You Want News?
New Orleans Police Department Status: The situation for the NOPD is critical. This is firsthand information I have from an NOPD officer we're giving shelter to. Their command and control infrastructure is shot. They have limited to no communication whatsoever. He didn't even know the city was under martial law until we told him! His precinct (5th Precinct) is under water! UNDER WATER -- every vehicle under water. They had to commandeer moving trucks like Ryder and UHaul to get around. The coroner's office is shut down so bodies are being covered in leaves at best or left where they lie at worst.

They don't even know their own rules of engagement. He says the force is impotent right now. They have no idea what's going on, no coordination, virtually no comms, etc. the National Guard is gonna air drop a radio system for them with 200 radios? They are getting very little direction.

The 3rd District bugged out to Baton Rouge because they flooded out.

His quote: "It's a zoo."

More first hand information direct from him shortly. He's trying to recover.

I am not trying to be an alarmist, but until we get a military presence of signicance in the city, the roving gangs of thugs own the streets.

(Post a new comment)

	purly 2005-09-01 05:27 am UTC (link)
	What about the national guard? Still no sign of them? (Reply to this) (Thread)

	neron 2005-09-01 05:46 am UTC (link)
	Isn't a good portion of the LANG in iraq? I heard they had just shipped out. (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)

(no subject) - blackavar, 2005-09-01 05:51 am UTC

	servicesix 2005-09-01 05:29 am UTC (link)
	Keep your head down, stay locked and loaded. (Reply to this)

	antlers2 2005-09-01 05:30 am UTC (link)
	What happened to the 1,500 officers the mayor said he pulled off S&R to stem the looting? (Reply to this) (Thread)

	teriander 2005-09-01 05:32 am UTC (link)
	Communication is a mess. getting 1,500 to round up on foot will take awhile. (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)

Curious... - antlers2, 2005-09-01 05:49 am UTC

	compwizrd 2005-09-01 05:31 am UTC (link)
	hopefully the looters won't get their hands on these radios, the last thing you want is more intel about police and military actions in the hands of the criminal elements. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	greeklady 2005-09-01 06:03 am UTC (link)
	Well think about it. You know your home town like the back of your hand. And they, (the looters), have been out and about the city freely and know where to go. Not to be negative, but the cops got a couple strikes against them right there. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	avoid useless comments mattix9 2005-09-01 05:32 am UTC (link)
	lets all keep the signal:noise ratio high and avoid posting informationless comments (servicesix, beaukat), cuz the blog's been mentioned on CNN, the masses are coming. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	Re: avoid useless comments candid 2005-09-01 05:35 am UTC (link)
	right on! (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)

Re: avoid useless comments - candid, 2005-09-01 05:35 am UTC

Re: avoid useless comments - candid, 2005-09-01 05:35 am UTC

Re: avoid useless comments - candid, 2005-09-01 05:37 am UTC

Re: avoid useless comments - cluebyfour, 2005-09-01 05:38 am UTC

Re: avoid useless comments - cluebyfour, 2005-09-01 06:26 am UTC

	trebor1415 2005-09-01 05:35 am UTC (link)
	Anything you can do to help the police or the city establish coms? Your high up and you have power. Maybe if the city set up a command post and tapped some of your power to run repeaters? In return, they supply diesel? (Reply to this)

I live in portland oregon nosferatulouis 2005-09-01 05:37 am UTC (link)

I know for a fact your locals are off the wall with no intel, I have been trying and trying to get someone to let us know what we can do, us being a large group of C.E.R.T. trained volunteers attempting to organise help to come to you. FEMA has not activated any of the cert'saccept for your local one from the EOC and I have no power to get them to do a nationwide voluntary call up. If I can manage to get a group of us together to come there and operate what do we need to know about command? WHere is the medical centers set up? How close can you get to the city before having to switch to watercraft? Is the police/military likely to send us away? etc. please let me know or email me if you dont wish to post here at blacksleeper78 at hotmail com (Reply to this) (Thread)

Re: I live in portland oregon snaxxx 2005-09-01 07:59 am UTC (link)

Why don't you try to connect up with some of the Texas aid? The (Texas) Governor's Division of Emergency Management is requesting the services of 200 physicians and about 380 nurses along with other medically trained personnel -- especially respiratory therapists. Shelters have been set up in Central Texas and Houston. It's worth a shot to see if you can find a back door in to help! Good luck. (Reply to this) (Parent)

Re: I live in portland oregon - clackablog, 2005-09-01 11:39 pm UTC

Re: I live in portland oregon - nosferatulouis, 2005-09-01 11:46 pm UTC

	thethirdoctober 2005-09-01 05:37 am UTC (link)
	perhaps you could commander the security cams the building must have? reroute the video feed to your floor so you can give yourselves some heads-up should the thugs appear? (Reply to this)

risti 2005-09-01 05:38 am UTC (link)

Not trying to be sarcastic, or even rhetorical here, but I have to ask: What did the police due before they had radios/cell phones/other forms of instant communication to keep in touch? Are there any old procedures that will still be recognized? I understand that part of the problem seems to be officers going rogue, but from the sounds of your recoveree, some of them are just waiting for any sort of order to be established. I'm asking because from what I've gathered of your military background, you might actually know a solution for this. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	geordie 2005-09-01 05:49 am UTC (link)
	Land lines and whistles, remember the phone Top Cat was always using, or am I showing my age? Military have frequency agile encrypted radios. (Reply to this) (Parent)

Old ways - (Anonymous), 2005-09-01 06:50 pm UTC

In days of old when magic filled the air... - clackablog, 2005-09-01 11:41 pm UTC

(no subject) - kinfae, 2005-09-02 06:26 pm UTC

	jaelafae 2005-09-01 05:38 am UTC (link)
	more national guard units in texas are being activated, my understanding is that they will be headed your way in the morning. much luck to y'all, thanks for keeping us updated. (Reply to this)

	believe_in_me 2005-09-01 05:41 am UTC (link)
	They need the Marines down there. Stay safe. (Reply to this)

	neron 2005-09-01 05:44 am UTC (link)
	Wow man. You people stay safe and keep us informed of what is actually going on at NOLA. (Reply to this)

	vanst 2005-09-01 05:45 am UTC (link)
	Good luck, and keep your head down. (Reply to this) (Thread)

stop posting good luck mattix9 2005-09-01 05:48 am UTC (link)

It's nice, but we all assume we all mean good luck and hope they stay safe. This blog will be a boring mess in the morn cuz its hit CNN and 10x the traffic will be here commenting 'good luck' with 1000 comments/update, itll be a pain to read and get real info out of. TRY IT! YOU CAN DO IT ! POST ONLY IF YOU HAVE SOMETHING USEFUL TO SAY! (ok thats it on this topic from me....) (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)

Re: stop posting good luck - cynica, 2005-09-01 05:52 am UTC

we'll post whatever the hell we want - candid, 2005-09-01 05:55 am UTC

Re: we'll post whatever the hell we want - mattix9, 2005-09-01 06:06 am UTC

Re: we'll post whatever the hell we want - mista_tibbs, 2005-09-01 07:33 am UTC

Re: we'll post whatever the hell we want - k8to, 2005-09-01 08:12 am UTC

Re: we'll post whatever the hell we want - candid, 2005-09-01 02:55 pm UTC

(no subject) - eruv, 2005-09-01 03:19 pm UTC

Re: we'll post whatever the hell we want - (Anonymous), 2005-09-01 02:38 pm UTC

	you there? jennifire 2005-09-01 05:47 am UTC (link)
	hey - are you still having human waste disposal problems? theron suggests finding potted plants, there must be quite a few in that building. use the potting soil to cover up solid waste in a bucket or somthing - not pee. pee somewhere else. it will help with the smell and containment. don't pee where you poop, though! let me know how you are. jen (Reply to this) (Thread)

	Re: you there? vanst 2005-09-01 05:49 am UTC (link)
	Hell, the way things are going, might as well just bust out a window a decent distance up and use that as a urinal. (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)

Re: you there? - cluebyfour, 2005-09-01 05:59 am UTC

Re: you there? - interdictor, 2005-09-01 05:57 am UTC

Re: you there? - jennifire, 2005-09-01 05:58 am UTC

Re: you there? - interdictor, 2005-09-01 06:00 am UTC

Re: you there? - jennifire, 2005-09-01 06:02 am UTC

Re: you there? - sixstop, 2005-09-01 08:17 am UTC

pholph 2005-09-01 05:59 am UTC (link)

During one of the hurricaines that stomped clear into Northern VA, a lot of communication went down. I'm a ham operator, and so first thing I did was hit the local frequencies. Which, while better than nothing, were still full of total chaos and "I'm better qualified to do this than you." ego posturing by people who felt that it was -their- time to shine. Go invade a "radio shack", snag any two way radios. CB/FRS/GMRS, or even 2meter ham. Sure, you're -supposed- to be licensed to use them. But to be honest? Right now, survival would make me throw that out the window. also snag a trunking scanner or two, and any "police frequency" books. (If your friendly cops can't supply freq's) If you need radio knowledge/help, my contact info is in my profile. Good luck. And who's going to play you, in the made-for-tv movie about this? (Reply to this) (Thread)

	beautifultoxin 2005-09-01 06:50 am UTC (link)
	Go invade a "radio shack", snag any two way radios. But then that would be looting and becoming one of the "criminal element" (read: poor, black men). (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)

(no subject) - pholph, 2005-09-01 07:09 am UTC

(no subject) - beautifultoxin, 2005-09-01 07:38 am UTC

(no subject) - pacocheezdom, 2005-09-01 01:37 pm UTC

Yep. - clackablog, 2005-09-01 11:25 pm UTC

Re: Yep. - dejaflynn, 2005-09-02 10:03 am UTC

HF operators staging from Houston for deplyment into Superdome - clackablog, 2005-09-02 10:33 am UTC

Re: HF operators staging from Houston for deplyment into Superdome - dejaflynn, 2005-09-02 12:13 pm UTC

Re: HF operators staging from Houston for deplyment into Superdome - clackablog, 2005-09-02 02:39 pm UTC

(no subject) - mycroft, 2005-09-01 12:57 pm UTC

(no subject) - pholph, 2005-09-01 02:37 pm UTC

Yep, I do. - clackablog, 2005-09-01 11:43 pm UTC

Martial law? geekers 2005-09-01 06:01 am UTC (link)

Not trying to be rude or anything, but is there merit to the 'marial law' entry in Wikipedia which states: "Hurricane Katrina Contrary to many media reports, martial law has not been declared in New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, because no such term exists in Louisiana state law[4]. Rather, a state of emergency has been declared, which does give some powers similar to that of martial law." (Reply to this) (Thread)

	Re: Martial law? (Anonymous) 2005-09-01 12:23 pm UTC (link)
	That's a local and state declaration, the federal government through it's military can and has declared martial law with the NO City Limits. Normally City's and states go APE-Sh$$ when the Federal government even mentioned inacting martial law, but in this case I don't think they mind. (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)

Re: Martial law? - (Anonymous), 2005-09-02 01:36 am UTC

Re: Martial law? - (Anonymous), 2005-09-02 05:42 am UTC

	whipartist 2005-09-01 06:39 am UTC (link)
	Like a lot of people, I just want to thank you for doing this. (Reply to this)

	all the troops are in iraq (Anonymous) 2005-09-01 08:28 am UTC (link)
	thank bush and cheney for that (Reply to this) (Thread)

Re: all the troops are in iraq misterbadxample 2005-09-01 12:34 pm UTC (link)

They are calling reservists to ask them to volunteer. My buddy just got called last night while we were watching 24. He's going to go. It's a big logistics problem to get all these people into an area with no power, no communication, and few roads. My company works one of the terminals at the Port of New Orleans, I've been down there a few times. You all stay safe and keep on posting. Order will be restored. After hearing about the armed gangs of looters, I'm glad some folks have kept their heads and are doing the right thing. (Reply to this) (Parent)

sisiphus 2005-09-01 02:27 pm UTC (link)

I don't understand how the police force can be totally impotent. What have they been doing since the hurricane? Didn't they do anything to prepare for such a disaster? Hell, they have manuals every which way for dealing with a terrorist attack, but not a hurricane which would shut off communication? I remember you posting a couple of days ago about how they weren't even having check-ins except every 12+ hours or so. Why did they stop doing normal roll calls? Instead of being dispatched to calls, they could have been patroling their districts to the best of their ability, reconvening at their newly declared HQ to check-in and give updates, etc. Who was in charge? What sergeants, lieutenants, captains, and chief of police just said, 'OK, boys, we don't have radios, so do what you want!'? (Reply to this)

	marieoroumania 2005-09-01 02:41 pm UTC (link)
	THIS is the kind of shit I want you telling CBS. (Reply to this)

	Thugs/Looters rosycat 2005-09-01 03:02 pm UTC (link)
	Looters own the streets. This isn't news. You've been telling us as much, just not this clearly, since you started telling us about cops looting. You folks stay safe and keep your own group's chain-of-command secure. Good luck, good vibes sent your way. And to your folks. (Reply to this)

	I live in Seattle (Anonymous) 2005-09-01 05:35 pm UTC (link)
	My thoughts and prayers are with everyone during this time of crises. Be strong! (Reply to this)

	Thugs do not own the street! (Anonymous) 2005-09-01 07:12 pm UTC (link)
	Organize the people and take control back. Convince them to identify and locate the thugs for the police. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	Re: Thugs do not own the street! (Anonymous) 2005-09-02 08:35 am UTC (link)
	What Police? Seems that authorities are treating citizens like terrorists. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	wow seka420 2005-09-01 08:37 pm UTC (link)
	wow (Reply to this)

	morbid_curious 2005-09-02 02:22 am UTC (link)
	To quote Demolition Man: "We're police officers! We're not trained to handle this kind of violence!" I hope you guys stay safe. (Reply to this)

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