Katrina contd

[georgit79]

These new pictures are really horrific- I have genuine tears in my eyes looking through them. Looting I can understand, just about, but now rape too? What has happened to humanity?

[Supernick]

It's so sad to see how a section of a community has taken advantage of a disaster in such a horrific fashion, looting and in some cases raping and murdering. A sad fact of life is that here are many evil people in out midst and a crisis such as Katrina has given them the opportunity to exploit others. I've got my fingers crossed that a measure of control can be brought in as swiftly as possible.

On a seperate note, (I'm sure someone has mentioned this on an earlier post but I can't find it), why are there not round the clock helicopter flights dropping aid on those huddled in the streets or are we not seeing them on TV?

[Dom Tuk]

I just cannot beleive it. The BBC website says that a child was raped in the superdome. There were 20000 people there for gods sake how could this happen

also that British tourists sheltering in the dome were targetted for racial abuse as they were white.

some sad b'stards in this world.

[jake-the-peg]

You'd want to be careful about what you believe right now Dom.

Best I've got is:

Jamie Trout, 22, who kept a record of his four days there, said: "It was like something out of Lord of the Flies - one minute everything is calm and civil, the next it descends into chaos."

In one diary entry, he said: "A man has been arrested for raping a seven-year-old in the toilet, this place is hell, I feel sick. The smell is horrendous, there are toilets overflowing and people everywhere."

So you've got a diary entry from a 22 year old who was there and heard that that was what had happened. It may be true, it may not but right now there's an awful lot of hysteria going on and the media seem to be competing with each other to get the most sensational act of depravity.

[kick3m0n]

The pictures and stories are all horrendous, and we can only hope the worst of the rumours are untrue.  The picture of the old man on the chair who looks sleeping, but is actually dead is awful.  No one's moved him, covered him, treated him with any dignity...everyone is only concerned with themselves it seems.  But I also think it's horrendous that so little seems to be getting done for these poor folk.   Almost every news channel or paper (even the more reliable, less sensationalist ones) seem to mention the lack of help and action from the US government.  It does seem appalling.  Right from the off....where was the help for those who wanted to evacuate New Orleans, but were too poor, sick or elderly to go on their own??   If they didn't have their own transport, what did the state or government do to help?  not much it seems - just repeat the instruction to leave!  Now they are still telling them to leave, but not providing means to do so, and offering very little in the way of shelter, food or medicine to those stranded.  There was more useful aid and support delivererd to the Boxing day tsunami victims, in the same time frame post-disaster, than these poor souls in New Orleans (and many other places) have seen to date.  No wonder some of those on the ground are getting angry...they must feel like they've been left to die.

[kaktus]

Me too georgit. I just saw a crying nurse pleading for medicine and help, it seemed she was the only nurse there. I saw a woman fainting while being interviewed - she has diabetes and has had nothing to eat since monday! And an awful picture in the newspaper today of a man standing in water to his thighs with an infant in his arms! When I look at those images I have trouble believing it's the US. And on top of that, apparently there is a fire in a chemical plant - just what those poor people need, chemicals in the air...

[Chessman]

As sad and horrible as it is, unfortunately its human nature, thats why we have rules, and hopefully the right people to enforce them, civilisation is but a veneer, whats happening in New Orleans, giving the scale of the disaster, would happen anywhere in the world, even in this country. It doesn't take much for us to revert to our animalistic selves, you only have to compare the crime figures, the types of crime, and the lack of proper punishments with twelve years ago, to see what I mean.

[twiglet4frog]

I have seen tragedies of this magnitude in the past "Tsunami" for one, etc, but it is mind blowing what has happened and what has made my eyes open more in shock is the aftershock of the hurricane, Seeing refugees outside the Superdome, walking about with looted items and surrounding cars trying to desperatly seek help just makes me feel like i am watching one of these hollywood blockbuster disaster films like independance day/Day after Tomorrow etc. It shocks me that a simple, predicted (if devastating) hurricane can cause the kind of armegeddon in new orleans and surrounding areas that the most powerful  governement in the world cant deal with and only the minds of the storytellers in hollywood could dream up in the past! These areas arent even new to this, they have several hurricanes every year so why does the government have no idea what to do? It is almost like an "Ice Age/Alien attack/Zombie plague" there at the moment the way Bush is at a loss in how to react to it and how New Orleans are turning on each other for survival of the fittest as they are left to their own suffering, defending against looters with stolen guns high on crack cocaine, dying from no food or water or medicine and their bodies dumped in the streets, police and army supplies coming in on armed convoys under fire from gang members. It is the End of the World for the American South and its beyond belief!!!!