Stranded Spain MP describes Katrina chaos (Convention Center)

[RamboLiberal]

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WEATHER/09/01/katrina.spain.mp/index.html

A Spanish member of parliament stranded in New Orleans has described a dire situation at the city's Convention Center, including dead bodies inside the building.

Lourdes Muñoz Santamaria, her husband and his 10-year-old son were on vacation in New Orleans and were unable to get a flight out of the city before Hurricane Katrina struck.

They ended up at the New Orleans Convention Center, where Muñoz used a pay phone to make several calls to a journalist friend in Madrid to describe the conditions. (See the video report of thousands stranded among filth and corpses -- 2:54)

<snip>

"It's everyone for himself. The police and army pass by the center, but here no one is organizing anything," she said.

"There's no food or water, the people are becoming dehydrated.

"It's been more than 24 hours without any help. There's been looting at the shopping center next door and there's been a lot of violence," she said.

"There are people injured because last night (Wednesday) there were stampedes in the dark because the people were waiting for buses and only five came.

[PA Democrat]

1. Bush should be ashamed.

His callous idiocy is on display for the entire world to see.

[madeline_con]

3. That's a good thing....

it helps those who may have had doubts about just how bad an idiot he is. ;)

[madeline_con]

2. Foreign diplomats dying in N.O. would be really....

"unfortunate" for the administration wouldn't it?

This story just gets more interesting and macabre every minute...

(we need an emotican who's shaking his head)

[Just Me]

4. Horrid. Shameful. Inexcusable.

America's leaders abandon their own people.

[Cha]

5. My sister was going to

New Orleans the last of August and another Emergency came up so they didn't go. I told her she was lucky they didn't get STUCK DOWN THERE!

At first she thought they could've just gotten out when they heard about Katrina coming but I told her the airlines didn't take people out and so many got abandoned at the airport.

Now I see a Spanish member of Parliment couldn't get out..Poor things..all of them.

[bloom]

6. CNN was talking to someone who

had been staying at the Ritz - on an anniversary vacation - is stuck - it sounded like was wondering if was going to die.

[Don Claybrook]

7. I know it was too much to hope

that we could hide this ABORTION of an administration and its lack of a response from the rest of the planet. What I didn't know was that we'd let the rest of the world know in grand style, by having a foreign diplomat caught up in the middle of it.

I'm sorry, Spain. I'm sorry for this tragic embarrassment. I'm sorry about the war. Thanks for getting rid of your dickhead president. We're doing our damndest to return the favor in kind.