Breakdown of Law and Order in New Orleans
The breaching of two levees protecting New Orleans caused water to flow unabated into the city. Many homes are underwater in New Orleans and it is expected to take months to pump all the water out of the city. There remains a humanitarian disaster, with many people stranded due to flooding. Lawlessness persisted until September 3, 2005.The federal disaster area was been placed under the control of FEMA (under Homeland Security Director Michael Chertoff) and the National Guard on September 2, 2005.
A breakdown in command and communications among the local and state government first responders after Hurricane Katrina and subsequent levee failure and flooding in New Orleans on August 29, 2005 led to local civil problems and a desperate situation in await of secondary and tertiary national responders and NGO's. New Orleans' Mayor Ray Nagin called for federal response in a "desperate SOS" put out in the media August 31, 2005 following his city's inability to control or put down looting, rape and murder[2] jumping the gun on the state's governor Kathleen Blanco and acting beyond his power in the Posse Comitatus Act which prevents presidential direction of the National Guard without state level (Governor's) request for assistance. As mayor, Nagin was not in a position to request the federal assistance officially. The lawlessness had kept Red Cross and Salvation Army at bay unable to provide charitable relief during the crisis. Louisiana Governor Blanco eventually declared a state of emergency authorizing local law enforcement and state assigned National Guard special powers in putting down looters on September 1, 2005 four days after Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour had declared martial law in his state and well after lawlessness had set into the city of New Orleans. Blanco requested help from President Bush September 2, 2005 in a meeting along with Mayor Nagin aboard Air Force 1 at the New Orleans Louis Armstrong International Airport in Kenner, Louisiana[3]. The lawlessness was essentially ended the next day, September 3, 2005, by the federal responders under the control of President George W. Bush who had temporarily federalized state National Guard troops as requested by Blanco, Homeland Security Director Michael Chertoff and Joint Task Force Katrina Commander