Katrina's victims ask for huge checks By MICHAEL KUNZELMAN, Associated Press WriterWed Jan 9, 10:09 AM ET Hurricane Katrina's victims have put a price tag on their suffering and it is staggering — including one plaintiff seeking the unlikely sum of $3 quadrillion. A whopping $3,014,170,389,176,410 is the dollar figure so far sought from some of the largest claims filed against the federal government over damage from the failure of levees and flood walls following the Aug. 29, 2005, hurricane. Of roughly 489,000 total claims, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said it has received 247 for at least $1 billion apiece, including the one for $3 quadrillion. "That's the mother of all high numbers," said Loren Scott, a Baton Rouge-based economist. For the sake of perspective: A mere $1 quadrillion would dwarf the U.S. gross domestic product, which Scott said was $13.2 trillion in 2007. A stack of one quadrillion pennies would reach Saturn. Some residents may have grossly exaggerated their claims to send a message to the corps, which has accepted blame for poorly designing the failed levees. "I understand the anger," Scott said. "I also understand it's a negotiating tactic: Aim high and negotiate down." Daniel Becnel, Jr., a lawyer who said his clients have filed more than 60,000 claims, said measuring Katrina's devastation in dollars and cents is a nearly impossible task. "There's no way on earth you can figure it out," he said. "The trauma these people have undergone is unlike anything that has occurred in the history of our country." The corps released zip codes, but no names, for the 247 claims of at least $1 billion. The list includes a $77 billion claim by the city of New Orleans. Fourteen involve a wrongful death claim. Fifteen were filed by businesses, including several insurance companies. Little is known about the person who claimed $3 quadrillion. It was filed in Baker, 93 miles northwest of New Orleans. Baker is far from the epicenter of Katrina's destruction, but the city has a trailer park where hundreds of evacuees have lived since the storm. Katrina, which is blamed for more than 1,600 deaths in Louisiana and Mississippi, is considered the most destructive storm to ever hit the U.S. It caused at least $60 billion in insured losses and could cost Gulf Coast states up to $125 billion, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Most of the claims were filed before a deadline that coincided with Katrina's second anniversary, but the Corps is still receiving them — about 100 claims have arrived over the past three weeks — and is feeding them into a computer database. The Corps said it isn't passing judgment on the merits of each claim. Federal courts are in charge of deciding if a claim is valid and how much compensation is warranted. "It's important to the person who filed it, so we're taking every single claim seriously," Corps spokeswoman Amanda Jones said. ___ On the Net: Army Corps: http://www.usace.army.mil Copyright © 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. Copyright © 2007 Yahoo All rights reserved.Copyright/IP Policy |Terms of Service |Help |Feedback NOTICE: We collect personal information on this site. To learn more about how we use your information, see our» Privacy Policy
If I had that kinda cash layin around, I'd start by buying MTV so as to make it not suck anymore. That's first and foremost. Then I'd fix national problems, second you see
Some scientists to build me a gun that shoots througth time, which I would use to kill Eddie Murphy after the filming of Beverly Hills Cop.
If by "Fix mtv" you mean ditch all of the reality crap and put music videos back on there, then yes, I agree with that.
How many times over have the levee upgrades been federally funded, only to see the money go to other things? They shouldn't see one penny of the money they're asking for. Hell, I think I deserve a check because the city of Virginia Beach didn't protect me from the damage that Hurricane Isabelle wrought to my house a few years ago. I can't say I've ever suffered an enormous loss like those people have, but I would never expect the feds to pony up for my suffering. P.S. Everybody feels bad for what went on with Katrina, but even the 9-11 victims didn't take it this far.
Red Deer, Alberta. Just buy the whole town, make 'em all stand on the other side of the highway looking over."What's he gonna do with the town?" Then I'd tear down every building and replace it with a full-sized replica made out of nerf.
id buy anything and everything. I think id have a nice big house...but i think id have a ginormous garage...after all, id love to have a collection of nice cars.
3 Quadrillion dollars!? That kind of money doesn't exist! At least not yet! We're still in the trillions, let's just wait out until 2010. And as for what I'D do with that much cash, simple: I'd buy Rhode Island and rename it Eric Land. Then I'll cut off the entire state from the U.S. and row it all the way to Canada so the two can hang out together.
Ray Nagin is buddies with the Nation of Islam. A good chunk of NO's black population is voodoo. Need I really say more?
Id pay someone to invent the computer that can punch people through the internet. With spare cash left over, I don't know, I'll buy something extravagant. Every surviving Toho made suit used for any of the Godzilla series. Then I would have them stuffed and mounted in an epic battle scene. Finally, a Lego replica of Tokyo in miniature, so a skyscraper is maybe 6-7 ft tall. I would then place my epic battle scene there. EDIT: Oh, one more thing. I'd pay TF comic/show writers to stop killing off Dirge. Come on, give the poor guy a break, huh?
What the hell are talking about? Voodoo?...That must be a joke. You know thats just a tourist scam. The only things voodoo in New Orleans are the store signs.
Word. As for me, I'd buy a cure for people who think they deserve anything from the government for Katrina.
