Since this is my first blog I'll probably end up with a dozen entries because it's more or less a new toy.
Anyway, I wanted to tell you a little story. A continuation of sorts of my miniscule piece of history.
I was sent to Pascagoula last year. I arrived on July 7th. That day I dodged my first Hurricane, Cindy. We had a lot of rain that day but nothing serious to speak of. A couple of weeks later the area was evacuated again for Dennis. I drove to Slidel, LA. I was roughly 60 miles, probably less, from New Orleans. Wouldn't you know it. I spent two days in a hotel and we didn't get a single drop of rain.
A couple weeks later I signed the papers to my apartment. I had been living in a barracks/hotel for nearly a year with all my housegoods in storage in Washington state. I moved what little I had with me and bought the necessities i.e. lawn furnature for living room furnature, a TV to big for me to even think about carrying alone, dishes, air bed, bedding, towels...
It's kind of weird because the night I moved in I did something ridiculously stupid. I nearly flooded my kitchen and I worried for my downstairs neighbor. Okay, I put liquid dish soap in the dish washer...I know, I know...what the heck was I thinking? In my defense I only put in a couple of drops which by the way didn't matter. I had to use every towel I just bought to clean up the mess. Soap suds everywhere. Who knew so little dish soap could produce that amount of bubbles. There was enough for me to do a bubble bath right there in the kitchen.
Anyway, on that day, Friday, I was watching the weather channel and hearing the news of another hurricane heading up through the Gulf of Mexico. It would fall directly on top of New Orleans. With that news report I thought, 'it sucks to be from New Orleans!'
A couple more hours go by when I get a call from work, "we need you to come and help us cover the computers." Talk about timing because at the very moment the cable guy was there hooking me up with my TV and Internet.
The day wore on. There was nothing out of the ordinary until I tried to get gas. I stopped at one station and found it was closed. I stopped at another to find it was getting ready to close. Preparations were in progress for something we all honestly doubted would come.
Saturday afternoon my parents call me, "are you heading out?" I said, "nope, besides there isn't even any rain here. And besides the traffic will be ridiculous with all the Lousiana traffic heading east." It made sense at the time. I didn't want to be stuck in traffic with high winds and heavy rains.
It wasn't until Sunday afternoon that the rain started. But it was just rain. In this area at this time of year in rains every day. A couple of hours before sunset was when the wind started. The sky was cast in dark clouds. It looked as if night had come early. I wasn't worried but I did bring out my battery power radio and checked the batteries to my flashlights. Everything was in working order. I sat back watching the weather channel. I learned a few storms ago to pay attention to Jim Cantore. Don't be standing where he's standing. He is a magnet for the eye. At that time he stood in a parking on Biloxi beach. He was 20 miles from where I sat.
It was much wind and rain later when the lights flickered. I was good to go, I still had power. I still had the Weather Channel. A couple more hours and finally all was lost. There was no sleeping that night. Not with wind pealing off my roof shingle by shingle. I had rain flowing into both bathrooms. My french doors in the living room wouldn't stay shut. Everything was getting soaked including me. My freshly washed towels, no longer fresh, were soaking up as much of the rain as they could.
I holed myself up in the kitchen because the sounds in the bedroom were just scary. It sounded as if the walls were being ripped off. It was just the siding but it's still an unnerving sound when the lights are out and the wind is howling while rain pounds down. So, I stayed where I felt safest in the kitchen against the wall. When I has day light I did venture out to watch the 120 mile an hour winds blow trees out by their roots. Totally enthralled I took picture after picture. at one point wantingn to see more I took one step form the safety of my coverd enclosure. That was the third stupid thing I did that weekend 1 and 2 being the liquid soap in the dishwasher and staying put when the biggest storm of the century was coming my way, respectively. All it took was one step out into the wind for it to lift me off the ground. Lucky for me I was near the railing. I took hold of that and hung on for dear life. Note to self: DON'T DO THAT AGAIN!
You don't really know how dark night time can be until every street light, house light, car light, even moon light goes out. When I lost power to my cell phone and my camera I decide to venture to the parking lot to the car. Car chargers and 12 volt converters are wonderful wonderful things. I could have power if I could get to the flooded parking lot.
Whne I opened my front door to see nothing beyond my flashlight beam I quickly changed my mind. It was like I couldn't open my eyes. It was like being blind. My eyes were open but I couldn't see a thing.
I locked up the doors and headed for the bedroom with the radio on to the only station for 200 miles broadcasting. I opened the window and hooked my little maglight to the ceiling fan and began to write about my Hurricane Katrina exploits.
The next morning after the curfew was lifted there was no more news. I started out. I drove through the small towns not realizing that if I had drove myself out of gas I wouldn't get any more for 200 miles. I also hadn't realized that I seemed to be the only person in town with a tank of gas. People were parked for miles at the mere handful of gas stations with power. The lines went for miles. It was a crazy sensation to find out days later.
Roads were covered completely with debris. Six lane highways were barely two lanes. I drove until I felt I had to turn around. That was something else I foound out later. The large cement bridge connecting Ocean Springs to Biloxi was completely washed out. I could barely fathom that. How much wind did it take to have that bridge ripped apart like it were made of legos?
I seen the gas station that turned me away the day before with its canopy sitting atop it's pumps. The Lowe's pyramid shaped awning now sat on the ground. Railroad tracks and bridges were completely washed away. I was lucky. We all were. I spoke to my neighbors to find out most were actually visiting friends. Some were from the now washed out New Orleans and Biloxi/Gulfport.
Later I drove home to Ohio away from the destruction not knowing how far spread it was. New Orleans to Pensacola. The storm spread across four states LA, MS, AL, FL. As I left using I-65 I watched utility truck after utility truck flow into the area. They were from every where OH, KY, MA, NC, SC, AL, TN, VA. I could hardly believe it. I drove all night turning up unexpectedly on my parents doorstep in the middle of the night. My phone rang off the hook with friends and family wanting and needing to know my whereabouts. Some watching the news of the area ravaged by Katrina knowing I was/had been there somewhere. They didn't know if I was alive and safe. One friend was nearly in tears. Would you believe I still didn't really know how bad everything was?
I made it home in one piece then talked my Dad into doing the 15 hour drive with me that Friday. We filled a five gallon jug with gas hoping we wouldn't need it. We drove and we drove taking turns. We made sure to get there at sunrise because of the curfew set in place. We got there packed my place up in two hours leaving the TV and dishes behind. Good thing I didn't have too much. Clothes, uniforms, shoes, DVDs, air mattress, and computer stuff all had been left behind. One car load and five gallons of gas later we were on our way once again. It was silly but knowing my things were down there still intact, I had to go and get it. It would have been easier to have it all washed away.
Would you believe I lasted one weekend in that apartment. I didn't even get to shower there. I had no water for most that time.
After that I spent 6 months Norfolk until I was called back to Pascagoula. I did have a bit of a nervous breakdown. I spoke to my Mom first which nearly had me in tears because she couldn't grasp the fact that I no longer had a home or anything else. Then right after that a close friend called to hear me crying my heart out for no apparent reason.
Anyway, that's about how exciting my life will ever get. That was were I was 29 August 2005. Where were you?
Anyway, I wanted to tell you a little story. A continuation of sorts of my miniscule piece of history.
I was sent to Pascagoula last year. I arrived on July 7th. That day I dodged my first Hurricane, Cindy. We had a lot of rain that day but nothing serious to speak of. A couple of weeks later the area was evacuated again for Dennis. I drove to Slidel, LA. I was roughly 60 miles, probably less, from New Orleans. Wouldn't you know it. I spent two days in a hotel and we didn't get a single drop of rain.
A couple weeks later I signed the papers to my apartment. I had been living in a barracks/hotel for nearly a year with all my housegoods in storage in Washington state. I moved what little I had with me and bought the necessities i.e. lawn furnature for living room furnature, a TV to big for me to even think about carrying alone, dishes, air bed, bedding, towels...
It's kind of weird because the night I moved in I did something ridiculously stupid. I nearly flooded my kitchen and I worried for my downstairs neighbor. Okay, I put liquid dish soap in the dish washer...I know, I know...what the heck was I thinking? In my defense I only put in a couple of drops which by the way didn't matter. I had to use every towel I just bought to clean up the mess. Soap suds everywhere. Who knew so little dish soap could produce that amount of bubbles. There was enough for me to do a bubble bath right there in the kitchen.
Anyway, on that day, Friday, I was watching the weather channel and hearing the news of another hurricane heading up through the Gulf of Mexico. It would fall directly on top of New Orleans. With that news report I thought, 'it sucks to be from New Orleans!'
A couple more hours go by when I get a call from work, "we need you to come and help us cover the computers." Talk about timing because at the very moment the cable guy was there hooking me up with my TV and Internet.
The day wore on. There was nothing out of the ordinary until I tried to get gas. I stopped at one station and found it was closed. I stopped at another to find it was getting ready to close. Preparations were in progress for something we all honestly doubted would come.
Saturday afternoon my parents call me, "are you heading out?" I said, "nope, besides there isn't even any rain here. And besides the traffic will be ridiculous with all the Lousiana traffic heading east." It made sense at the time. I didn't want to be stuck in traffic with high winds and heavy rains.
It wasn't until Sunday afternoon that the rain started. But it was just rain. In this area at this time of year in rains every day. A couple of hours before sunset was when the wind started. The sky was cast in dark clouds. It looked as if night had come early. I wasn't worried but I did bring out my battery power radio and checked the batteries to my flashlights. Everything was in working order. I sat back watching the weather channel. I learned a few storms ago to pay attention to Jim Cantore. Don't be standing where he's standing. He is a magnet for the eye. At that time he stood in a parking on Biloxi beach. He was 20 miles from where I sat.
It was much wind and rain later when the lights flickered. I was good to go, I still had power. I still had the Weather Channel. A couple more hours and finally all was lost. There was no sleeping that night. Not with wind pealing off my roof shingle by shingle. I had rain flowing into both bathrooms. My french doors in the living room wouldn't stay shut. Everything was getting soaked including me. My freshly washed towels, no longer fresh, were soaking up as much of the rain as they could.
I holed myself up in the kitchen because the sounds in the bedroom were just scary. It sounded as if the walls were being ripped off. It was just the siding but it's still an unnerving sound when the lights are out and the wind is howling while rain pounds down. So, I stayed where I felt safest in the kitchen against the wall. When I has day light I did venture out to watch the 120 mile an hour winds blow trees out by their roots. Totally enthralled I took picture after picture. at one point wantingn to see more I took one step form the safety of my coverd enclosure. That was the third stupid thing I did that weekend 1 and 2 being the liquid soap in the dishwasher and staying put when the biggest storm of the century was coming my way, respectively. All it took was one step out into the wind for it to lift me off the ground. Lucky for me I was near the railing. I took hold of that and hung on for dear life. Note to self: DON'T DO THAT AGAIN!
You don't really know how dark night time can be until every street light, house light, car light, even moon light goes out. When I lost power to my cell phone and my camera I decide to venture to the parking lot to the car. Car chargers and 12 volt converters are wonderful wonderful things. I could have power if I could get to the flooded parking lot.
Whne I opened my front door to see nothing beyond my flashlight beam I quickly changed my mind. It was like I couldn't open my eyes. It was like being blind. My eyes were open but I couldn't see a thing.
I locked up the doors and headed for the bedroom with the radio on to the only station for 200 miles broadcasting. I opened the window and hooked my little maglight to the ceiling fan and began to write about my Hurricane Katrina exploits.
The next morning after the curfew was lifted there was no more news. I started out. I drove through the small towns not realizing that if I had drove myself out of gas I wouldn't get any more for 200 miles. I also hadn't realized that I seemed to be the only person in town with a tank of gas. People were parked for miles at the mere handful of gas stations with power. The lines went for miles. It was a crazy sensation to find out days later.
Roads were covered completely with debris. Six lane highways were barely two lanes. I drove until I felt I had to turn around. That was something else I foound out later. The large cement bridge connecting Ocean Springs to Biloxi was completely washed out. I could barely fathom that. How much wind did it take to have that bridge ripped apart like it were made of legos?
I seen the gas station that turned me away the day before with its canopy sitting atop it's pumps. The Lowe's pyramid shaped awning now sat on the ground. Railroad tracks and bridges were completely washed away. I was lucky. We all were. I spoke to my neighbors to find out most were actually visiting friends. Some were from the now washed out New Orleans and Biloxi/Gulfport.
Later I drove home to Ohio away from the destruction not knowing how far spread it was. New Orleans to Pensacola. The storm spread across four states LA, MS, AL, FL. As I left using I-65 I watched utility truck after utility truck flow into the area. They were from every where OH, KY, MA, NC, SC, AL, TN, VA. I could hardly believe it. I drove all night turning up unexpectedly on my parents doorstep in the middle of the night. My phone rang off the hook with friends and family wanting and needing to know my whereabouts. Some watching the news of the area ravaged by Katrina knowing I was/had been there somewhere. They didn't know if I was alive and safe. One friend was nearly in tears. Would you believe I still didn't really know how bad everything was?
I made it home in one piece then talked my Dad into doing the 15 hour drive with me that Friday. We filled a five gallon jug with gas hoping we wouldn't need it. We drove and we drove taking turns. We made sure to get there at sunrise because of the curfew set in place. We got there packed my place up in two hours leaving the TV and dishes behind. Good thing I didn't have too much. Clothes, uniforms, shoes, DVDs, air mattress, and computer stuff all had been left behind. One car load and five gallons of gas later we were on our way once again. It was silly but knowing my things were down there still intact, I had to go and get it. It would have been easier to have it all washed away.
Would you believe I lasted one weekend in that apartment. I didn't even get to shower there. I had no water for most that time.
After that I spent 6 months Norfolk until I was called back to Pascagoula. I did have a bit of a nervous breakdown. I spoke to my Mom first which nearly had me in tears because she couldn't grasp the fact that I no longer had a home or anything else. Then right after that a close friend called to hear me crying my heart out for no apparent reason.
Anyway, that's about how exciting my life will ever get. That was were I was 29 August 2005. Where were you?
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