Mitch Landrieu: “I rise to speak this morning about a very important issue for the country, particularly for the gulf coast region and…”

“I rise to speak this morning about a very important issue for the country, particularly for the gulf coast region and the State of Louisiana. Madam President, as you know, although your State of Alaska is not located in the southern part of the Nation, you and other members of society are well aware of the devastation that occurred to our coastal communities, whether on the eastern coast or southeastern coast or the central gulf. As is the case this morning, Hurricane Ivan, a category 4 hurricane bearing down on the gulf coast region, according to the latest weather reports and indications based on good research that is being done here by many of our Federal agencies, we can somewhat predict the path of the hurricane. With our most sophisticated systems, radar and weather tracking, pinpointing with some accuracy, there is a projection of where this killer storm, this major storm, may hit. It seems as though it has turned north and is headed right now to the Mississippi-Alabama line, but it could move within the next 12 hours to the east or to the west. As we wrap up our business here in Washington, the entire gulf coast, and the State I represent, Louisiana being one of those Gulf Coast States, Mississippi and Alabama and the panhandle of Florida, is under a mandatory evacuation. Why? It is because this is a huge storm. It is a category 4. We hope and pray, and there are some indications, that it will change to a category 3.”