Hurricane Katrina Thread: Any LA Gaffers?

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The Chosen One said:
Just Wow....

I had been ignoring all the Katrina news the past several days because it was barely a category 2 storm when I last checked. In fact this morning, I rolled my eyes when I saw the MSNBC headline "Monster Storm", but I decided to check the article anyway.... My jaw hit the floor....
Haha, it wasn't even much YESTERDAY.
 
Well, they say that the superdome was designed to withstand hurricane force winds. Problem is of course (like all the buildings that are "designed" to withstand earthquakes) is that its never been tested.
 
When I get home, some serious shit is going to be happening down in NO..I hope people are going to be ok. Be safe, people in the path.
 
Well, they say that the superdome was designed to withstand hurricane force winds. Problem is of course (like all the buildings that are "designed" to withstand earthquakes) is that its never been tested

If it was really designed to withstand hurricanes, it should be able to take at least 300 MPH.

In engineering, there's generally a rule that structures be able to take much more than the max or at least equal to extreme scenario. For example, chandeliers that hang from the ceiling are designed to withstand at least 3 times their weight. That's because if it was pulled up horizontally with the ceiling and let go, the max force that's reached as it swoops down to it's intended position is 3x it's weight.

I'm a computer engineer, but I know this crap because of "Engineering Fundamentals." Didn't teach me anything about computer engineering...
 
katrina4nz.jpg
 
Matlock said:
Man, I hope the Superdome will survive this. It hasn't seen 50k people in years.

50k people won't be in the superdome. The dome will be holding maybe 15k people tops unless something happens to one of the many other shelters in the city.

I've been watching some pics of the lake ponchatrain area and people are saying 'oh it doesn't look that bad yet'. The thing they don't know because they aren't from the area is that there are a series of steps that go down to the water there... the fact that you can't see the steps says a LOT...
 
I like my Canada thank you very much when I see things like this going down.I don't know how you guys can live with this.

Good luck to people in the path.
 
Isabel > katrina

isabel was category 5.

hopefully katrina doesnt spread upward tho, cause i dont have the patience for it now.

just stay away from Ny.

good luck to whoever gets hit by it.
 
Isabel > katrina

isabel was category 5.

Katrina has been cat 5 for a while now and is striking a major city that's vulnerable to flooding.
 
MIMIC said:
Hmmm...

Wikipedia is saying that the Florida Keys Hurricane (a.k.a. The Labor Day Hurricane of 1935) had max sustained winds of 160 mph.

Guess Katrina is the strongest hurricane on record, measured by wind speeds.

EDIT: N/M Camille had winds of 190 mph; and Gilbert had 195.

I totally forgot about those :lol

My father was in the Navy when Camille hit in '69. His ship got caught by that one, and the huge waves were throwing the ship wave to wave, like one of those classic cartoons. Then the ship reached the eye and tried to stay in the eye for a time. Fantastic stories. Literally having to strap himself down to something sturdy so he didn't tumble around like a piece of laundry.
 
Goodbye everyone, hopefully I'll still be here in a few days.

I live in Baton Rouge, and it's going to hit land here very soon.

It's already showing very very strong winds and the rain just started.

:(
 
DJ Sl4m said:
Goodbye everyone, hopefully I'll still be here in a few days.

I live in Baton Rouge, and it's going to hit land here very soon.

It's already showing very very strong winds and the rain just started.

:(


Hope it doesn't reach Baton Rouge, good luck.
 
LA = Los Angelas

La = louisiana

BTW, just to update those unfamiliar with these situations, it's actually rare, but possible to lose natuarl gas and water, the power going out is almost guarenteed.

*edit* I will take pics of the storm and out lil huricane party, hehehehe
 
Remember that FX special where they came up with a fictional Scenario of what a major Oil Crisis in the US would be like...Didn't it all start because of a major hurricane hitting New Orleans????
 
HURRICANE KATRINA
A MOST POWERFUL HURRICANE WITH UNPRECEDENTED
STRENGTH...RIVALING THE INTENSITY OF HURRICANE CAMILLE OF 1969.

MOST OF THE AREA WILL BE UNINHABITABLE FOR WEEKS...PERHAPS LONGER. AT
LEAST ONE HALF OF WELL CONSTRUCTED HOMES WILL HAVE ROOF AND WALL
FAILURE. ALL GABLED ROOFS WILL FAIL...LEAVING THOSE HOMES SEVERELY
DAMAGED OR DESTROYED.

THE MAJORITY OF INDUSTRIAL BUILDINGS WILL BECOME NON FUNCTIONAL.
PARTIAL TO COMPLETE WALL AND ROOF FAILURE IS EXPECTED. ALL WOOD
FRAMED LOW RISING APARTMENT BUILDINGS WILL BE DESTROYED. CONCRETE
BLOCK LOW RISE APARTMENTS WILL SUSTAIN MAJOR DAMAGE...INCLUDING SOME
WALL AND ROOF FAILURE.

HIGH RISE OFFICE AND APARTMENT BUILDINGS WILL SWAY DANGEROUSLY...A
FEW TO THE POINT OF TOTAL COLLAPSE. ALL WINDOWS WILL BLOW OUT.

AIRBORNE DEBRIS WILL BE WIDESPREAD...AND MAY INCLUDE HEAVY ITEMS SUCH
AS HOUSEHOLD APPLIANCES AND EVEN LIGHT VEHICLES. SPORT UTILITY
VEHICLES AND LIGHT TRUCKS WILL BE MOVED. THE BLOWN DEBRIS WILL CREATE
ADDITIONAL DESTRUCTION. PERSONS...PETS...AND LIVESTOCK EXPOSED TO THE
WINDS WILL FACE CERTAIN DEATH IF STRUCK.

POWER OUTAGES WILL LAST FOR WEEKS...AS MOST POWER POLES WILL BE DOWN
AND TRANSFORMERS DESTROYED. WATER SHORTAGES WILL MAKE HUMAN SUFFERING
INCREDIBLE BY MODERN STANDARDS.

THE VAST MAJORITY OF NATIVE TREES WILL BE SNAPPED OR UPROOTED. ONLY
THE HEARTIEST WILL REMAIN STANDING...BUT BE TOTALLY DEFOLIATED. FEW
CROPS WILL REMAIN. LIVESTOCK LEFT EXPOSED TO THE WINDS WILL BE
KILLED.

AN INLAND HURRICANE WIND WARNING IS ISSUED WHEN SUSTAINED WINDS NEAR
HURRICANE FORCE...OR FREQUENT GUSTS AT OR ABOVE HURRICANE FORCE...ARE
CERTAIN WITHIN THE NEXT 12 TO 24 HOURS.

ONCE TROPICAL STORM AND HURRICANE FORCE WINDS ONSET...DO NOT VENTURE
OUTSIDE!


http://football.ballparks.com/NFL/NewOrleansSaints/articles.htm


Contractors building the Superdome also found that it required efforts and techniques that were a bit out of the ordinary, especially in the construction of its roof. For this building, the largest clear span steel structure in the world (as attested to by the new Guinness Book of World Records) is literally held together by its roof. In its flying - saucer-shaped design , the walls of the Superdome literally hang (for want of more descriptive term) from the roof, with the force vectors at foundation level pointing away from the center.

The uniqueness of the Superdome's roof, designed by Binkley Engineering Company of St. Louis (formerly Roof Structures, Incorporated) is its "lamella" configuration, which is nothing more than a series of overlapping triangles building out from a ring in the center. This gives stability against any downward forces. The Superdome's 75-ton, 124-foot-diameter (38 meters), gondola handing from the center of the roof, gives it a stability against upward forces as well.
 
One of my neighbors just finished boarding up their windows and taking all their patio furniture inside.

...

We're nearly 3 hours driving distance west of New Orleans. o_O
 
xexex said:
I'm in shock because Catrina was a mere tropical storm over the bahamas.. usually these things form into hurricanes alot farther south and further out in the Atlantic.
No joke. This was such a lame and weak storm when it hit here a few days back. Now it's almost as if it never made landfall in the first place. I can't believe this thing came together so fast and then got so RIDICULOUSLY powerful so quickly.


Also...

MOST OF THE AREA WILL BE UNINHABITABLE FOR WEEKS...PERHAPS LONGER

Holy shit. Good luck everyone.
 
This is like something out of a movie. I never would have imagined a Cat 5 hurricane would bullseye New Orleans. Jesus!

Good luck to all you GAF'ers in La.
 
Fixed2BeBroken said:
Isabel > katrina

isabel was category 5.

hopefully katrina doesnt spread upward tho, cause i dont have the patience for it now.

just stay away from Ny.

good luck to whoever gets hit by it.
Peak winds at 160mph, lowest pressure at 920mb and made landfall as a Cat 2? Please. :P


pressure: 604 MB <---a bit higher which is 'good' if you can concider a Cat5 being good...
Bit of a typo there. ;)
 
The problem is that there isn't anything that is forecasted that could weaken Katrina significantly enough to avoid major damage. So even if it drops a couple of MPH, like Max Mayfield keeps saying, its a difference between getting run over by either a 18-wheeler or a freight train.
 
Max Mayfield, director of the U.S. National Hurricane Center, described Katrina as a "perfect" hurricane. It had grown into a Category 5 hurricane on the five-step Saffir-Simpson, with winds near 165 mph (270 kph) just before 5 p.m. EDT (2100 GMT) on Sunday, the Miami-based U.S. National Hurricane Center said.

ouch
 
This is actually Ted's brother, just wanted to let you guys know we are safe in Baton Rouge, and rabidly watching the wearther channel and local news.

On some pts to cover, according to wwl news, the superdome will be housing approximately 100k ppl. It accomodates i believe 70k for seating, so that will be a rough situation. Depending on how long the city will be unaccessable I can soon reply on how conditions are during these times because my dad was required to stay back and assist, where im not sure.

In Jefferson Parish, where im from, it was explictly stated that there are NO SHELTERS for any of the parish's citizens to seek. Also our parish president requested that anyone riding out the store, go out and purchase an axe, pick or maul, so that when and if they seek shelter from flood waters in their attics that they can break the roof to reach higher grounds. The parish Sheriff then added that the first job of the police / fire / resuce crews after the storm hits is to 'go search for corpses.'

According to the lastest from the Weather Channel, the storm surge is expected to reach 28+ ft. Also the storm is expected to only increase in strength due to the increased temp. of the gulf closer to the coast, accustomarily storms decrease b/c of cooler air currents from the north, but since this is so early in the yr this isnt the case.

And on a Final note, the Weather Channel just cut to Burboun St. in which Bars will still open and numerous people were having hurricane party. God Bless New Orleans!!

All i can say is i hope the wall goes thru a degenerative stage right before it hits lands... which is common with storms of this size, to degenerate then rapidly reform stronger.
Finally for a depictive idea of the size of this storm, if the western tip was at New Orleans it would reach as far as Atlanta.

Stephen
 
Phoenix said:
50k people won't be in the superdome. The dome will be holding maybe 15k people tops unless something happens to one of the many other shelters in the city..

There aren't "many shelters" here. We had them, but the Red Cross decided there was no real "safe" area in the city to shelter people, so they don't do them. The Dome shelter is being done by the governement.

I'm in Baton Rouge right now. Thankfully all of my family was able to get out, though we had to split up -- so it's pretty rough trying to keep in touch.
 
Just updated by wwl news. Right now Katrina is in 88 degree water and although the winds are down to 160 mph, it is expected to increase significantly once it reaches the 90 degree plus water near the coast, and since its still a relatively slow moving storm it has plenty time to rebuild its eye...not good news : (

Seems like its in a degenarative stage, just hope it lasts until landfall.

Also many roads are now being shut down exitting New Orleans so evacuating is becoming very limited
 
Culex said:
This is good news then if it's weakening. Might not even be a Cat 5 at landfall.
Some weather guy was pretty adamant about not relying too much on what the hurricane hunter aircrafts are measuring in terms of wind, but to keep in context the pressure, which still remains at a little over 900mb and how Andrew was around 920mb.
 
The change in winds is just the normal fluctuation that occurs with storms of this size and intensity. Lacking any compelling evidence to show that it is weakening-the eyewall is still plenty big (so no replacement cycle going on), there's no shear, and the sea surface temps are fine, I wouldn't read into it that much.
 
the bad news is, this slight weakening /fluctuation is probably going to end in the next couple of hours, and reverse, going into a strengthening phase just before landfall. :(
 
Phoenix said:
50k people won't be in the superdome. The dome will be holding maybe 15k people tops unless something happens to one of the many other shelters in the city.



100,000 people say "stfu!"
 
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