Health risks for medical evacuees make many vulnerable as resources become compromised.

On Friday and Saturday, the city shifted thousands of patients out of low-lying hospitals and nursing homes in the projected path of the hurricane. The goal was to avoid a situation like the one after Hurricane Katrina, when vulnerable patients suffered or died after institutions in New Orleans lost power and evacuations took days.

Prestorm evacuations, however, came with their own risks, and difficulties were apparent over the weekend at hospitals and shelters. Eventually, the Promenade residents were accepted at the armory.