|
PolL: Most say abandon flooded areas
(AP)
Updated: 2005-09-10 08:57
Flood-prone neighborhoods of New Orleans should be
abandoned and rebuilt on higher ground, according to more than half of the
participants in an AP-Ipsos poll.
Hank Arnold, left,
and his wife Gina use waders and a canoe as they make their way home
through flood waters in Jefferson Parish, near the outskirts of New
Orleans, Thursday, Sept. 8, 2005. [AP] |
Taken in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, the survey found 54 percent favor
relocating vast sections of the city that tourists love for its jazz,
distinctive cuisine and Mardi Gras.
Although about 80 percent of New Orleans was underwater, large sections of
the historic French Quarter and Garden District were spared major flooding. The
city, home to about 484,000 people, sits 6 feet below sea level on average.
The aid price tag already runs tens of billions of dollars. In the days since
the hurricane, House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., has questioned whether the
worst-flooded areas should be rebuilt.
"There's a lot of history, but the fact remains that it remains below sea
level," said Kate Rehfus, a Republican from Fort Thomas, Ky., who loves New
Orleans for its blues, beignets and Cafe Du Monde coffee. "It wouldn't be the
same by any means, but if it could be done, that would be best. This would never
happen again."
Early reports of the survey results prompted angry phone calls from displaced
residents of New Orleans. Among them was a tearful Mary Dawn Pugh.
"My first reaction is, where? Where would you move it? There's water
everywhere," said the recent law school graduate, whose New Orleans home is
submerged.
Pugh complained about public reaction to recent TV coverage of the worst
moments of a city known worldwide for its romance and charm.
"I've heard so much hatred spewed about New Orleans, people talking about
what they've seen," said Pugh, who wondered which people were polled. "It could
be backwoods Minnesota people thinking how their tax dollars are going to be
spent."
Mike Kimble, who lives in the suburbs of New Orleans, said asking whether New
Orleans should be rebuilt is ridiculous. "When there's an earthquake in San
Francisco, when there's a riot in L.A., when there's mudslides out West, we
still build houses on the side of the mountains with federal money," Kimble
said. "If there's a Southern city in a Southern state that has a problem, then
the question is, why rebuild it?
"New Orleans is a vital place to the country — the ports, the grain
elevators, the oil refineries," he said. "Such a question like that should never
be asked."
Just over half, 52 percent, said they disapprove of President Bush's handling
of hurricane relief. Blacks were especially upset with Bush; 78 percent of
blacks blamed the president for the poor response, compared with 49 percent of
whites.
Two-thirds in the poll said state and local governments deserve much of the
blame for the response.
Members of the New Orleans City Council are vowing to rebuild the city — a
task that would cost billions of dollars. The Big Easy is a magnet for tourists,
with more than 10 million visiting in 2004 and spending almost $5 billion,
according to the New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau.
More than four in 10 of those polled said they want the city rebuilt where it
is, with its levees strengthened.
Residents of Louisiana, Mississippi, the coastal area of Alabama and the
Florida Panhandle were not interviewed for the poll because of widespread damage
to the communications systems in the states and the ongoing efforts by residents
to recover from the storm.
The rapid rise in gas prices past $3 per gallon may have played a role in
Bush's 39 percent job approval, the first time it has dipped below 40 percent
since the AP-Ipsos poll was started in December 2003. Almost two-thirds say the
country is headed down the wrong track and slightly more say they disapprove of
Bush's handling of gas prices.
Despite their gloomy mood, people are donating to hurricane victims at record
levels. Almost two-thirds in the poll say they have already given money — with
about $600 million donated so far. Donations to Katrina victims are outpacing
donations at a similar stage for recent disasters like the South Asia tsunami
and the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, according to groups that monitor donations.
"I sat there and cried, I still sit here and cry," said Joyce Jones, a
retiree from Modesto, Calif., explaining her reaction to the plight of New
Orleans hurricane victims. "I have donated, I plan to donate more. These people
need it."
The poll of 1,002 adults was conducted by Ipsos, an international polling
firm, from Sept. 6-8 and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3
percentage points.
|
 | | | 12th APEC Finance Ministers Meeting | | |  | | | Germany's Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder campaigning | | |  | | | Rescue continues in New Orleans | | |
|
| |
 |
|
|
|
|
Today's
Top News |
|
|
|
Top World
News |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
