Demographic

With the recent exodus of people due to the hurricanes, there has been a considerable shift in the population of New Orleans. Last I heard, the population is near half of what it was before the hurricane. This probably explains the decrease in traffic within the city. It seems to be flowing a lot better recently. Yet, it's peculiar that even with half the population of greater New Orleans missing, Wal Mart remains as crowded and packed as usual.

Also interesting is the shift in the trauma statistics. We divide trauma cases that come to the ER into two self-explanatory classes: penetrating trauma (gunshots, stabbing) or blunt trauma (auto accidents, falls, fist fights). With the decrease in the number of "bad" people within New Orleans, the number of penetrating trauma has decreased so much that we've only seen three or four cases over the last several months. Previously, the local trauma center averaged three penetrating cases per night.

Now with the sheer number of people focused on rebuilding the city, violent crime is at an all time low and the only trauma that we're seeing is blunt trauma. Pretty much everybody and their mother seem to be falling off of ladders, trees, or rooftops.