Die IHT wiederholt einen Artikel aus der N.Y. Times, der dem Blog von Brendan Loy Referenz erweist. Loy war offenbar der erste in der Blogosphäre, der explizit und deutlich vor Katrina warnte und dazu riet, aus New Orleans abzuhauen. Und das schon am 26.8., drei Tage bevor Katrina zuschlug:

New Orleans in peril 8/26/2005 01:57:00 PM EST Posted by Brendan Loy

At the risk of being alarmist, we could be 3-4 days away from an unprecedented cataclysm that could kill as many as 100,000 people in New Orleans. Such a scenario is unlikely -- the conditions would have be just right (or rather, just wrong) -- but IMHO, it's not nearly unlikely enough to feel good about things. If I were in New Orleans, I would seriously consider getting the hell out of dodge right now, just in case. Once the evacuation orders are issued, if it comes to that, it'll inevitably be an absolute madhouse, despite officials' best efforts. (More here.) Some computer models are taking Katrina on a worst-case scenario track: almost due north over the marshlands and straight into the below-sea-level city, or just to its west. If the hurricane is strong enough -- and Category 4 is looking more and more likely -- that could very possibly "flood the bowl," breaching the Lake Pontchartrain levees and "turn[ing] the city and the east bank of Jefferson Parish into a lake as much as 30 feet deep, fouled with chemicals and waste from ruined septic systems, businesses and homes... trap[ping] hundreds of thousands of people in buildings and in vehicles... [while] high winds and tornadoes...tear at everything left standing." (Source.) And, even if evacuation orders are issued, lots of people won't leave. Hence the prediction of between 25,000 and 100,000 deaths in a worst-case direct hit.