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DirectNIC Crisis Manager Braves the Chaos of New Orleans
Aleks Clark writes "The Interdictor, a DirectNIC crisis manager, is currently braving the madness of post-Katrina New Orleans. Server rescues, OC4 repairs and live video and audio feeds abound as he and his crew battle the odds with what seems like the entire internet at his back. 1700+ People are tracking his blog, and IRC channels are full to capacity."
1. The evacuation, too little, too late, and poorly planned. "Mandatory evacuation" in NO apparently meant something else. 75% or so of the city got out, the remaining 25% didn't and are paying the price.
2. Contingency plans for handling catastrophic levee failure either non-existent, or grossly inadequate.
3. Civil disorder should have been addressed with deadly force on day 1 of the disaster, when the deterrent effect could have positively influenced events over the next few days. Now it's too late, and valuable time and resources have been wasted that could have otherwise been used for rescue and evacuation.
4. Post-disaster priorities needed to be set and acted upon. Evacuate the city, secure the hospitals and critical facilities.
5. Local government needs to plan for these things, and prepare to cope for a few days without outside aid. It takes time for the federal bureaucracy to get things moving.
6. People need to be more resilient and forward thinking. Sorry folks, but the only one who can protect you and your loved ones is you. Prepare to bug out in case of a disaster, and prepare to hunker down in case you can't bug out. Water, food, shelter, clothing, medical supplies, weapons, and the knowledge to use them all.
7. If you live in a flood area, you're going to get flooded. Don't live there, or lay on plans and resources to evacuate in case things get bad.