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First Pic of my Hurricaine Hit Home (New Orleans)

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funkybutt Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Sep-16-05 02:15 PM
Original message
First Pic of my Hurricaine Hit Home (New Orleans)
Thought I'd share this with y'all here at the DU. A kind poker buddy of ours went to check on our house a couple of days ago. Attached is the camera phone photo that he took. His wife is pointing at the water line. Today my husband was able to get into the city to survey the damage and retrieve some irreplacable items that were salvagable. He had to stop at one check point and then several other times to explain himself to National Guard and Police. He reports that the smell inside the house is unbearable so he's wearing a ventalator when inside. Toward the front of the house the water appears to have reached a height of around 30 inches. The Civic that we left behind was completely submerged at some point. I think he's going to clean up a bit, empty out the refridgerator and return again possibly tomorrow. All the homes have been marked with paint when the National Guard secured the area and confirmed there was nobody inside. There is some wind damage to the purgolas where the swing was (we moved it inside before we left). There isn't a thick coating of filthy muck on the floor as has been reported in other flooded areas.

We feel very fortunate. We have family nearby who has cared for us and the house appears to be structurally sound. Material possessions can be replaced. We are fully insured. We evacuated with our pets and some photos and documents. We all have each other and a great support group to lean on. We are determined to go home to our great city.

I've been away from the DU for a while. I'd love to have y'all fill me in on important things that I may have missed over the past few weeks. What are your impressions of our Mayor and Governor? DU used to be my main source of news so I may be completely lost b/c I've only had TV and newspaper news mostly.

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Neocondriac Donating Member (732 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Sep-16-05 02:18 PM
Response to Original message
1. Incredible...
even the barrel tile was stripped away....wow !
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qanda Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Sep-16-05 02:19 PM
Response to Original message
2. Wow! I'm so glad that you are safe.
Sorry about your home and your lost possessions but you are indeed blessed to have family and especially your life. I hope all goes well as you attempt to rebuild.
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merh Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Sep-16-05 02:20 PM
Response to Original message
3. So glad you are safe and you were able to evacuate to be with
loved ones. :hug: So glad you and yours are safe. :hi:
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movie_girl99 Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Sep-16-05 02:21 PM
Response to Original message
4. wow...so glad to hear from you
I'm sorry to hear about the house but at least you guys got out safely. Welcome back.
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soleft Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Sep-16-05 02:22 PM
Response to Original message
5. Wish you good things as you rebuild
:thumbsup:
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DistressedAmerican Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Sep-16-05 02:23 PM
Response to Original message
6. Glad To See You Have Something To Return To!
And no muck is a big plus! I know congrats is not quite appropriate. But, it definitely sounds like it could have been worse. Glad to hear!

:applause:
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Generic Other Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Sep-16-05 02:23 PM
Response to Original message
7. Your poor little house!!
Good thing you took cover on high ground. Otherwise you would have been on the roof! Wow.

Glad the water receded even if everything else is still a mess.

Good luck to you!! And keep us posted on the recovery process!
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SoCalDem Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Sep-16-05 02:23 PM
Response to Original message
8. Looks like your arts& crafts bungalow withstood the worst of it
I am glad that you all made it out safely, and had a reparable house to return to :)
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ret5hd Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Sep-16-05 02:24 PM
Response to Original message
9. When was your house built? (i love old houses) (nt)
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funkybutt Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Sep-16-05 02:27 PM
Response to Reply #9
11. House was build between 1920 and 1925
never had water in it until this.

If only they could have patched that levee faster
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DoYouEverWonder Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Sep-18-05 08:36 AM
Response to Reply #11
30. Nagin asked HS/FEMA for helicopters before the levees broke
He knew that the 17th Street Levee was in trouble and he had sandbags ready but HS/FEMA decided to divert them to another mission instead.

Maybe it wouldn't have matter but you never know unless you try. HS/FEMA wasn't even willing to try.
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Rainscents Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Sep-16-05 02:25 PM
Response to Original message
10. Here you go! All the links you should read!!!
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Blue_In_AK Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Sep-16-05 02:27 PM
Response to Original message
12. So glad to hear you're okay and that your house is still standing.
As for me, I think your governor and mayor did the best they could under some extremely stressful circumstances. The federal government's response, however, was abysmal.
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Lindsay Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Sep-16-05 02:31 PM
Response to Original message
13. Glad you and your family are safe and sound.
That's a dear little house - in such a wonderful city. Hope everything in your life gets back the way you want it soon!
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nonconformist Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Sep-16-05 02:32 PM
Response to Original message
14. What a great house!
I too love old houses, and bungalows are a favorite.

I'm so glad you are safe and that your home is structurally sound.
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Bernardo de La Paz Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Sep-16-05 02:35 PM
Response to Original message
15. Glad you are safe. More power to you.
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ewagner Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Sep-16-05 02:40 PM
Response to Original message
16. So glad you're safe
and that your house is structurally sound.

Rebuilding will be a trying experience but it could have been soooooo much worse.

Welcome back to DU....we missed you :hi:
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gratuitous Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Sep-16-05 02:49 PM
Response to Original message
17. I am soooo sorry
That someone with your screen name is married. Oh well.

But it's good to see that your house survived the Hurricane, and from your description, it may even be habitable again! Good news. Check that -- Great news!
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progressivebydesign Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Sep-16-05 02:52 PM
Response to Original message
18. Glad you're okay. Will there be problems with mold?
Thinking of all that water, I wonder if mold issues have been discussed in the area. Your husband was smart to wear a ventilator until that can be checked out for you. I hope you can return to your house soon and put it back into good condition.
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funkybutt Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Sep-16-05 03:54 PM
Response to Reply #18
19. yes..mold is already a problem
since it's been so long and the clean up couldnt begin sooner. I imagine the house will be completly gutted and cleared of mold.

Hopefully
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funkybutt Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sat Sep-17-05 07:18 AM
Response to Original message
20. kick
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Atlas Mugged Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sat Sep-17-05 07:31 AM
Response to Original message
21. What a beautiful home!
Is the lawn completely dead? I've been wondering about the ancient Live Oaks in the park and on Esplanade Ave., since the water from the lake is brackish.

I'm glad that you got your pets out, too. It's wonderful to hear that some people really did care enough about their animals to take them with them.

As for catching up, just start going over the Top Ten Conservative Idiots from the past couple of weeks. That summarizes things quite nicely.

Let us know when Karl Rove stops by with a hammer and tool belt.
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AnnInLa Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sat Sep-17-05 07:33 AM
Response to Original message
22. Please keep us informed
with pics about the progress on your house, your neighborhood, and anything else you can share that would give us a good idea of exactly what survivors are going thru??? We would SO appreciate it.

I remember when you sent me the email the night before you evacuated saying that you would leave early in the morning. I thought to myself, "its a damn good thing I don't have her phone number, I would be phoning every 15 minutes telling her to GET OUT NOW, don't wait for morning!" Can you tell us what the trip out of N.O. was like? How long did it take you to get to N.LA? How did the Contra-flow work?

Yall probably know that Maggie takes fabulous pictures....here's one from the Jazz Funeral for Democracy in N.O. on Inauguration Day:




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funkybutt Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sat Sep-17-05 07:29 PM
Response to Reply #22
26. Thank you Ann, and I will
I'm particularly excited about the link you posted at the bottom. Haven't read it yet but it's made my day.

I could tell by your email that you weren't pleased with our decision to stay through the night. In almost any other situation we would have left Sat evening. Friday night we were drinking heavily at a beach house on the gulf coast thinking that we weren't going to be leaving until Sunday. The home's owners contacted us and notified us that we'd have to leave in the morning because he was coming to board up the home. We were on the road and hung over all day Saturday just to get back to New Orleans! Then we had to pack up stuff and by the time we finished we were simply too exhausted to safely drive another 5+ hours. We just slept a few hours and woke up at 4 am...hoping to "beat the rush".

Aparently everyone else had picked that hour to leave too. Had we left at 3 am instead of 4 am, it would have been smooth sailing. Instead we spent 10 hours making a 5 hour trip.

The contraflow worked pretty well, except we had to head north instead of West as we had planned. The westbound part didn't work at all. It seemed that EVERYONE's plan had them heading west. After sitting at a standstill in the westbound lane for an hour, we decided that we'd have to go north THEN west..through Misssissippi. Traffic was very heavy and people were not thinking clearly. They were making stupid decisions in traffic and I'm still surprised that more accidents didn't happen. It was a VERY scary 10 hours....but I'm fairly anxious when it comes to interstate travel anyway.

Thanks for the compliment on my photography. Unfortunatly my web gallery of photos was hosted from an old computer that was completely submurged during the flooding. I'm hoping that I have most of it backed up. My PeaceTrain shirt were lost along with the rest of my clothes. :(


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AnnInLa Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Sep-18-05 08:17 AM
Response to Reply #26
28. I'm going to save my Peace Train t-shirt for you
and mail it to you. I haven't worn it yet, and I can wear my Code Pink t-shirt for the demonstration in DC. You are such a little-bitty thing that it will swallow you, but you can wear it to sleep in! lol Later on, let me know your new/old address, and I'll get it back to you.

I met a lady from New Orleans when I was working with the evacuees that first weekend in Lafayette. She had been working for the New Orleans Housing Authority in New Orleans and came to help us out. She and her son evacuated at the same time you did. The 2.5 hour trip from N.O. to Lafayette took her 10 hours as well. She said the traffic and the officials kept directing her north, but she didn't want to go north, she wanted to go west! She said she was afraid of ending up in N. Louisiana, as she was afraid of the way they would be welcomed. (She is African American.) She had a friend in Lafayette, and wanted to come west, but kept getting pushed north, so she would get out of traffic and try to make her way westward, but would get directed north again. When she finally managed to make it to Lafayette by this big, circuitous route, she was exhausted. She pulled off the interstate and parked under a big tree and started shaking and crying uncontrollably. She called her friend and told her, "I know where you live, but I just can't make it there, come get us." Her friend did, naturally. She also told us the story about her son dashing back into their house at the last minute to get his X-box. At first she was dismayed, but later she thought, at least that will keep him occupied, and not dwelling on what was happening back home.

I keep having this guilty feeling, the "survivor syndrome" I think. If that storm had turned a few degrees to the west, it would have been my house instead of yours. Maybe we should both think about moving a little bit north? I really, really hope you and JC can regain your former lives, if that is what you decide to do.
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OmmmSweetOmmm Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sat Sep-17-05 07:35 AM
Response to Original message
23. It's great that you were safe and that is a lovely house! Here's a
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B Calm Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sat Sep-17-05 07:41 AM
Response to Original message
24. Now the mold and rot will set in. Hope you have flood insurance.
If not, you might want to consider setting fire to it or something just to get the damn insurance company to pay.
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AnnInLa Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sat Sep-17-05 08:30 AM
Response to Original message
25. Here's some news from last night:
Head of Louisiana's Democratic Party steps down 9/16/2005, 6:53 p.m.

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Less than a year after he took the post, state Democratic Party Chairman Jim Bernhard stepped down from the leadership job Friday, saying he needs to focus on his engineering and construction company which is heavily involved in Hurricane Katrina rebuilding efforts

http://www.nola.com/newsflash/louisiana/index.ssf?/base...
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Suich Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sat Sep-17-05 08:05 PM
Response to Original message
27. Glad you made it through safely!
:kick:
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calico1 Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Sep-18-05 08:27 AM
Response to Original message
29. Glad you made it through.
Hope you can save your home.
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