Many of you know that I claim south Louisiana as my home. I was born there, my family is there and it is the one place that has been a constant in my life. As a military brat, I lived wherever my father was assigned but New Iberia was always home. It is where most of my family still resides, Grandparent, Aunts, Uncles and a boat full of cousins.
As we are in the middle of hurricane season, always a stressful time of year for those in the south, watching the weather reports is a daily necessity. Hurricane Katrina put the fear of these massive storms into the forefront of people’s thoughts. Many from the north have no idea how devastating a storm can be to a community and Katrina with her wide sweeping destruction definitely made people more conscientious of the possibility for damage. Katrina’s legacy is also due to the failure of our government to protect its citizens. The levees failed. The Corp of Engineers was aware of a weakened levee system but little was done to re-enforce those weakness. I won’t get on my soapbox for it would change nothing that occurred in those days post Katrina.
The nation as a whole was so wrapped up in Katrina News that the second hurricane that hit Louisiana, Hurricane Rita, was just a small blurb in the press. Rita was just as much of a nightmare as Katrina. The souls lost were not as staggering but the damage was more widespread and truly a product of the hurricane not an engineering glitch. True wrath of God destruction.
Hurricane Rita caused a huge tidal surge that flooded my grandfather’s house. He built the house in the 1950’s in a small community south of I-90 called Lydia. It is a small town with no traffic lights and only one stop sign on the main road, right by the Catholic Church. There may be more now but only the one on my last visit. Not once since he built there has there been so much water. Yes, the ditches have filled and it had made it into the yard but never to the house. The house itself is built several feet off the ground; the water got up a couple feet into the house. The house has been repaired for the most part. It was habitable but not the same, it never will be. My grandfather still was living in his FEMA trailer as of this weekend when Hurricane Gustav took a turn for our state.
I am in China but I still watch the weather via the internet. This Sat. night for me is Sat. morning for the US. I start making call to the states to find out what my family is doing to prepare. Everyone is leaving. No messing around with this storm. Predictions were Cat.5 direct hit into the Point straight into PawPaw’s front yard, they were all leaving. Thank you Lord. Aunt Donna took a carload to Monroe to stay with family. Uncle Richard and Uncle Robert took their families to include PawPaw to a cabin in Alabama for an extended weekend. Still don’t know why Uncle Rob was mowing PawPaw’s grass hours before they evacuated but anyways, they left.
As we are in the middle of hurricane season, always a stressful time of year for those in the south, watching the weather reports is a daily necessity. Hurricane Katrina put the fear of these massive storms into the forefront of people’s thoughts. Many from the north have no idea how devastating a storm can be to a community and Katrina with her wide sweeping destruction definitely made people more conscientious of the possibility for damage. Katrina’s legacy is also due to the failure of our government to protect its citizens. The levees failed. The Corp of Engineers was aware of a weakened levee system but little was done to re-enforce those weakness. I won’t get on my soapbox for it would change nothing that occurred in those days post Katrina.
The nation as a whole was so wrapped up in Katrina News that the second hurricane that hit Louisiana, Hurricane Rita, was just a small blurb in the press. Rita was just as much of a nightmare as Katrina. The souls lost were not as staggering but the damage was more widespread and truly a product of the hurricane not an engineering glitch. True wrath of God destruction.
Hurricane Rita caused a huge tidal surge that flooded my grandfather’s house. He built the house in the 1950’s in a small community south of I-90 called Lydia. It is a small town with no traffic lights and only one stop sign on the main road, right by the Catholic Church. There may be more now but only the one on my last visit. Not once since he built there has there been so much water. Yes, the ditches have filled and it had made it into the yard but never to the house. The house itself is built several feet off the ground; the water got up a couple feet into the house. The house has been repaired for the most part. It was habitable but not the same, it never will be. My grandfather still was living in his FEMA trailer as of this weekend when Hurricane Gustav took a turn for our state.I am in China but I still watch the weather via the internet. This Sat. night for me is Sat. morning for the US. I start making call to the states to find out what my family is doing to prepare. Everyone is leaving. No messing around with this storm. Predictions were Cat.5 direct hit into the Point straight into PawPaw’s front yard, they were all leaving. Thank you Lord. Aunt Donna took a carload to Monroe to stay with family. Uncle Richard and Uncle Robert took their families to include PawPaw to a cabin in Alabama for an extended weekend. Still don’t know why Uncle Rob was mowing PawPaw’s grass hours before they evacuated but anyways, they left.
My friend and pillar of strength, Darla, who is in the Alexandria area starts zapping me emails to let me know that it didn’t look good but she was there for my family if needed and Rhonda, my other partner in crime, in Shreveport was already prepping her house for all of those that needed it. You two are the best of the best, no doubt. Thank you.
Gustav lost his ability and ended up being a Cat2 making landfall in Houma and cruising up I-90 into New Iberia and off to Alexandria. Yes, some of the family will have repairs to make and will be without power for an extended period but it wasn’t the Storm of Storms it was predicted to be and for that I am thankful. I just pray that the ones that are circling in the Atlantic as I type will continue the path of weakening and that no one has to experience the Storm of All Storms this year or in years to come. THAT SAID, let no one forget how bad even a medium graded storm can become if you are not prepared, best to leave.
