Storm of a life time,  Those poor people...

Very good friend of mine lives in the Big Easy; spoke to him last night briefly and he said he was "getting ready", but I didn't know until today that people are fleeing town as it's supposed to be a real bruiser, with 20-foot surge... not good for a town that's 6 feet below sea level!!
Can't get through to his cell phone now; I hope he had the sense to hightail it out of there... fortunately, he's only renting; many folks are going to lose everything when this juggernaut comes ashore.

Finally heard news of my friend this morning: He and a group of others hit the road northbound sometime yesterday... took them over 10 hours to go about 90 miles to Lexington, La (I think it was Lexington...).
Still haven't spoken to him (msg. was relayed through another friend), but I'm glad to hear he's OK.
  Latest stats from New Orleaans:
Eye of storm veering slightly east, which means the center of town won't get the worst of the winds; maybe a paltry 100mph instead of the expected 140+ mph  .
  But there will be flooding, between the surge off the ocean and Lake Ponchartrain overflowing with rainfall and being swept by high winds.
  I have a bad feeling there'll be coffins floating in the streets like canoes when some of the above-ground cemetaries get inundated...
  I wish all the city's inhabitants the best of luck... I'm very fond of that place, and its people.