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Sheri Fink on the crisis of how Hurricane Katrina drove doctors to extreme measures

When Hurricane Katrina savaged New Orleans nine years ago today, it crippled many of the institutions that would normally help the injured survivors. Hospitals struggled without power and supplies. We hear from an author who believes doctors made some harrowing decisions during those dark days and nights....
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The Current24:00Sheri Fink on the crisis of how Hurricane Katrina drove doctors to extreme measures - August 29, 2014
When Hurricane Katrina savaged New Orleans nine years ago today, it crippled many of the institutions that would normally help the injured survivors. Hospitals struggled without power and supplies. We hear from an author who believes doctors made some harrowing decisions during those dark days and nights.


Hurricane Katrina was nearly unprecedented in its power and lethal force... and it may have led to some nearly unprecedented medical decisions as well.

You need to be scared. You need to be concerned. And you need to get your butts moving out of New Orleans right now. This is the storm of the century. So as a result of that ladies and gentlemen, I am announcing today that we are ordering a mandatory evacuation of the City of New Orleans starting at 8 am in the morning on the West Bank and I must tell you, this is the mother of all storms.Ray Nagin, Mayor of New Orleans
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Mayor Ray Nagin saw further than most nine years ago as a terrifying hurricane was about to catastrophically transform his city. But even among the residents who believed him, not everyone had the option of cleaning out. City hospitals braced for the deluge, but were quickly overwhelmed.

In the days and months following Hurricane Katrina, one particular hospital, Memorial Medical Centre, found itself in the eye of a different kind of storm.

Author Sheri Fink won a Pulitzer Prize for her coverage. Her book is called Five Days at Memorial: Life and Death in a Storm-Ravaged Hospital.

Last December, Anna Maria Tremonti spoke with Sheri Fink from New York City.

We did invite Dr. Anna Po to speak to us but she did not make herself available..

Share your thoughts on today's discussion with journalist Sheri Fink.

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This segment was produced by The Current's Howard Goldenthal.

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