophic. The levees around New Orleans, which had been reinforced in recent years, were still not designed to be strong enough to hold back the immense storm surge that the city faced from multiple directions. The only silver lining was that Mayor Landry's early evacuation order led to more people being taken out of the city. The evacuation of people by train to Florida and Texas also helped with relieving the city of many elderly and sick who could not evacuate on their own. In total, some 1,100 people would die from the storm, making it the worst natural disaster in modern American history.

While the State of Louisiana took all matters possible to prepare for the storm, the government simply did not have the resources to deal with it. Luckily, the state government was quick to allow outside assistance from neighboring states and the Federal Government, who deployed tens-of-thousands of sailors and marines in the largest domestic military deployment since the Civil War. Civilians were rescued from atop the rooves of their flooded homes, from skyscrapers, from parks, and from highway interchanged that were above water. The largest focus, at least initially, was evacuating the Superdome in New Orleans which was hosting thousands of displaced people. While the stadium was sizeable, it only had a limited number of restrooms and was not meant to serve as a permanent shelter. Conditions in the superdome were dire and large-scale relief was only able to arrive two days after the storm.

President Sinclair, who was in Washington, had to be told repeatedly that he could not go to New Orleans. Outside of the fact that the Louis Armstrong International Airport was heavily damaged and needed to be cleared so that relief could be flown into it, the arrival of the President would also take away police officers and other resources that were needed to help victims of the storm. The President's presence would, in essence, be a drain on resources and a net-negative effect. After negotiations with his staff and communicating with Governor Avery in Louisiana, President Sinclair decided to fly to the capitol of Louisiana, Baton Rouge, where he could meet with the Governor and other state officials until a time came where he could go to New Orleans. During that time, the "Southern White House" was set up in the Old Governor's Mansion in Baton Rouge.

President Sinclair spent two weeks in Baton Rouge. He made it clear to his staff that their job there was to assist the Louisiana government and coordinate federal resources and out-of-state resources from other state governments. His goal was to not get in the way or obstruct Governor Avery, while at the same time to lend a helping hand in relief - this goal was largely reached. Days after the storm hit New Orleans, the President was able to convince the Secret Service and his staff to allow him to briefly travel to New Orleans via helicopter. While he was there, he would give a televised speech in front of Jackson Square with St. Louis Cathedral behind him. He was wearing dark blue dress pants, a light blue button up dress shirt, and a navy-blue windbreaker jacket that had the seal of the President over the left breast.

"Good evening. I'm speaking to you from the City of New Orleans. This city, now mostly empty, has suffered through the worst hurricane in modern American history. Through all of the devastation and unease that this city has gone through since the landfall of Katrina, I have heard countless stories of the heroism of rescue workers and first responders, as well as the sacrifices made by everyday Americans here in New Orleans. People here have opened up their homes to strangers, businesses have turned to giving away food and water for free, and the city has come together after this great tragedy.

"Make no mistake, the people here have suffered. Hundreds of thousands of people along the Gulf Coast and in Louisiana are still without electricity, roads and bridges are still down, and large parts of this city are still flooded. Monumental efforts are being undertaken by the federal government and the government of Louisiana to remove the water from New Orleans and to restore power to the Gulf Coast. Today, the runways at Louis Armstrong International Airport in New Orleans have been cleared, and aid from around the county is being flown in around the clock. Rescue workers, firemen, and police officers from around the nation are arriving here to help the people of this city and to bring relief. The Army Corps of Engineers and construction workers from around the nation are here, in New Orleans, to repair the levees. They are working around the clock. Once the levees are repaired, pumping stations in the city will be able to remove the water that is here.

"New Orleans is one of the great cultural centers of our country. Louisiana is a diverse state with all kinds of peoples, from Cajuns to Creoles and more. The cultural capstone of this state is New Orleans, which is a metropolitan melting pot filled with people from all kinds of backgrounds. While Hurricane Katrina gave New Orleans a punch to the chin, I can assure you that the Federal Government and the State of Louisiana are not going to allow it to remain in shambles. When I return to Washington, my top legislative priority will be to pass a sweeping relief package to help rebuild critical infrastructure here, and to help everyday people who lost everything they had.

"If you and your family are still stranded, know that the entire country is coming to bring you aid. Hold on a little longer, because we are coming to help you. Stay strong and keep your faith... May God bless you, good night."​