Terry Ebbert Quotations

We're going to face a crisis in the very near term.

We're going to have re-entry for a 'look and leave' into the Ninth Ward starting on Wednesday into those areas where we don't have the large debris fields.

We have no criminal justice system functioning today.

There are gangs of armed men in the city moving around the city.

Monday we knew what we needed by numbers. We told FEMA we needed to move 30,000 people. Now we're just rolling on number 30,000. This should have been five days ago.

It is a department under a great deal of stress. I know you see some of those feelings coming out in how they act out.

I think there's some encouragement in what we've found in the initial sweeps that some of the catastrophic deaths that some people predicted may not have occurred.

I think there's some encouragement in what we've found in the initial sweeps. Numbers so far are relatively minor as compared to the dire projections of 10,000.

Our goal is to ensure that we create an environment where it makes more sense to leave rather than stay.

Our goal is to create an environment for all of the individuals to leave in the face of a storm rather than stay.

Some of the catastrophic deaths some people have predicted may not have occurred. The numbers, so far, are relatively minor as compared with the dire predictions of 10,000.

Some of them, it was their last night on Earth. That's a hard way to learn a lesson.

We will reassess how we have done in reopening so far and the status of our water, sewerage, electricity and hospitals.

Today was an opportunity for all of us to realize . . . this is a team effort. We cannot do it alone and we are the ones who are going to have to execute the plans.

Three inches of rainfall would cause us to have flooding and we would lose ground. You can expect there to be a mandatory evacuation anytime we encounter a large rainfall.

The people arriving on this side of the building are expected to fend for themselves. We have some water.

Today we are attempting with the federal government's assistance to gain control of all law enforcement agencies that have been provided.

To the best of our ability, we have thoroughly searched this city and dealt with those individuals who wanted to be evacuated.

There are hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of breaks. No water pressure, you can't run the sewer system.

We're going to be at this a long time.

There's some encouragement in the initial sweeps. ... The numbers (of dead) so far are relatively minor as compared with the dire predictions of 10,000.

The system didn't break down. The system just wasn't designed to handle something so catastrophic.

That's why these people are going to be very uncomfortable.

This is a national emergency. This is a national disgrace.

This is a national disgrace. We have got a mayor who has been pushing and asking but we're not getting supplies.

This is a national disgrace. FEMA has been here three days, yet there is no command and control. We can send massive amounts of aid to tsunami victims but we can't bail out the city of New Orleans.

There may be instances where we have to evacuate people from trailers when we're not evacuating the city.

It's a very slow rise, and it will remain so until we plug that breach. I think we can get it stabilized in a few hours.

It is vitally important for this city to stay alive, to start moving commerce in the right direction. But we have to do it in a progressive manner.

It's been a four-month struggle to get moving.

They keep coming out of the woodwork. The human suffering I've seen here is greater than anything I've ever been exposed to.

Beginning Saturday, we will be on the path of bringing New Orleans back. We feel it's vitally important for this city to stay alive, for commerce to start moving in the right direction.

These are not individuals looting. These are large groups of armed individuals.

You don't have to be a genius to know when the storm hits, you're going to need water, food, diesel, gasoline, evacuation needs, helicopters, boats, medicine. So why does someone call me up when I don't have any communications and ask me, 'What do I need?' The system needed to go into automatic.

The lessons we learn this weekend will be incorporated into the next phase. We will move very carefully.