美國新冠疫情日記08/30

颶風再次襲擊墨西哥湾

依達颶風週日下午挾著強大風力推進墨西哥灣，撲向新纽奧良及密西西比河沿岸， 這個風速一百五十英里定為四級風力的颶風， 正值十六年前發生的卡翠娜颶風同一時期， 當時有一千八百人喪生， 當時曾掀起二十四呎之大浪， 而依達颶風只有當年的一半， 事實上暴風圈範圍也只有一半。

依達颶風目前已經造成墨西哥灣石油生產之巨大損失， 其中百分之九十五已經關閉， 该水域內的六大石油公司表示 ，依達颶風侵襲之範圍正是海上石油最重要的產油地帶， 由於颶風之影響 勢必導致油價之上揚。

目前在新紐奧良及大部分地區已經變得漆黑一片， 氣象專家們十分担心的是海水倒灌， 造成人员及房屋之重大傷亡， 有關單位已經發佈可能有龍捲風來襲 ，真正災情之評估 正在進行之中。

拜登總統已經下令動員聯邦救災單位， 全面戒備， 來應對可能之災難。

當年卡翠娜颶風之慘狀， 我們都還記憶猶新， 數十萬人潮奔向休斯敦求救， 我們真不希望悲劇重演。

對拜登政府而言， 真是禍不單行 ，阿富汗機场喪生的十三名美國子弟剛送回國， 這場颶風又接踵而至， 如何处理海內外之危機 ，真是要考驗總統的智慧和能力了。

Ida Made Landfall On The 16th Anniversary Of Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Ida made landfall on the Gulf Coast Sunday at 12:55 p.m. as an "extremely dangerous" Category 4 hurricane with top winds of 150 miles per hour. This is the date of the 16th anniversary of the historically devastating Hurricane Katrina.

Ida was downgraded to a Category 3 storm on Sunday at 7:00 p.m. It was close, but the storm missed New Orleans by about 25 miles west by southwest of the area. More than 700,000 customers were without power as Ida continued to pound the coastal state.

After Ida hit the New Orleans area Sunday causing massive disruption to U.S. oil production, more than 95% of the oil production facilities have been shut down. It will have a significant impact on the nation’s energy supply. It could also impact fuel from the Gulf Coast to the East Coast market.

President Biden has spoken to the governors of the states in the Gulf of Mexico region and he said at a briefing with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) that, “We’re providing food, water, generators and other supplies to the area. FEMA already has deployed 500 emergency response personnel to both Texas and Louisiana.”

This is a very critical time for the Biden Administration with the unfolding of Afghanistan and the ongoing COVID-19 crisis. Hurricane Ida could be another big domestic problem for President Biden.

We still remember sixteen years ago when Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans. Hundreds of thousands of people came to Houston to seek shelter.

We all hope this will not happen again.