Yesterday's sunset. The remnants of Gustav are barely visible in the sky, but still so devastatingly evident on the ground.
Well, it's day five post Gustav and I've grown weary of talking about it. My energy and attention is focused on my fellow Baton Rougeans who are still without basic services and supplies, so it's tough for me to keep talking about the devastation of the storm from behind a laptop and not be there to help.Blue skies can finally be seen here, but so many people are singing the blues.
I've been pondering going back to Baton Rouge this weekend to see what I can help do, but here's the problem. The city's basic services are compromised and one more person seeking gasoline and food just adds to the already strained situation. Can I make more of an impact by going down there and helping somebody clear their debris or by staying off the dangerous roads with no signal lights that are starting to flood and out of the 2 to 4 hour long gas station lines and out of the few open grocery stores that have limited food in stock?
Now that the wind has stopped blowing and the cleanup has begun, people in Baton Rouge are waging the war against the threat of flooding - as if roof damage and no power isn't enough to deal with. Streets are completely flooded about a block away from my house and the weather reports indicate that Baton Rouge still has more rain to come.
I received alarmed calls this morning that my neighbors' houses are starting to flood. I live on a dead end street with a cul-de-sac at the end. There is a canal that runs behind my house and about five years ago (before I moved there - during Hurricane Allison I think), the street flooded. I knew of the flood because a friend of mine had just purchased a house in the cul-de-sac a couple of months before the flood and her house had to be completely redone because of the floodwater, but I wasn't sure how far the waters moved down the street. Her house and my house are about 50 yards apart. Thankfully, I was able to confirm that in past floods the waters haven't gone as far as my house.
The national media is finally starting to give some attention to areas that have been so heavily damaged that are not named NEW ORLEANS. I just saw on CNN where Don Lemon, who is a Baton Rouge native, did a live phone interview with his mom and she was able to tell of the devastation in our area. Estimates maintain that the majority of the city will be without power for up to a month. Tornadoes touched down, banks are closed, ATMs don't work, the sewer systems are without power, people lost roofs or had extensive roof damage, services are very limited, and now the potential of flooding. Baton Rouge has taken a blow that it hadn't experienced in 43 years, but our sense of community will pull us thru. Friends are cleaning up my yard and I didn't even ask them to! Others are showing up in the same way to help friends, neighbors, and strangers all over the city.
At least three different people I know have post-evacuated to Atlanta. I'm sure others who have the means are probably seeking a more palatable situation elsewhere too - especially considering that it could be several weeks before power is restored. It's over 90 degrees in south Louisiana and combined with the breeding ground for mosquitoes, the misery is compounded. It's too hot to stay inside, and mosquitoes will feast on you outside.
Oh well...such is the life we chose by living on the Gulf Coast. The humid sub-tropical climate is ideal in winter, island-like in spring and fall, and muy caliente in summer. Hurricane season always makes us think twice about our geographic location, but as soon as it passes, we forget the angst of the season and bask in the mild temperatures to come.
Let's just pray that Hurricane Ike doesn't come near us and live up to its namesake.
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