Hurricanes are one of the most powerful forces that the atmosphere can dish out to planet Earth. They can pack winds of more than 160 miles per hour and produce incredible storm surges that may flood low lying areas and destroy massive amounts of property. With this said, one would think that an approaching hurricane would be enough to make people want to evacuate. However, this is often not the case. In 2005, as Hurricane Katrina churned toward the Gulf Coast of Louisiana, numerous residents stood by their vows that they would not leave their homes. New Orleans is right around sea level (if not a little below). Even an average citizen who has no scientific background could figure out that this spells trouble for the treasured city in the event of a hurricane.

New Orleans is a place many people associate with hurricanes because it has so often been in the news as a place affected by storms. The fact is that any town susceptible to tropical weather systems could have been used in this article. Coastal towns have provided terrific commercial benefits and booming cities that spew income to millions of people. However, when a hurricane approaches it is time to pack up and leave. The question then becomes why would somebody treasure their property over their life? Government and emergency management officials expect people to evacuate when a mandatory evacuation is posted. In 2005, just before Katrina struck, mandatory evacuations were posted and many people refused to evacuate. Of course, the government was far less prepared in 2005. Perhaps a better example is Hurricane Gustav, which was a major news story not long ago.

Gustav reached category four strength just prior to tracking over Cuba and losing some strength. It was thought that fairly significant intensification would occur once the storm moved back over the waters of the Gulf of Mexico. Given the risk of the storm reaching category four strength, New Orleans and other nearby parishes decided to order mandatory evacuations. These evacuations were much more organized than those during Katrina. However, despite the government aiding in the evacuations, many residents still failed to evacuate because they wanted to protect their property. Luckily, Gustav never really gained the intensity that forecasters thought it would and New Orleans was largely spared from a more significant impact.

Some of the residents stated that they could have waited out the storm while others said they did not want to evacuate in the first place. Officials always hesitate when making evacuation choices because of the mentality that may develop if the storm is not as bad as expected.

Residents should get smart and realize that although one location may be spared once, that same place may not be as lucky the next time. Stronger hurricanes can contain the energy of several atomic bombs. Most people, if not all,would not want to be around when an atomic bomb hit. The moral to this story is to evacuate when it is advised, even when the storm may not be as strong as expected. Do not count on being lucky forever. While sympathy should be given to those affected, the people who refuse to evacuate are flat out dumb and ignorant to the power of nature.