Friends in Need When Nature Hiccups, Natural Disasters forum Options

[belleraphon1]

Sincerely hope all you UMSFers on the West Coast are OK! Read Emily's blog....
http://www.planetary.org/blog/article/00001576/

Widfires and now an earthquake... scary...

Concern from an Ohioan who only worries about getting snowed in once or twice a winter season.

Craig

p.s. With global climate change this forum may get a few posts or two in this century!

[CosmicRocker]

... Hope that's hyperbole. To the Houston-area umsf's - take care, y'all, wishing you dry heads (and feet!)

I was hoping it was hyperbole, too, but it really is pretty bad down here. We evacuated, but returned as soon as the storm moved inland enough that the winds we would be driving through were less than 40 mph. I wanted to get home as quickly as possible to begin any necessary repairs that might be needed.

So far, we haven't been able to get home, because all of the roads in our area are still flooded. Today we were able to get within a few miles of our home. Yesterday, we couldn't get within 15 miles, so things are apparently improving. We have second-hand reports that the rising water came up to the street in front of our house and stopped, so I think we avoided water damage. I don't know about wind damage. The people who live across the street from us probably had 6 feet of water in their house. A city nearby with a population near 10,000 was completely flooded. Every home there suffered flood damage. There are probably many similar coastal communities.

I think our subdivision was built over 50 years ago, and no homes here had ever been flooded until this hurricane. Reportedly, quite a few homes were flooded this time. Supposedly, two large barges are laying across the highway going out to our neighborhood. They would have to have been blown more than ten miles over surge flooded land to beach on that elevated roadway. I'd love to get some pictures of them. I am trying to capture pics of the devastation, and plan to post them to a Picasa web album after I get home. I'll post a link here.

We're living in an RV, and luckily we have a generator and a Verizon aircard for an Internet connection, as well as other amenities some around here lack (like satellite TV and AC). We are fortunate, so far. Gasoline is in short supply, because electrical power is nonexistent in all of the Beaumont-Port Arthur area and most of Houston. Some businesses have generators, and are open for business.

Many thanks to those of you wishing us the best. I'm trying to look at this as just another adventure, but I am getting too old for many more adventures of this kind.

Tman: That was a great picture of fire, water, and wind.