Hurricane Gustav blew over Gulf of Mexico on Sunday 31st Aug 2008, forcing many people in Louisiana to vacate their native towns and relocate temporarily in Mississippi, Alabama and Texas. Gustav was compared by Meteorologists with Hurricane Katrina, which killed 1,800 people in 2005 and rendered New Orleans chaotic and scary.
Hurricane Gustav, which spriralled to southeastern Louisiana, after hitting Gulf of Mexico, also evoked Tropical Storm Hanna. The landfall of Gustav at the southeastern coast of Louisiana was somewhere between Terrebonne Bay and Timbalier Bay.
Inclement weather subsided in a few days and on Sept 3, New Orleans mayor Ray Nagin announced that the residents who had vacated their homes prior to the onset of Hurricane could return by Thursday Sept 4. Eight storm-related deaths was officially calculated as per reports on Sept 3. This adds to the 90 deaths caused by the Hurricane across the Carribean in the previous week.
The storm affected the Republican Convention held in Minnesota on 1st September. The first session of the Convention on Monday is likely to be limited to bureaucratic procedures. George W. Bush, US president, and Dick Cheney, vice-president, were to make an appearance in the convention on 1st Sept, but canceled their programs owing to the turn of events.
The exodus of 2 lac residents of New Orleans has been recorded as the greatest in the city’s history. However, the impact of Hurricane Gustav on the city was less than expected as the storm failed to blew over the city. However, substantial damages were reported in many other parts of Louisiana.
As per an official report, 19 people were killed in Haiti, due to this Hurricane.
Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal oversaw the evacuation operation and the State administration was all set to face the bloody wind, surge, and the rain impacts in this region.
Tropical storms can make an impact around 200+ miles from the center and hurricane winds will be able to exert force 70 miles from the center.
Offshore oil production along the route of Hurricane Gustav came to a grinding halt on Sunday 31st Aug. Price of crude oil, which was easing in the previous few weeks, started fluctuating owing to the uncertain situations offshore Louisiana. Oil price rose to $118.60 on Sunday morning and eased back to $116.85 in the evening.
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