Five Days at Memorial (2022) s01e03 Episode Script
Day Three
1
[BRYANT] The day after Hurricane
Katrina hit New Orleans,
everybody thought we got so lucky,
that everything was gonna be fine.
And it was fine.
The sun was out, water pulled back.
And then we learned
the levees had broken.
All this water started
pouring into the city,
and there was no way to stop it.
[INTERVIEWER 2] Did you have any idea
how bad things would get at Memorial?
Nobody knew.
Nobody knew.
[INTERVIEWER 2] When you
look back at what happened,
what stands out to you the most?
What stands out?
[INHALES DEEPLY]
- [SIRENS WAILING]
- [SURVIVORS SCREAM]
- [GUNSHOT]
- [INHALES DEEPLY]
I guess what stands out to me
is that it was just five days.
[GULPS]
It only took five days for
everything to fall apart.
[INTERVIEWER 2] How was
Dr. Pou during all this?
- How was she
- [INTERVIEWER 2] How was her [SIGHS]
If you were to describe her
behavior over those five days?
The same as everybody.
The circumstances reveal
who you really are.
[SINGER] Wade in the water ♪
Wade in the water, children ♪
[SINGER, CHORUS] Wade in the water ♪
Wade in the water, children ♪
Wade in the water ♪
God is gonna trouble these waters ♪
[CHORUS] Man went down to the river ♪
Man went down to the river, Lord ♪
Man went down to the river ♪
Went down there for to pray ♪
[SINGER] Oh ♪
[SINGER, CHORUS] Wade in the water ♪
Wade in the water, children ♪
Wade in the water ♪
God is gonna trouble these waters ♪
[VOCALIZING]
[SINGER] God's gonna
trouble these waters ♪
[MUSIC ENDS]
[SURVIVOR] When are they
going to get us out of here?
[SUSAN] Oh.
Oh! That's good. That's That's
Okay. Okay. That'll
get some air in here.
I know it's stuffy. I know it is hot.
But I need everybody to
be real still and listen.
Whatever else you've heard,
whatever talk's going around,
I'm gonna tell you straight.
There has been a break in
the 17th Street Canal levee.
[STAFF GRUMBLING]
Maybe a couple of others. And
the city pumps aren't working.
Water is coming, and
it's gonna keep coming.
The hospital will be flooded,
maybe to the second floor.
We have to evacuate, and
we have to start moving now.
[EWING] Evacuate to where?
There's looting going on outside.
[SUSAN] Hold on. I do not
know what's going on out there,
but I know that there are
15 feet of water coming here.
We will be cut off, without power.
And when the basement goes, we'll lose the
rest of our food, our supplies down there.
- We're already running short on medicines.
- [DOCTOR] Why would we evacuate
when the National Guard are here?
[SUSAN] I don't know how
long they're gonna stay.
They're being redeployed
all over the city.
And we need to get out of here
before we lose the rest of
the power in the building.
We have generators.
When the water gets to four feet, it's
gonna flood the electrical switches
and they're gonna shut down.
The water's coming in at
about one foot an hour.
So, worst-case, we got four hours.
- Great.
- Anything other than that is luck.
How do we get the patients out?
We talked to the National Guard
about, uh, getting some vehicles.
We're talking to our contractors
about getting some ambulances out here.
Sandra has been emailing Tenet
to see if they can contract some private
helicopters, or if the Coast Guard
Can they even? I mean, can
helicopters even land here?
When When was the last time
anyone used the landing pad?
Was when the Pope was here.
[RICHARD] That was in 1991.
The pope was here in 1987.
- Perfect.
- [STAFF GRUMBLING]
Eighteen years?
[STAFF MEMBER] Seriously?
It's been 18 years
since you used the pad?
[ERIC] Even if the pad is operational,
the garage elevators aren't wired
into the backup electricity system.
They're not working.
There's no way to get the patients
directly from the hospital to the helipad.
Do any of y'all have an
engineering background?
Any kind of engineering?
- Anybody?
- Yep.
[SUSAN] Go with Eric, and I need
you to start looking over the pad.
I need you to decide
whether it's stable or not.
Decide? How?
I need you to decide.
- [ERIC] Well, come on. Let's go.
- All right.
[SUSAN] We will find a way to
get the patients to the pad.
We'll figure something out.
Right now, I need you all to
start talking to your teams.
The city water is fouled.
Do not use, do not drink
from any of the taps.
And the bottled water, we have to
let that stretch for 2,000 people…
[CONTINUES INDISTINCTLY]
[LINE RINGING]
[ANNA EXHALES DEEPLY]
[RINGING CONTINUES]
Hey. It's Vince. Anna and
I can't come to the phone.
[LINE BEEPS]
[SIGHS] Vince, it's me again.
Call me soon as you can, all right?
I'm all right but call me.
- [SIGHS] Can everybody come here?
- [NURSE] What'd they say in the meeting?
[ANNA] Everybody,
come over here, please.
[BREATHES HEAVILY]
I need all of you to be very
calm, okay? Can you do that?
Diane? Diane. They're
evacuating the hospital.
Who's evacuating?
Memorial. I heard they're
getting everybody out.
- We're gonna have to evacuate.
- Evacuate the floor?
- The whole hospital.
- Evacuate when?
Now. Right now.
Are they taking us with them? How are
we supposed to get our patients out?
Who is in charge?
- [ANGELA] Diane?
- Stay with your mom.
- What's going on?
- Just stay with your mother, okay?
Jesus, keep me near the cross ♪
A precious fountain ♪
[SIGHS]
Free to all, a healing stream ♪
Flows from Calvary's mountain ♪
Near the cross, I'll watch and wait ♪
Hoping, trusting ever ♪
Till I reach the golden strand ♪
Just beyond the river ♪
There's water coming in.
It's filling up the parking lot.
Just stay there. Just
stay with my mom, okay?
Yeah, I'm here.
[MARK] I figured they gotta be
setting up checkpoints around the city,
letting people out but
not letting people in.
If we can find a base of
operations or marshaling point,
and get ourselves some
volunteer credentials,
we can get into the city and
make our way to the hospital.
Yeah, but if we do all this and they've
already got your mom out, then…
Well, what if they haven't?
I mean, what if they can't?
I mean, the power's out
and the water's rising.
[STAMMERS] But it's a hospital.
Without power, it's not a
hospital. It's just a building.
Look, one way or the other,
it's better to get there
than just stay here, praying for
a call that's never gonna come.
I mean, she's my mom.
I'm not leaving her.
[SIGHS]
We should find a fire station.
The city's gonna be calling
in emergency personnel,
and if they are, maybe we can
tag with them and work our way in.
We'll get your mom.
However we have to, we'll get her.
[BREATHES HEAVILY]
[DIANE] Susan?
- Diane Robichaux from LifeCare.
- Hi.
Are you evacuating the hospital?
Yes.
Why am I just finding out?
How are we supposed to
evacuate our patients?
You're a private hospital.
You don't have your own plan?
We can't contact anyone. We don't
even have any of our doctors up there.
You can't communicate with
your corporate offices?
I mean, barely.
See if they can get in touch with the
Coast Guard or any private air charter,
and if our helipad is
operational, I will let you know.
And get me a list of
your critical patients.
That's most of them.
Just get me a list and
we'll do what we can.
But right now, we can't
even help ourselves.
Anything?
I got a phone number for some
Air National Guard officer.
That's a Baton Rouge number.
- He's supposed to be coordinating
- Did you call?
- I couldn't get through
- What about Tenet?
- I've been emailing them, but
- Email them again and tell them
- that we are running out of time.
- I told them
They are our parent
corporation, for Christ's sake.
Tell them that we have
about four hours left
before we lose power and we need help.
I'm trying.
I know you are. I know you are.
Just let me know when
you hear anything, okay?
Yeah.
[TYPING]
This was a common sight today.
Helicopters and rescue teams,
lifting people one by one,
hundreds and hundreds,
and all from rooftops.
New Orleans thought it
had been spared the worst,
and then two major levees broke and,
slowly, the city has filled with water.
Canal Street is now a canal.
This city is going to be, essentially,
uninhabitable for many days.
[REPORTER] The city that sits
below sea level is now undersea.
Overnight there were two breaches in the
levee system that protects New Orleans.
One in 200…
Hey, we just got another email
from Memorial in New Orlean
- What?
- Memorial, in New Orleans.
They got to evacuate patients.
[SURVIVOR] I mean,
everything's been flooded.
Sounds kinda panicky, right?
- I mean, what should we do?
- Do? Like
I mean, is there any kind of
emergency procedure or anything, or
Just forward the email to somebody.
These emails are going
wide. No one's responding.
Well, I don't know what to tell you.
[REPORTER SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
Michael. The pro formas for
SC. Can I get you to sign off?
Yeah.
You want me to do this now?
Like to get it out by tomorrow.
Uh…
Can we do this later?
- Well, we have to get them to print.
- I'll be right back.
- Steve?
- [STEVE] Hi.
We're getting emails.
One of our hospitals, there was
flooding after the hurricane,
- and they need to evacuate.
- Okay?
They're asking for help.
- I guess, I'm wondering do we have any
- Do we?
Does the company have any contracts
with medical transport companies
or is there an evacuation plan?
Is there anybody that may
I wouldn't know about
any emergency plans.
Isn't there somebody in Louisiana?
I mean, we're business development.
Right.
Just sounds like they really need help.
- I don't I don't know.
- Look, well…
[STEVE] Hey, Michael. Wait.
Who's that one VP? Uh, used
to be in the National Guard?
- Which one?
- [SIGHS] It's Portis, I think.
- Now, go look him up in the directory.
- Great.
- All right. Keep me in the loop.
- Yeah. Will do.
[LINE RINGING]
[ASSISTANT] Alan Portis's office.
Hi. This is Michael Arvin with
Tenet in Dallas. I'm trying
I'm sorry. What was the name?
Michael Arvin. I'm the Director of
Business Development
for Tenet Gulf Coast.
We've got an emergency in New Orleans.
One of our hospitals, at-at least one,
is requesting emergency
services and I
Mr. Portis is on vacation.
I can take a message.
- Uh, can you reach him?
- Mr. Portis is on vacation.
There's a hospital
a company hospital,
that is being flooded and needs help.
I really need to speak to Mr. Portis.
- Hello?
- [SIGHS] H-H-Hold, please.
Hey, would you turn up the TV a bit?
The water here is a foot deep.
The water there, much, much deeper.
Twelve hours ago, we drove on these
streets and they were completely dry.
[ASSISTANT] Mr. Arvin?
Yeah, I'm here.
- You have Mr. Portis.
- [ALAN] Hello.
Mr. Portis. Michael Arvin.
I'm the Director of Business
Development for Tenet Gulf Coast.
Yes?
We've got an emergency in New
Orleans. We're getting these emails
that one of our hospitals is
requesting emergency services,
and I was told you might have
been in the National Guard.
That's right.
Well, I was wondering, do you have
any contacts at National Guard?
Anybody I might
be able to reach out
No. No, I don't.
Do you have thoughts about somebody who
I might be able to get in contact with
I'm not at the office right now.
These emails are sounding urgent.
I don't think this is able to wait.
Call the National Guard. They're
probably coordinating something.
[TYPING]
[SIGHS]
[COMPUTER BEEPS]
[SIGHS]
[COMPUTER BEEPS]
[SIGHS]
Yeah. I'm trying to
get some kinda number
for the Louisiana National
Guard or the Coast Guard.
Yeah, I'll hold.
[REPORTER] do not have enough.
Unprepared and overwhelmed.
[SURVIVORS CLAMORING]
[REPORTER] …headed for higher ground.
[MAINTENANCE WORKER] Come
on. Come on. Keep them coming.
More. More, more, more,
more. That's it. Come on.
[PANTING]
[DOCTOR] How are we supposed to
get 200 patients up here this way?
Yeah.
[PANTING]
[PANTING CONTINUES]
Hey, come on.
- We gotta check the structure, yeah?
- Yeah.
Jesus.
[ERIC] Anything?
There's corrosion. It's
everywhere, all the metal.
[ERIC] How bad?
I don't know how bad. All I
can tell you is what I see.
Maybe we can fit a bone saw up here.
Uh, cut through some of this metal,
and see how pervasive the corrosion is.
Now, before we start landing
any helicopters up here,
better make goddamn sure this
thing can take the weight. [SIGHS]
[SIGHS]
Okay.
- Freddy.
- [FREDDY] Yeah.
Yeah, I'm coming down. I need
some kinda saw. A steel cutter.
- Steel cutter?
- Yeah, and I need it fast.
No.
No!
No!
No!
[METAL CREAKS]
Hey! Hey, come here.
- Me?
- You! Come here.
Do you need help?
Yeah.
Guard 5-8-5, I'm at…
- Where am I?
- Baptist Memorial Hospital.
Baptist Memorial Hospital.
Medical personnel requesting evac.
Copy that.
I can evac one person.
- One?
- One. Hurry.
[SUSAN] There are almost 200
patients we have to evacuate.
We need to discuss who's going
first and who's going last.
I think that the most sick patients,
the ones who are most dependent
on life support or mechanical aid,
should go out first.
So, that's almost two dozen in the ICU.
We can't care for any of them
if and when the power goes out.
Same with the neonates,
those on ventilators.
They're not gonna survive.
We have several high-risk pregnant
mothers, half dozen dialysis patients,
and two bone marrow transplant patients.
All of them have to get to
acute care as soon as possible,
and after that, we move
the more stable patients,
then the civilians and families,
then staff, and, last, doctors.
[DOCTOR] Sorry.
Can we agree on that?
Uh…
Yes. [SIGHS]
All right. Now, the
National Guard has promised
to move 35 medical and
surgical patients out by truck.
Thirty-five? That's it?
- [DOOR OPENS]
- Well, that's what they said. They
There's a helicopter. There's
a helicopter up on the pad.
How did a helicopter pilot think
I was standing there. I was waving.
He thought I was signaling him.
- He says
- Is he from Tenet?
- How many are they sending?
- Just listen to me.
He says he can take one
patient, but we have to hurry.
- What, one?
- [DOCTOR] One.
The neonates. Take
one of the neonates.
Okay. Okay.
[GRUNTS]
Sandra, the helipad's operational.
Let Tenet know we
can take helicopters.
Yes. Copy.
Karen, the helipad's operational.
Get your patients ready to move.
We're sending the neonates
first and everybody in the ICU.
Got it.
[SIGHS]
We're gonna start moving
the patients, okay? Let's go.
[PANTING] Okay. There's a helicopter.
The sickest baby, bring it.
Get the rest ready to move.
- Take Baby Edmonds.
- Okay.
[WORKER] Let's go. Pile that door.
Over here.
Steve. I just heard from Memor
Hold on one second.
I just heard from Memorial.
They can take helicopters.
I got a hospital in Baton
Rouge willing to take patients.
I'm trying to contact some
private helicopter companies,
and we got a couple hospitals in
Atlanta offering evacuation support.
No. No sky
The company's saying it needs to
be Coast Guard, National Guard.
I've been in touch with
them. They know the situation.
Atlanta wants to help.
Mike, this isn't airlifting
from a car accident.
This is flooding. This is rescue. Okay?
It's the military. That's what
they do. Let 'em do it, okay?
Okay?
Okay.
Yeah, I'm here. [SIGHS]
Uh, Memorial can take helicopters, but
we're going to try to
use the Coast Guard.
Yeah, I'll keep you posted.
[REPORTER] a possible
doomsday scenario.
The water keeps rising
here at an alarming rate,
and Mayor Ray Nagin says that
if the Army Corps of Engineers
cannot patch that break in the
levee, then by the end of today,
all of downtown New Orleans, even
the parts that are above sea level,
could be completely underwater.
[DOCTOR] Careful.
[NURSE 1] Watch it. Swing. All right.
- [NURSE 2] Just…
- [NURSE 1] All right. On three.
- [NURSE 2] Okay, ready? Let's go.
- [NURSE 3] One, two, three.
Okay.
Yep. Keep it level.
- [NURSE 2] Easy, easy.
- [NURSE 1] Careful, step.
- [NURSE 2] Easy.
- [NURSE 1] Okay. Turn, turn, turn.
Ready? Watch your feet.
[DOCTOR] Okay, here we go. [GRUNTS]
[GRUNTING]
- [NURSE 1] I can't lift it anymore.
- Okay.
Little slower, little slower. Oh, God.
- Oh, hey. Come on.
- Okay.
[NURSE 2] I'm good. I'm good.
Hey, wait. We gotta give her oxygen.
- Give me a second.
- [DOCTOR] She good?
- Is she good? Let's go.
- [INDISTINCT]
- [NURSE 1] All right, ready?
- [GRUNTING]
Guys, that's it. That's it.
[PANTING]
Hey, what the fuck were you
doing? That took too long!
- The elevator's not working.
- Then figure something out.
People need help and we
can't waste time here.
Get her in. Let's go. Hurry up.
- We gotta go.
- Come on. Come on. Come on.
Now move back!
- Now, move back. Move!
- [NURSE 1] She's not coming back.
All right!
All clear, let's go!
[RENÉ] If we can get the
neonates out by helicopter,
35 patients by National Guard transport,
then that leaves us with what?
A hundred and fifty patients, plus
doctors, plus staff, plus civilians.
Do we need to consider as
we're prioritizing patients.
I think the DNRs should go last.
Why?
Well, they've already signed
a Do Not Resuscitate order.
They've indicated they
don't want to be saved.
Well, that's not [STAMMERS]
A DNR doesn't mean don't save a person.
A DNR means if a person
codes you don't revive them.
Well, for a patient to get a DNR they
have to have a certified termin
No, no. That's
You're misunderstanding
what a DNR act
No, Richard. Richard.
Why prioritize DNR patients now?
Look, we've only got four patients
in the ICU who have DNRs. Four.
And what we're talking about
is a last resort contingency.
If you could get four
healthy patients out
versus four who are
terminal, wouldn't
Uh, I think we should bring
Susan in on this conversation.
[SCOFFS]
She's the one in charge. Right?
Mm-hmm.
Right there.
Go. Come on.
Yeah, go on through.
[INSECTS CHIRPING]
[BREATHING HEAVILY]
- Okay. There we go.
- [GRUNTS]
Slow down. Conserve it, okay?
Yeah. And save some for yourself,
'cause when you get dehydrated,
you can't help anybody.
[SIGHS]
Jane?
Jane?
What's going on? Her heart
monitor's disconnected?
We were told that nonessential
care was being suspended
- because we're evacuating patients.
- Told? Told by who?
- Dr. Cook said tha
- I don't care what he said.
She's my patient. Reattach her monitor.
I should check with Dr. Cook.
Excuse me?
I should check with do
You don't have to check with
anybody. Reattach her monitor.
You know what? Fuck that. Fuck that.
[MACHINE ACTIVATING, RHYTHMIC BEEPING]
Nurse, I said that all
nonessential care was suspended.
This woman isn't nonessential. She
needs to be continuously monitored.
- I
- Disconnect that heart monitor.
You know, if you
have something to say…
Do not reconnect
it unless I tell you.
She is my patient.
But she is my patient!
We don't have
time for nonsense.
I am in charge of this floor,
and I've told you what to do.
I'm not going to be dictated
to by some junior physician.
Do you understand?
[SNIFFLES]
[SIGHS] So fucking
[RADIO CHATTER]
[MARK] Hey, who's in charge?
Um, that guy over there.
Thank you.
[FIREFIGHTER] You're
standing around, wasting time.
- [FIREFIGHTERS CHATTERING]
- [MARK] Sir, you in charge?
Who are you?
Uh, we're just looking to help.
If y'all are heading into New
Orleans, we'd like to do what we can.
- We're not taking civvies.
- We're not civvies.
I'm-I'm a paramedic.
Look, I coordinate the EMT program at
Nunez Community College in Chalmette.
If you want to call and ask,
my name is Sandra LeBlanc.
I know what I'm doing,
and I want to help.
[RADIO CHATTER]
Jimmy! Bring me some paperwork!
Now, get logged in.
I need your names, any
training, next of kin.
Got plenty of hands here.
When are y'all gonna move out?
- I don't know.
- What are you waiting for?
Somebody to figure
out what to do with us.
We got a National Guard truck, y'all.
His oxygen's good.
- She's all right. She's oxygenating.
- It's okay.
Uh-huh. Keep it coming.
All right, watch out.
[AIR BRAKES HISS]
[CHATTERING]
[INHALES SHARPLY] You
okay? You all right?
- Right behind you.
- I'm okay.
She's good.
[CHATTERING]
[GROANING]
Careful.
[NATIONAL GUARD] That's
it. That's all we can get.
[GRUNTING, CLAMORING]
- Okay, you coming?
- Oh, careful.
It's okay, baby. We got you.
[CHATTERING, CLAMORING]
- So, where are you taking them?
- Texas.
That's the closest hospital?
That's what we were told,
that's where we're going.
They just got you.
[PATIENT] Where'd they say they'd go?
[GRUNTS]
[NATIONAL GUARD] Keep your
heads down until we exit.
All right, you're good.
Okay, that's it.
That's only 20 patients.
You were supposed to take 35.
- That's all the room we've got.
- [SIGHS]
[CLAMORING]
Okay, so when is
the next truck coming?
Soon as it can. Are you coming?
- [SIGHS]
- You should go.
No, you go.
It's all right. I mean,
what am I gonna do in Texas?
[CLAMORING, ARGUING]
All right. It's all right.
[PATIENT] What are we supposed to do?
[PATIENTS CLAMORING]
It's okay, it's uh
The next one is coming.
The next one is coming.
[ENGINE STARTS]
[NATIONAL GUARD] That's it. Okay.
[NATIONAL GUARD] Clear.
[PATIENT] This don't make no damn sense.
[GRUNTING]
[NURSE 1] Where are the helicopters?
[NURSE 2 PANTING] Oh, shit.
[NURSE 1] Where the
fuck are the helicopters?
[SIGHS] Tell somebody
there are no helicopters.
[RUMBLING]
Oh, shit.
Hey. Back off!
Hey! Back off! Back off!
Susan, we can't hold back the
water. It's gonna flood our panels.
We're gonna lose our generators.
[SUSAN] You said we had four hours.
[ERIC] I said, "Best-case, we've
got four hours." We got minutes.
Susan. There are no helicopters.
The neonates are up on the pad,
and there are no helicopters.
Sandra? Sandra, where
are the helicopters?
We have babies on the pad.
I-I don't know. They
said they would be there.
[SUSAN] We need helicopters
and we need them now!
- [BREATHES HEAVILY]
- [TYPING]
[COMPUTER BEEPS]
[REPORTER] And days after Hurricane
Katrina hit, people are still stranded,
hoping a passing helicopter
will pluck them away to safety.
Frustration over the pace
of the federal relief effort
has reached the boiling point.
Today, blistering criticism.
The mayor of New Orleans.
[NAGIN] Now, get off your
asses and let's do something.
And let's fix the biggest god[BLEEP]
crisis in the history of this country.
[ERIC] All right.
There's no way we're
saving these panels!
Yeah, let's get out of here. It's
too fucking dangerous. Come on.
Come on.
- [STAFF GASPING]
- [BEEPING]
[ALARM SOUNDING]
[MACHINERY BEEPING]
[PATIENT] Nurse, is it gonna be okay?
[BEEPING CONTINUES]
[NURSE] We can't run the
ventilators without power.
[STAFF CLAMORING]
[BROADCASTER 1] Search and rescue
operations go on from
what FEMA now calls
the most significant natural disaster
ever to hit the United States.
[BROADCASTER 2] …potentially
devastating problem,
because the Crescent City
area is below sea level.
[REPORTER] Tonight, darkness,
of course, had fallen.
And you can hear
people yelling for help.
You can hear the dogs yelping.
All of them stranded. All of
them hoping someone will come.
But for tonight, they've had to
suspend the-the rescue efforts.
[BROADCASTER 3] Water is still pouring
into that city. It's getting worse.
[BROADCASTER 4] Hundreds,
if not thousands of people
remain stranded on their roofs or in
their attics waiting to be rescued.
[BROADCASTER 5] Not only are there
floodwaters there, but it's dangerous.
The, uh, the violence, the looting,
the snipers. It's a dangerous situation.
[BROADCASTER 6] Those in New
Orleans have been talking about
possibly evacuating two
hospitals in the area.
But we have just now learned that
those plans have been put on hold.
[BROADCASTER 7] There are
reports of multiple levees
breached all around the city.
[BROADCASTER 8] Floodwaters rise, chaos
reigns, as a city falls into crisis.
[REPORTER 2] Don't
know how we can impress
upon people what is
really going on here.
I think people just
don't have a concept
[BROADCASTER 9] Neighborhood after
neighborhood submerged in water.
The number of the trapped, the
missing, the dead remains unknown.
- [GUNSHOT IN DISTANCE]
- [DOG BARKING]
- [GUNSHOTS CONTINUE]
- [PEOPLE SHOUTING]
[SUSAN] You feeling like
a little bit of water?
[SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY]
- Mmm. You okay?
- Susan. How y'all doing?
Hey. Just letting my
mother get a little rest.
Y'all have been out here all day. I
figured I could relieve some folks.
Start letting everybody
in your unit know
that there aren't any more
National Guard trucks coming.
Water's already too high,
and they're pulling the
rest of their people out.
What about our people?
Corporate is doing everything they can.
[BROADCASTER] Hospitals are
without water, even power.
So, how long can they keep it up?
How are they gonna get the
critically ill out of the city?
[SURVIVOR] We have very
little food, very little water.
And everybody's rationing.
They What we're
really concerned about
is most of these ventilators
have been run by batteries
and, well, we don't have batteries.
And, unfortunately, they're gonna
die when we run out of batteries.
[BROADCASTER] Moments ago massive
explosions shake New Orleans.
As the city spirals out of control,
there appears to be anarchy…
[PERSON 1] Nothing from
anybody? No marching orders?
[PERSON 2] None.
Jesus.
All right. Forget this.
Get me the location of the closestSARBOO.
We're not sitting around anymore.
Got it.
All right, let's go. Gear
up. We're gonna move out.
Come on. Everybody, find a vehicle.
Make sure you've got some
water and take it with you.
- [FIREFIGHTER 1] About time.
- Come on.
- Where are we going?
- I don't know, but we're moving.
[FIREFIGHTER 2] Get those
flashlights. We're going to work.
[FIREFIGHTER 3] All right.
Let's go. Backup batteries too.
Roll out.
[FIREFIGHTER 4] Load up the rig.
[ENGINE STARTS]
[SIREN WAILING]
[EMMETT] There's nothing more
precious than life, you know?
- [DIANE CHUCKLES]
- Not one single thing.
[DIANE] I know. Trust
me, I know. [SIGHS]
But thank you for the reminder.
Boy or girl?
That I do not know. [CHUCKLES]
Are you for real? You
got to be kidding me.
[LAUGHS]
Um. There are darn few
surprises left in life.
You know, true, good surprises.
Good Lord has blessed me with one,
and I will look forward to its reveal.
Now, don't go getting down on me.
You get sad and I get sad.
Both of us got plenty to live for.
Let's just leave it at that.
[DIANE] Okay.
[NURSE] Diane? Diane.
[DIANE SIGHS]
[EMMETT SIGHS]
Diane, a patient's coding.
[SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY]
[DIANE] What happened?
He went into pulseless
V-fib. No respirations.
He's full code, and
there's no DNR order.
Go down to Memorial. Tell them we got
a patient coding and need a doctor.
I'll get a crash cart.
Hey, I need a doctor.
- LifeCare, seventh floor. Code Blue.
- Can't anyone up there take it?
There aren't any doctors
up there. We need somebody.
Dr. Pou, Code Blue on seven.
I'll go. Get an ER doctor.
[BREATHING HEAVILY]
- Where?
- This way.
[BREATHING HEAVILY]
- Charging.
- [MACHINE BEEPS]
- [NURSE 1] Everybody, stand back.
- [NURSE 2] Clear?
[ALL] Clear.
- [NURSE 2] Shock delivered. All clear?
- [NURSE 3] Clear.
- Now press.
- [DR. BALTZ] What's going on?
Seventy-three-year-old male,
right-sided pneumonia, COPD,
colitis, diabetes,
intermittent cardiac arrhythmia.
[DR. BALTZ] How
long has he been coding?
[DIANE] Ten minutes.
[DR. BALTZ] Oh, boy.
- [NURSE 4] Second dose of epi is in.
- [NURSE 5] Try again.
[NURSE 6] Systolic is absent.
[NURSE 2] All right, keep up.
[DR. BALTZ] Okay, let's intubate
him. Uh, stop the compression.
Quick as you can.
[NURSE 6] The patient is flatlining.
[NURSE 7] Nothing.
[DR. BALTZ] Start compression.
[NURSE 6] Negative, negative.
No response.
[GINA] Intubated. Starting airflow.
Okay. Got no blood pressure.
Okay, continue those compressions.
[DR. BALTZ] Anything?
[GINA] Still no vitals.
All right, just keep going.
[DR. BALTZ] Do we have a heartbeat?
[GINA] There's nothing.
Come on.
[DR. BALTZ] Stop compression.
Time of death, uh, 10:15.
[BRYANT] That's how it all began.
Us in the dark. Cut off. No power.
[SIGHS] Look, you all did your best.
You all did the best you could.
- [NURSE PANTING, SIGHING]
- [DR. BALTZ] Thank you.
[BRYANT] Yes. You can't
understand what it was like.
[SNIFFS, CRIES]
Even for us, even for doctors, death…
isn't common.
We save lives. We save them.
But we went from being
able to save lives to…
It doesn't take much for
everything to break down.
And what happened
next, we couldn't stop.
I couldn't stop it.
[INTERVIEWER 2] What was it
you couldn't stop, doctor?
You couldn't stop people from dying?
Or you couldn't stop
them from being killed?
[BREATHES SHAKILY]
[BRYANT] The day after Hurricane
Katrina hit New Orleans,
everybody thought we got so lucky,
that everything was gonna be fine.
And it was fine.
The sun was out, water pulled back.
And then we learned
the levees had broken.
All this water started
pouring into the city,
and there was no way to stop it.
[INTERVIEWER 2] Did you have any idea
how bad things would get at Memorial?
Nobody knew.
Nobody knew.
[INTERVIEWER 2] When you
look back at what happened,
what stands out to you the most?
What stands out?
[INHALES DEEPLY]
- [SIRENS WAILING]
- [SURVIVORS SCREAM]
- [GUNSHOT]
- [INHALES DEEPLY]
I guess what stands out to me
is that it was just five days.
[GULPS]
It only took five days for
everything to fall apart.
[INTERVIEWER 2] How was
Dr. Pou during all this?
- How was she
- [INTERVIEWER 2] How was her [SIGHS]
If you were to describe her
behavior over those five days?
The same as everybody.
The circumstances reveal
who you really are.
[SINGER] Wade in the water ♪
Wade in the water, children ♪
[SINGER, CHORUS] Wade in the water ♪
Wade in the water, children ♪
Wade in the water ♪
God is gonna trouble these waters ♪
[CHORUS] Man went down to the river ♪
Man went down to the river, Lord ♪
Man went down to the river ♪
Went down there for to pray ♪
[SINGER] Oh ♪
[SINGER, CHORUS] Wade in the water ♪
Wade in the water, children ♪
Wade in the water ♪
God is gonna trouble these waters ♪
[VOCALIZING]
[SINGER] God's gonna
trouble these waters ♪
[MUSIC ENDS]
[SURVIVOR] When are they
going to get us out of here?
[SUSAN] Oh.
Oh! That's good. That's That's
Okay. Okay. That'll
get some air in here.
I know it's stuffy. I know it is hot.
But I need everybody to
be real still and listen.
Whatever else you've heard,
whatever talk's going around,
I'm gonna tell you straight.
There has been a break in
the 17th Street Canal levee.
[STAFF GRUMBLING]
Maybe a couple of others. And
the city pumps aren't working.
Water is coming, and
it's gonna keep coming.
The hospital will be flooded,
maybe to the second floor.
We have to evacuate, and
we have to start moving now.
[EWING] Evacuate to where?
There's looting going on outside.
[SUSAN] Hold on. I do not
know what's going on out there,
but I know that there are
15 feet of water coming here.
We will be cut off, without power.
And when the basement goes, we'll lose the
rest of our food, our supplies down there.
- We're already running short on medicines.
- [DOCTOR] Why would we evacuate
when the National Guard are here?
[SUSAN] I don't know how
long they're gonna stay.
They're being redeployed
all over the city.
And we need to get out of here
before we lose the rest of
the power in the building.
We have generators.
When the water gets to four feet, it's
gonna flood the electrical switches
and they're gonna shut down.
The water's coming in at
about one foot an hour.
So, worst-case, we got four hours.
- Great.
- Anything other than that is luck.
How do we get the patients out?
We talked to the National Guard
about, uh, getting some vehicles.
We're talking to our contractors
about getting some ambulances out here.
Sandra has been emailing Tenet
to see if they can contract some private
helicopters, or if the Coast Guard
Can they even? I mean, can
helicopters even land here?
When When was the last time
anyone used the landing pad?
Was when the Pope was here.
[RICHARD] That was in 1991.
The pope was here in 1987.
- Perfect.
- [STAFF GRUMBLING]
Eighteen years?
[STAFF MEMBER] Seriously?
It's been 18 years
since you used the pad?
[ERIC] Even if the pad is operational,
the garage elevators aren't wired
into the backup electricity system.
They're not working.
There's no way to get the patients
directly from the hospital to the helipad.
Do any of y'all have an
engineering background?
Any kind of engineering?
- Anybody?
- Yep.
[SUSAN] Go with Eric, and I need
you to start looking over the pad.
I need you to decide
whether it's stable or not.
Decide? How?
I need you to decide.
- [ERIC] Well, come on. Let's go.
- All right.
[SUSAN] We will find a way to
get the patients to the pad.
We'll figure something out.
Right now, I need you all to
start talking to your teams.
The city water is fouled.
Do not use, do not drink
from any of the taps.
And the bottled water, we have to
let that stretch for 2,000 people…
[CONTINUES INDISTINCTLY]
[LINE RINGING]
[ANNA EXHALES DEEPLY]
[RINGING CONTINUES]
Hey. It's Vince. Anna and
I can't come to the phone.
[LINE BEEPS]
[SIGHS] Vince, it's me again.
Call me soon as you can, all right?
I'm all right but call me.
- [SIGHS] Can everybody come here?
- [NURSE] What'd they say in the meeting?
[ANNA] Everybody,
come over here, please.
[BREATHES HEAVILY]
I need all of you to be very
calm, okay? Can you do that?
Diane? Diane. They're
evacuating the hospital.
Who's evacuating?
Memorial. I heard they're
getting everybody out.
- We're gonna have to evacuate.
- Evacuate the floor?
- The whole hospital.
- Evacuate when?
Now. Right now.
Are they taking us with them? How are
we supposed to get our patients out?
Who is in charge?
- [ANGELA] Diane?
- Stay with your mom.
- What's going on?
- Just stay with your mother, okay?
Jesus, keep me near the cross ♪
A precious fountain ♪
[SIGHS]
Free to all, a healing stream ♪
Flows from Calvary's mountain ♪
Near the cross, I'll watch and wait ♪
Hoping, trusting ever ♪
Till I reach the golden strand ♪
Just beyond the river ♪
There's water coming in.
It's filling up the parking lot.
Just stay there. Just
stay with my mom, okay?
Yeah, I'm here.
[MARK] I figured they gotta be
setting up checkpoints around the city,
letting people out but
not letting people in.
If we can find a base of
operations or marshaling point,
and get ourselves some
volunteer credentials,
we can get into the city and
make our way to the hospital.
Yeah, but if we do all this and they've
already got your mom out, then…
Well, what if they haven't?
I mean, what if they can't?
I mean, the power's out
and the water's rising.
[STAMMERS] But it's a hospital.
Without power, it's not a
hospital. It's just a building.
Look, one way or the other,
it's better to get there
than just stay here, praying for
a call that's never gonna come.
I mean, she's my mom.
I'm not leaving her.
[SIGHS]
We should find a fire station.
The city's gonna be calling
in emergency personnel,
and if they are, maybe we can
tag with them and work our way in.
We'll get your mom.
However we have to, we'll get her.
[BREATHES HEAVILY]
[DIANE] Susan?
- Diane Robichaux from LifeCare.
- Hi.
Are you evacuating the hospital?
Yes.
Why am I just finding out?
How are we supposed to
evacuate our patients?
You're a private hospital.
You don't have your own plan?
We can't contact anyone. We don't
even have any of our doctors up there.
You can't communicate with
your corporate offices?
I mean, barely.
See if they can get in touch with the
Coast Guard or any private air charter,
and if our helipad is
operational, I will let you know.
And get me a list of
your critical patients.
That's most of them.
Just get me a list and
we'll do what we can.
But right now, we can't
even help ourselves.
Anything?
I got a phone number for some
Air National Guard officer.
That's a Baton Rouge number.
- He's supposed to be coordinating
- Did you call?
- I couldn't get through
- What about Tenet?
- I've been emailing them, but
- Email them again and tell them
- that we are running out of time.
- I told them
They are our parent
corporation, for Christ's sake.
Tell them that we have
about four hours left
before we lose power and we need help.
I'm trying.
I know you are. I know you are.
Just let me know when
you hear anything, okay?
Yeah.
[TYPING]
This was a common sight today.
Helicopters and rescue teams,
lifting people one by one,
hundreds and hundreds,
and all from rooftops.
New Orleans thought it
had been spared the worst,
and then two major levees broke and,
slowly, the city has filled with water.
Canal Street is now a canal.
This city is going to be, essentially,
uninhabitable for many days.
[REPORTER] The city that sits
below sea level is now undersea.
Overnight there were two breaches in the
levee system that protects New Orleans.
One in 200…
Hey, we just got another email
from Memorial in New Orlean
- What?
- Memorial, in New Orleans.
They got to evacuate patients.
[SURVIVOR] I mean,
everything's been flooded.
Sounds kinda panicky, right?
- I mean, what should we do?
- Do? Like
I mean, is there any kind of
emergency procedure or anything, or
Just forward the email to somebody.
These emails are going
wide. No one's responding.
Well, I don't know what to tell you.
[REPORTER SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
Michael. The pro formas for
SC. Can I get you to sign off?
Yeah.
You want me to do this now?
Like to get it out by tomorrow.
Uh…
Can we do this later?
- Well, we have to get them to print.
- I'll be right back.
- Steve?
- [STEVE] Hi.
We're getting emails.
One of our hospitals, there was
flooding after the hurricane,
- and they need to evacuate.
- Okay?
They're asking for help.
- I guess, I'm wondering do we have any
- Do we?
Does the company have any contracts
with medical transport companies
or is there an evacuation plan?
Is there anybody that may
I wouldn't know about
any emergency plans.
Isn't there somebody in Louisiana?
I mean, we're business development.
Right.
Just sounds like they really need help.
- I don't I don't know.
- Look, well…
[STEVE] Hey, Michael. Wait.
Who's that one VP? Uh, used
to be in the National Guard?
- Which one?
- [SIGHS] It's Portis, I think.
- Now, go look him up in the directory.
- Great.
- All right. Keep me in the loop.
- Yeah. Will do.
[LINE RINGING]
[ASSISTANT] Alan Portis's office.
Hi. This is Michael Arvin with
Tenet in Dallas. I'm trying
I'm sorry. What was the name?
Michael Arvin. I'm the Director of
Business Development
for Tenet Gulf Coast.
We've got an emergency in New Orleans.
One of our hospitals, at-at least one,
is requesting emergency
services and I
Mr. Portis is on vacation.
I can take a message.
- Uh, can you reach him?
- Mr. Portis is on vacation.
There's a hospital
a company hospital,
that is being flooded and needs help.
I really need to speak to Mr. Portis.
- Hello?
- [SIGHS] H-H-Hold, please.
Hey, would you turn up the TV a bit?
The water here is a foot deep.
The water there, much, much deeper.
Twelve hours ago, we drove on these
streets and they were completely dry.
[ASSISTANT] Mr. Arvin?
Yeah, I'm here.
- You have Mr. Portis.
- [ALAN] Hello.
Mr. Portis. Michael Arvin.
I'm the Director of Business
Development for Tenet Gulf Coast.
Yes?
We've got an emergency in New
Orleans. We're getting these emails
that one of our hospitals is
requesting emergency services,
and I was told you might have
been in the National Guard.
That's right.
Well, I was wondering, do you have
any contacts at National Guard?
Anybody I might
be able to reach out
No. No, I don't.
Do you have thoughts about somebody who
I might be able to get in contact with
I'm not at the office right now.
These emails are sounding urgent.
I don't think this is able to wait.
Call the National Guard. They're
probably coordinating something.
[TYPING]
[SIGHS]
[COMPUTER BEEPS]
[SIGHS]
[COMPUTER BEEPS]
[SIGHS]
Yeah. I'm trying to
get some kinda number
for the Louisiana National
Guard or the Coast Guard.
Yeah, I'll hold.
[REPORTER] do not have enough.
Unprepared and overwhelmed.
[SURVIVORS CLAMORING]
[REPORTER] …headed for higher ground.
[MAINTENANCE WORKER] Come
on. Come on. Keep them coming.
More. More, more, more,
more. That's it. Come on.
[PANTING]
[DOCTOR] How are we supposed to
get 200 patients up here this way?
Yeah.
[PANTING]
[PANTING CONTINUES]
Hey, come on.
- We gotta check the structure, yeah?
- Yeah.
Jesus.
[ERIC] Anything?
There's corrosion. It's
everywhere, all the metal.
[ERIC] How bad?
I don't know how bad. All I
can tell you is what I see.
Maybe we can fit a bone saw up here.
Uh, cut through some of this metal,
and see how pervasive the corrosion is.
Now, before we start landing
any helicopters up here,
better make goddamn sure this
thing can take the weight. [SIGHS]
[SIGHS]
Okay.
- Freddy.
- [FREDDY] Yeah.
Yeah, I'm coming down. I need
some kinda saw. A steel cutter.
- Steel cutter?
- Yeah, and I need it fast.
No.
No!
No!
No!
[METAL CREAKS]
Hey! Hey, come here.
- Me?
- You! Come here.
Do you need help?
Yeah.
Guard 5-8-5, I'm at…
- Where am I?
- Baptist Memorial Hospital.
Baptist Memorial Hospital.
Medical personnel requesting evac.
Copy that.
I can evac one person.
- One?
- One. Hurry.
[SUSAN] There are almost 200
patients we have to evacuate.
We need to discuss who's going
first and who's going last.
I think that the most sick patients,
the ones who are most dependent
on life support or mechanical aid,
should go out first.
So, that's almost two dozen in the ICU.
We can't care for any of them
if and when the power goes out.
Same with the neonates,
those on ventilators.
They're not gonna survive.
We have several high-risk pregnant
mothers, half dozen dialysis patients,
and two bone marrow transplant patients.
All of them have to get to
acute care as soon as possible,
and after that, we move
the more stable patients,
then the civilians and families,
then staff, and, last, doctors.
[DOCTOR] Sorry.
Can we agree on that?
Uh…
Yes. [SIGHS]
All right. Now, the
National Guard has promised
to move 35 medical and
surgical patients out by truck.
Thirty-five? That's it?
- [DOOR OPENS]
- Well, that's what they said. They
There's a helicopter. There's
a helicopter up on the pad.
How did a helicopter pilot think
I was standing there. I was waving.
He thought I was signaling him.
- He says
- Is he from Tenet?
- How many are they sending?
- Just listen to me.
He says he can take one
patient, but we have to hurry.
- What, one?
- [DOCTOR] One.
The neonates. Take
one of the neonates.
Okay. Okay.
[GRUNTS]
Sandra, the helipad's operational.
Let Tenet know we
can take helicopters.
Yes. Copy.
Karen, the helipad's operational.
Get your patients ready to move.
We're sending the neonates
first and everybody in the ICU.
Got it.
[SIGHS]
We're gonna start moving
the patients, okay? Let's go.
[PANTING] Okay. There's a helicopter.
The sickest baby, bring it.
Get the rest ready to move.
- Take Baby Edmonds.
- Okay.
[WORKER] Let's go. Pile that door.
Over here.
Steve. I just heard from Memor
Hold on one second.
I just heard from Memorial.
They can take helicopters.
I got a hospital in Baton
Rouge willing to take patients.
I'm trying to contact some
private helicopter companies,
and we got a couple hospitals in
Atlanta offering evacuation support.
No. No sky
The company's saying it needs to
be Coast Guard, National Guard.
I've been in touch with
them. They know the situation.
Atlanta wants to help.
Mike, this isn't airlifting
from a car accident.
This is flooding. This is rescue. Okay?
It's the military. That's what
they do. Let 'em do it, okay?
Okay?
Okay.
Yeah, I'm here. [SIGHS]
Uh, Memorial can take helicopters, but
we're going to try to
use the Coast Guard.
Yeah, I'll keep you posted.
[REPORTER] a possible
doomsday scenario.
The water keeps rising
here at an alarming rate,
and Mayor Ray Nagin says that
if the Army Corps of Engineers
cannot patch that break in the
levee, then by the end of today,
all of downtown New Orleans, even
the parts that are above sea level,
could be completely underwater.
[DOCTOR] Careful.
[NURSE 1] Watch it. Swing. All right.
- [NURSE 2] Just…
- [NURSE 1] All right. On three.
- [NURSE 2] Okay, ready? Let's go.
- [NURSE 3] One, two, three.
Okay.
Yep. Keep it level.
- [NURSE 2] Easy, easy.
- [NURSE 1] Careful, step.
- [NURSE 2] Easy.
- [NURSE 1] Okay. Turn, turn, turn.
Ready? Watch your feet.
[DOCTOR] Okay, here we go. [GRUNTS]
[GRUNTING]
- [NURSE 1] I can't lift it anymore.
- Okay.
Little slower, little slower. Oh, God.
- Oh, hey. Come on.
- Okay.
[NURSE 2] I'm good. I'm good.
Hey, wait. We gotta give her oxygen.
- Give me a second.
- [DOCTOR] She good?
- Is she good? Let's go.
- [INDISTINCT]
- [NURSE 1] All right, ready?
- [GRUNTING]
Guys, that's it. That's it.
[PANTING]
Hey, what the fuck were you
doing? That took too long!
- The elevator's not working.
- Then figure something out.
People need help and we
can't waste time here.
Get her in. Let's go. Hurry up.
- We gotta go.
- Come on. Come on. Come on.
Now move back!
- Now, move back. Move!
- [NURSE 1] She's not coming back.
All right!
All clear, let's go!
[RENÉ] If we can get the
neonates out by helicopter,
35 patients by National Guard transport,
then that leaves us with what?
A hundred and fifty patients, plus
doctors, plus staff, plus civilians.
Do we need to consider as
we're prioritizing patients.
I think the DNRs should go last.
Why?
Well, they've already signed
a Do Not Resuscitate order.
They've indicated they
don't want to be saved.
Well, that's not [STAMMERS]
A DNR doesn't mean don't save a person.
A DNR means if a person
codes you don't revive them.
Well, for a patient to get a DNR they
have to have a certified termin
No, no. That's
You're misunderstanding
what a DNR act
No, Richard. Richard.
Why prioritize DNR patients now?
Look, we've only got four patients
in the ICU who have DNRs. Four.
And what we're talking about
is a last resort contingency.
If you could get four
healthy patients out
versus four who are
terminal, wouldn't
Uh, I think we should bring
Susan in on this conversation.
[SCOFFS]
She's the one in charge. Right?
Mm-hmm.
Right there.
Go. Come on.
Yeah, go on through.
[INSECTS CHIRPING]
[BREATHING HEAVILY]
- Okay. There we go.
- [GRUNTS]
Slow down. Conserve it, okay?
Yeah. And save some for yourself,
'cause when you get dehydrated,
you can't help anybody.
[SIGHS]
Jane?
Jane?
What's going on? Her heart
monitor's disconnected?
We were told that nonessential
care was being suspended
- because we're evacuating patients.
- Told? Told by who?
- Dr. Cook said tha
- I don't care what he said.
She's my patient. Reattach her monitor.
I should check with Dr. Cook.
Excuse me?
I should check with do
You don't have to check with
anybody. Reattach her monitor.
You know what? Fuck that. Fuck that.
[MACHINE ACTIVATING, RHYTHMIC BEEPING]
Nurse, I said that all
nonessential care was suspended.
This woman isn't nonessential. She
needs to be continuously monitored.
- I
- Disconnect that heart monitor.
You know, if you
have something to say…
Do not reconnect
it unless I tell you.
She is my patient.
But she is my patient!
We don't have
time for nonsense.
I am in charge of this floor,
and I've told you what to do.
I'm not going to be dictated
to by some junior physician.
Do you understand?
[SNIFFLES]
[SIGHS] So fucking
[RADIO CHATTER]
[MARK] Hey, who's in charge?
Um, that guy over there.
Thank you.
[FIREFIGHTER] You're
standing around, wasting time.
- [FIREFIGHTERS CHATTERING]
- [MARK] Sir, you in charge?
Who are you?
Uh, we're just looking to help.
If y'all are heading into New
Orleans, we'd like to do what we can.
- We're not taking civvies.
- We're not civvies.
I'm-I'm a paramedic.
Look, I coordinate the EMT program at
Nunez Community College in Chalmette.
If you want to call and ask,
my name is Sandra LeBlanc.
I know what I'm doing,
and I want to help.
[RADIO CHATTER]
Jimmy! Bring me some paperwork!
Now, get logged in.
I need your names, any
training, next of kin.
Got plenty of hands here.
When are y'all gonna move out?
- I don't know.
- What are you waiting for?
Somebody to figure
out what to do with us.
We got a National Guard truck, y'all.
His oxygen's good.
- She's all right. She's oxygenating.
- It's okay.
Uh-huh. Keep it coming.
All right, watch out.
[AIR BRAKES HISS]
[CHATTERING]
[INHALES SHARPLY] You
okay? You all right?
- Right behind you.
- I'm okay.
She's good.
[CHATTERING]
[GROANING]
Careful.
[NATIONAL GUARD] That's
it. That's all we can get.
[GRUNTING, CLAMORING]
- Okay, you coming?
- Oh, careful.
It's okay, baby. We got you.
[CHATTERING, CLAMORING]
- So, where are you taking them?
- Texas.
That's the closest hospital?
That's what we were told,
that's where we're going.
They just got you.
[PATIENT] Where'd they say they'd go?
[GRUNTS]
[NATIONAL GUARD] Keep your
heads down until we exit.
All right, you're good.
Okay, that's it.
That's only 20 patients.
You were supposed to take 35.
- That's all the room we've got.
- [SIGHS]
[CLAMORING]
Okay, so when is
the next truck coming?
Soon as it can. Are you coming?
- [SIGHS]
- You should go.
No, you go.
It's all right. I mean,
what am I gonna do in Texas?
[CLAMORING, ARGUING]
All right. It's all right.
[PATIENT] What are we supposed to do?
[PATIENTS CLAMORING]
It's okay, it's uh
The next one is coming.
The next one is coming.
[ENGINE STARTS]
[NATIONAL GUARD] That's it. Okay.
[NATIONAL GUARD] Clear.
[PATIENT] This don't make no damn sense.
[GRUNTING]
[NURSE 1] Where are the helicopters?
[NURSE 2 PANTING] Oh, shit.
[NURSE 1] Where the
fuck are the helicopters?
[SIGHS] Tell somebody
there are no helicopters.
[RUMBLING]
Oh, shit.
Hey. Back off!
Hey! Back off! Back off!
Susan, we can't hold back the
water. It's gonna flood our panels.
We're gonna lose our generators.
[SUSAN] You said we had four hours.
[ERIC] I said, "Best-case, we've
got four hours." We got minutes.
Susan. There are no helicopters.
The neonates are up on the pad,
and there are no helicopters.
Sandra? Sandra, where
are the helicopters?
We have babies on the pad.
I-I don't know. They
said they would be there.
[SUSAN] We need helicopters
and we need them now!
- [BREATHES HEAVILY]
- [TYPING]
[COMPUTER BEEPS]
[REPORTER] And days after Hurricane
Katrina hit, people are still stranded,
hoping a passing helicopter
will pluck them away to safety.
Frustration over the pace
of the federal relief effort
has reached the boiling point.
Today, blistering criticism.
The mayor of New Orleans.
[NAGIN] Now, get off your
asses and let's do something.
And let's fix the biggest god[BLEEP]
crisis in the history of this country.
[ERIC] All right.
There's no way we're
saving these panels!
Yeah, let's get out of here. It's
too fucking dangerous. Come on.
Come on.
- [STAFF GASPING]
- [BEEPING]
[ALARM SOUNDING]
[MACHINERY BEEPING]
[PATIENT] Nurse, is it gonna be okay?
[BEEPING CONTINUES]
[NURSE] We can't run the
ventilators without power.
[STAFF CLAMORING]
[BROADCASTER 1] Search and rescue
operations go on from
what FEMA now calls
the most significant natural disaster
ever to hit the United States.
[BROADCASTER 2] …potentially
devastating problem,
because the Crescent City
area is below sea level.
[REPORTER] Tonight, darkness,
of course, had fallen.
And you can hear
people yelling for help.
You can hear the dogs yelping.
All of them stranded. All of
them hoping someone will come.
But for tonight, they've had to
suspend the-the rescue efforts.
[BROADCASTER 3] Water is still pouring
into that city. It's getting worse.
[BROADCASTER 4] Hundreds,
if not thousands of people
remain stranded on their roofs or in
their attics waiting to be rescued.
[BROADCASTER 5] Not only are there
floodwaters there, but it's dangerous.
The, uh, the violence, the looting,
the snipers. It's a dangerous situation.
[BROADCASTER 6] Those in New
Orleans have been talking about
possibly evacuating two
hospitals in the area.
But we have just now learned that
those plans have been put on hold.
[BROADCASTER 7] There are
reports of multiple levees
breached all around the city.
[BROADCASTER 8] Floodwaters rise, chaos
reigns, as a city falls into crisis.
[REPORTER 2] Don't
know how we can impress
upon people what is
really going on here.
I think people just
don't have a concept
[BROADCASTER 9] Neighborhood after
neighborhood submerged in water.
The number of the trapped, the
missing, the dead remains unknown.
- [GUNSHOT IN DISTANCE]
- [DOG BARKING]
- [GUNSHOTS CONTINUE]
- [PEOPLE SHOUTING]
[SUSAN] You feeling like
a little bit of water?
[SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY]
- Mmm. You okay?
- Susan. How y'all doing?
Hey. Just letting my
mother get a little rest.
Y'all have been out here all day. I
figured I could relieve some folks.
Start letting everybody
in your unit know
that there aren't any more
National Guard trucks coming.
Water's already too high,
and they're pulling the
rest of their people out.
What about our people?
Corporate is doing everything they can.
[BROADCASTER] Hospitals are
without water, even power.
So, how long can they keep it up?
How are they gonna get the
critically ill out of the city?
[SURVIVOR] We have very
little food, very little water.
And everybody's rationing.
They What we're
really concerned about
is most of these ventilators
have been run by batteries
and, well, we don't have batteries.
And, unfortunately, they're gonna
die when we run out of batteries.
[BROADCASTER] Moments ago massive
explosions shake New Orleans.
As the city spirals out of control,
there appears to be anarchy…
[PERSON 1] Nothing from
anybody? No marching orders?
[PERSON 2] None.
Jesus.
All right. Forget this.
Get me the location of the closestSARBOO.
We're not sitting around anymore.
Got it.
All right, let's go. Gear
up. We're gonna move out.
Come on. Everybody, find a vehicle.
Make sure you've got some
water and take it with you.
- [FIREFIGHTER 1] About time.
- Come on.
- Where are we going?
- I don't know, but we're moving.
[FIREFIGHTER 2] Get those
flashlights. We're going to work.
[FIREFIGHTER 3] All right.
Let's go. Backup batteries too.
Roll out.
[FIREFIGHTER 4] Load up the rig.
[ENGINE STARTS]
[SIREN WAILING]
[EMMETT] There's nothing more
precious than life, you know?
- [DIANE CHUCKLES]
- Not one single thing.
[DIANE] I know. Trust
me, I know. [SIGHS]
But thank you for the reminder.
Boy or girl?
That I do not know. [CHUCKLES]
Are you for real? You
got to be kidding me.
[LAUGHS]
Um. There are darn few
surprises left in life.
You know, true, good surprises.
Good Lord has blessed me with one,
and I will look forward to its reveal.
Now, don't go getting down on me.
You get sad and I get sad.
Both of us got plenty to live for.
Let's just leave it at that.
[DIANE] Okay.
[NURSE] Diane? Diane.
[DIANE SIGHS]
[EMMETT SIGHS]
Diane, a patient's coding.
[SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY]
[DIANE] What happened?
He went into pulseless
V-fib. No respirations.
He's full code, and
there's no DNR order.
Go down to Memorial. Tell them we got
a patient coding and need a doctor.
I'll get a crash cart.
Hey, I need a doctor.
- LifeCare, seventh floor. Code Blue.
- Can't anyone up there take it?
There aren't any doctors
up there. We need somebody.
Dr. Pou, Code Blue on seven.
I'll go. Get an ER doctor.
[BREATHING HEAVILY]
- Where?
- This way.
[BREATHING HEAVILY]
- Charging.
- [MACHINE BEEPS]
- [NURSE 1] Everybody, stand back.
- [NURSE 2] Clear?
[ALL] Clear.
- [NURSE 2] Shock delivered. All clear?
- [NURSE 3] Clear.
- Now press.
- [DR. BALTZ] What's going on?
Seventy-three-year-old male,
right-sided pneumonia, COPD,
colitis, diabetes,
intermittent cardiac arrhythmia.
[DR. BALTZ] How
long has he been coding?
[DIANE] Ten minutes.
[DR. BALTZ] Oh, boy.
- [NURSE 4] Second dose of epi is in.
- [NURSE 5] Try again.
[NURSE 6] Systolic is absent.
[NURSE 2] All right, keep up.
[DR. BALTZ] Okay, let's intubate
him. Uh, stop the compression.
Quick as you can.
[NURSE 6] The patient is flatlining.
[NURSE 7] Nothing.
[DR. BALTZ] Start compression.
[NURSE 6] Negative, negative.
No response.
[GINA] Intubated. Starting airflow.
Okay. Got no blood pressure.
Okay, continue those compressions.
[DR. BALTZ] Anything?
[GINA] Still no vitals.
All right, just keep going.
[DR. BALTZ] Do we have a heartbeat?
[GINA] There's nothing.
Come on.
[DR. BALTZ] Stop compression.
Time of death, uh, 10:15.
[BRYANT] That's how it all began.
Us in the dark. Cut off. No power.
[SIGHS] Look, you all did your best.
You all did the best you could.
- [NURSE PANTING, SIGHING]
- [DR. BALTZ] Thank you.
[BRYANT] Yes. You can't
understand what it was like.
[SNIFFS, CRIES]
Even for us, even for doctors, death…
isn't common.
We save lives. We save them.
But we went from being
able to save lives to…
It doesn't take much for
everything to break down.
And what happened
next, we couldn't stop.
I couldn't stop it.
[INTERVIEWER 2] What was it
you couldn't stop, doctor?
You couldn't stop people from dying?
Or you couldn't stop
them from being killed?
[BREATHES SHAKILY]