The Sun Herald | 02/18/2006 | Police issued life-or-death directives

The Sun Herald's look back atthe storm. Wow.

The Sun Herald | 02/18/2006 | Police issued life-or-death directives:

Just one small piece:

"Biloxi police dispatchers received 242 calls for help after police and emergency workers had been pulled off the streets. A similar scene was playing out in nearly every Coast town.

'We were inundated with phone calls from people who wanted help, but by then it was too late.' Gulfport Police Chief Steve Barnes said.

Most of the gut-wrenching cries for help in Biloxi were from desperate residents on Point Cadet, in a city where police personnel were spread too thin before the storm with evacuation-traffic concerns to conduct door-to-door checks.

Around 9 a.m., a few police officers had heard enough of the frantic calls. They used an old two-and-a-half-ton military truck to drive through the Point.

'In a lot of the calls for help, people were just screaming,' Dunagan said. 'Our officers brought back about 75 people, and one small dog; after that it was too bad to go back out.'

Local officials seem to agree convincing people to leave in the near future won't be nearly as difficult."