N.O. mayor invokes mandatory evacuation

NEW ORLEANS, Aug. 30 (UPI) -- New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin Saturday called for mandatory evacuation of the city, calling the approaching Hurricane Gustav the storm of the century.

As the Category 4 storm churned toward an expected early-Tuesday landfall on the central Louisiana coast, Nagin -- who earlier Saturday was "strongly, strongly encouraging everyone in the city to evacuate" -- subsequently called for mandatory evacuation beginning Sunday morning, The New York Times reported.

Voluntary evacuations had already begun with local, state and federal officials all saying they were cooperating to prepare for any situation -- in contrast to the experience of Hurricane Katrina in 2005 when local, state and federal government officials came in for criticism for their preparation and their handling of the aftermath of the storm.

Nagin said late Saturday that Gustav was larger and posed a greater danger than Hurricane Katrina.

Jeb Tate, spokesman for the New Orleans Emergency Medical Services, said evacuation efforts that included lining up buses and rail travel for all old, infirm and impoverished people were well under way.

"This is what we practice and train for," Tate said. "We are ready for the duration of this storm."

Evacuation is aimed at taking coastal and New Orleans residents to higher ground in northern Louisiana as Gustav hits. National Hurricane Center experts predict the storm will still possess hurricane strength winds as it passes north of Lake Charles about a full day after landfall. That slow movement would likely increase heavy rainfalls and flooding in southern Louisiana and southeastern Texas.