Martial Law has been declared in New Orleans as conditions continued to deteriorate. Water levels in The Big Easy and it's suburbs are rising at dangerous levels and officials stated they don't know where the water is coming from. Residents are being urged to get out of New Orleans in any way they can as officials fear "life will be unsustainable" for days or even weeks.

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Col. Rich Wagenaar of the Army Corps of Engineers, said a breach in the eastern part of the city was causing flooding and "significant evacuations" in Orleans and St. Bernard parishes. He did not know how many people were affected by the flooding.

Authorities also were gathering information on a levee breach in the western part of New Orleans. Jason Binet, of the Army Corps of Engineers, said that breach began Monday afternoon and may have grown overnight.

[Source: WBEN]

From The National Weather Service:

EXTREMELY DANGEROUS HURRICANE KATRINA CONTINUES TO APPROACH THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER DELTA

DEVASTATING DAMAGE EXPECTED

MOST OF THE AREA WILL BE UNINHABITABLE FOR WEEKS…PERHAPS LONGER. AT LEAST ONE HALF OF WELL CONSTRUCTED HOMES WILL HAVE ROOF AND WALL FAILURE. ALL GABLED ROOFS WILL FAIL…LEAVING THOSE HOMES SEVERELY DAMAGED OR DESTROYED.

THE MAJORITY OF INDUSTRIAL BUILDINGS WILL BECOME NON FUNCTIONAL. PARTIAL TO COMPLETE WALL AND ROOF FAILURE IS EXPECTED. ALL WOOD FRAMED LOW RISING APARTMENT BUILDINGS WILL BE DESTROYED. CONCRETE BLOCK LOW RISE APARTMENTS WILL SUSTAIN MAJOR DAMAGE…INCLUDING SOME WALL AND ROOF FAILURE.

HIGH RISE OFFICE AND APARTMENT BUILDINGS WILL SWAY DANGEROUSLY…A FEW TO THE POINT OF TOTAL COLLAPSE. ALL WINDOWS WILL BLOW OUT.

AIRBORNE DEBRIS WILL BE WIDESPREAD…AND MAY INCLUDE HEAVY ITEMS SUCH AS HOUSEHOLD APPLIANCES AND EVEN LIGHT VEHICLES. SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES AND LIGHT TRUCKS WILL BE MOVED. THE BLOWN DEBRIS WILL CREATE ADDITIONAL DESTRUCTION. PERSONS…PETS…AND LIVESTOCK EXPOSED TO THE WINDS WILL FACE CERTAIN DEATH IF STRUCK.

POWER OUTAGES WILL LAST FOR WEEKS…AS MOST POWER POLES WILL BE DOWN AND TRANSFORMERS DESTROYED. WATER SHORTAGES WILL MAKE HUMAN SUFFERING INCREDIBLE BY MODERN STANDARDS.

THE VAST MAJORITY OF NATIVE TREES WILL BE SNAPPED OR UPROOTED. ONLY THE HEARTIEST WILL REMAIN STANDING…BUT BE TOTALLY DEFOLIATED. FEW CROPS WILL REMAIN. LIVESTOCK LEFT EXPOSED TO THE WINDS WILL BE KILLED.

AN INLAND HURRICANE WIND WATCH IS ISSUED WHEN SUSTAINED WINDS NEAR HURRICANE FORCE…OR FREQUENT GUSTS AT OR ABOVE HURRICANE FORCE…ARE POSSIBLE WITHIN THE NEXT 24 TO 36 HOURS.

Hurricane Katrina strengthened to a dangerous Category 5 storm on Sunday with 160 mph sustained wind as residents of south Louisiana jammed freeways in a rush to get out of the low-lying region and head inland to higher ground.

A hurricane warning was in effect for the north-central Gulf Coast from Morgan City, La., to the Alabama-Florida, meaning hurricane conditions were expected within 24 hours, the National Hurricane Center said. Tropical storm warnings extended east to Indian Pass, Fla., and west to Cameron, La.

Katrina had been blamed for nine deaths in South Florida.

The hurricane's landfall could still come in Mississippi and affect Alabama and Florida, but it looked likely to come ashore Monday morning on the southeastern Louisiana coast, said Ed Rappaport, deputy director of the National Hurricane Center in Miami. That put New Orleans squarely in the crosshairs.

Pray for the people along the Gulf coast.

Country music's "Redneck Woman" promises to keep her can of Skoal in her back pocket from now on. Tennessee's attorney general had asked Gretchen Wilson not to pull out a can of smokeless tobacco during performances of her new song "Skoal Ring" because it glamorized tobacco use.

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"Skoal Ring," from her upcoming album, "All Jacked Up," refers to the wear mark the tobacco cans leave in a blue jeans pocket.

Wilson also stated through her representative that she has no relationship with U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Co., the manufacturers of Skoal.

Since Wilson has agreed to quit displaying the Skoal can, it "pretty much resolves the issue," said the attorney general's spokeswoman, Sharon Curtis-Flair.

Personally, I think the fact that she has no relationship with the manufacturers of Skoal should resolve the issue. It's moronic to think that leaving the can of tobacco in her pocket is going to target young people less. It's not like anyone in the audience is standing there thinking, what is that round object in her back pocket? A hockey puck?

Next thing you know they are going to tell her to change the name of the song.

She should change the name of the song to "Moh'ron Ring". A moron ring refers to the wear mark that idiotic ideas leave on the forehead of states' attornies. Of course, some might consider this glamorizing the use of morons, which is just as dangerous as tobacco these days.

The state attorney general wants the country singer who made the song Redneck Woman a hit to stop "glamorizing" the use of smokeless tobacco at her concerts.

State officials said Gretchen Wilson can be seen on concert jumbo screens pulling a can of Skoal from her pocket while performing her new song, Skoal Ring .

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The title of her song Skoal Ring refers to the wear mark left by carrying a can of smokeless tobacco in a pocket of blue jeans.

The landmark $206 billion tobacco settlement "provided that advertisements such as this would be and should be prohibited," Summers said.

She's singing about chewing tobacco! Oh my Gawd!!! Someone do something quick, before the young people of our great nation are corrupted by this evil, evil, woman!

Of course, please ignore the following facts:

The #2 song on the country charts "Something More" by Sugarland, mentions "To drink some red wine and celebrate."

The #3 song on the country charts, "As Good As I Once Was" by Toby Keith, mentions "Name is Bobby Jo, Meet my twin sister Betty Lou, And we're both feeling kinda wild tonight, And you're the only cowboy in this place, And if you're up for a rodeo, We'll put a big Texas smile on your face"

The #4 song on the country charts, "Play Something Country" by Brooks and Dunn, mentions "I'm a whiskey drinkin', cowboy chasin', helluva time."

The #5 song on the country charts is titled "Alcohol" (by Brad Paisley). Need I say more?

Gretchen Wilson is not advertising "tobacco use" any more than the above mentioned artists are "advertising" sex and booze. If the Attorney General of Tennessee really wants to get his panties in a wad, he should take a closer look at some of the songs from different genres that don't call Tennesee home.

Also note: Dale Earnhardt Jr. drives a car with "Budweiser" plastered on the hood, Mark Martin peddles Viagra while his car takes the lead, and the premier circuit in NASCAR was known as "Winston Cup" until two years ago.

Pardon me now, while I "put that bottle to my head and pull the trigger" with "Whiskey Lullaby" by Brad Paisley and Allison Krause