Holy shit. From the weather site of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration:

BULLETIN...IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED FLOOD WATCH NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NEW ORLEANS LA 410 AM CDT SUN AUG 28 2005

A FLOOD WATCH IS IN EFFECT TONIGHT AND MONDAY ACROSS MOST OF EAST CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST LOUISIANA AND EXTREME SOUTH MISSISSIPPI

THE FLOOD WATCH INCLUDES THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS... IN SOUTHEAST LOUISIANA... ASCENSION...ASSUMPTION...EAST BATON ROUGE...IBERVILLE...JEFFERSON... LAFOURCHE...LIVINGSTON...ORLEANS...PLAQUEMINES...ST. BERNARD...ST. CHARLES...ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST...ST. HELENA...ST. JAMES...ST. TAMMANY...TANGIPAHOA...TERREBONNE...WASHINGTON...WEST BATON ROUGE IN SOUTH MISSISSIPPI... HANCOCK...HARRISON...JACKSON...PEARL RIVER...PIKE AND WALTHALL. HURRICANE KATRINA...A LARGE AND MAJOR HURRICANE...IS EXPECTED TO MOVE ACROSS SOUTHEAST LOUISIANA AND SOUTH MISSISSIPPI TONIGHT AND MONDAY. IN ADDITION TO EXTREMELY DAMAGING WINDS AND STORM SURGE FLOODING... BANDS OF VERY HEAVY RAIN WILL MOVE ONSHORE THIS EVENING AND SPREAD NORTH ACROSS MOST OF THE AREA LATE TONIGHT AND MONDAY. RAINFALL TOTALS OF 5 TO 10 INCHES...WITH ISOLATED MAXIMUM AMOUNTS OF 15 INCHES...ARE POSSIBLE ALONG THE PATH OF KATRINA...MAINLY SOUTHEAST OF A LINE FROM MCCOMB TO THE BATON ROUGE METROPOLITAN AREA. INTENSE RAINFALL WILL LIKELY CAUSE FLOODING OF LOW LYING AREAS. FLOODING WILL BE AGGREGATED IN AREAS OF HIGH TIDES...STORM SURGE... AND EVENTUALLY RIVERS NEAR BANK-FULL. A FLASH FLOOD WATCH MEANS RAPIDLY RISING WATER OR FLOODING IS POSSIBLE WITHIN THE WATCH AREA. IF YOU ARE IN THE WATCH AREA... CHECK PREPAREDNESS REQUIREMENTS...KEEP INFORMED...AND BE READY FOR QUICK ACTION IF FLASH FLOODING IS OBSERVED OR IF A WARNING IS ISSUED.

Urgent Weather Message for Orleans, LA
Top of pageTable of contents for Orleans, LA

WWUS74 KLIX 281550
NPWLIX

URGENT - WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NEW ORLEANS LA
1011 AM CDT SUN AUG 28 2005


DEVASTATING DAMAGE EXPECTED

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!

LAZ038-040-050-056>070-282100-
ASSUMPTION-LIVINGSTON-LOWER JEFFERSON-LOWER LAFOURCHE-
LOWER PLAQUEMINES-LOWER ST. BERNARD-LOWER TERREBONNE-ORLEANS-
ST. CHARLES-ST. JAMES-ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST-ST. TAMMANY-TANGIPAHOA-
UPPER JEFFERSON-UPPER LAFOURCHE-UPPER PLAQUEMINES-UPPER ST. BERNARD-
UPPER TERREBONNE-
1011 AM CDT SUN AUG 28 2005


INLAND HURRICANE WIND WARNING IN EFFECT

HURRICANE KATRINA
A MOST POWERFUL HURRICANE WITH UNPRECEDENTED
STRENGTH...RIVALING THE INTENSITY OF HURRICANE CAMILLE OF 1969.

ONSET OF TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS WILL BE AROUND 3 PM THIS
AFTERNOON AND PERSIST FOR ABOUT 26 HOURS. HURRICANE FORCE WINDS WILL
ONSET AROUND SUNSET TONIGHT IN LOWER PLAQUEMINES PARISH AND SPREAD
NORTHWARD BY 3 AM MONDAY MORNING...PERSISTING FOR ABOUT 12 TO 17
HOURS. MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS IN EXCESS OF 140 MPH CAN LAST FOR 2
TO 3 HOURS.

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

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