Blog of Deep Thought: Aftermath of Hurricane Gustav (Part one)

Sunday August 31, 2008
11:40

It is night-time and 3 tornado warnings have been announced, one is in Denham Springs, which isn't to far away from Baton Rouge. However, I have yet to see this tornado. Over-all it's been pretty quiet, besides the erie silence that envelopes the city. Police are doing patrols, and if they catch you looting, your going straight to Angola, the main prison in the state of Louisiana. The storm remains strong, and will be reaching land-fall sometime tomorrow.
I'm at my dad's work. Which is a very structurally sound building. Pardon my spelling, because of the weather, I am doing fast typing and fast reporting. We have a lot of food and water, as well as a lot of electricity.

12:00 AM

It is pitch black dark outside and the absence of internet is eating away at my patience. I intended on posting these journals, but the internet was the first thing to go. It's so hard to sleep, even if the hurricane isn't doing anything yet. The exhilarating feelings that are flowing through my body are preventing me from sleeping. It is somewhat of a relief that the hurricane is set to come during the daylight hours, because I don't have to much of a preference for night storms.

1:30 AM

Sleep, and the lights are still on.

Monday September 1, 2008

7:00 AM

I awoke to the sounds of tornado warnings, flood warnings, hurricane wind warnings, and hurricane warnings.
The winds at Houma are 75 Mph, and electricity is gone. 95% of New Orleans population has evacuated, over 1 Million people fled from the Gulf Coastline. We still have power and running utilities. The levees in New Orleans have worked so far. The wind in Baton Rouge is 30 Mph, and trees are just starting to sway. Light rain is covering our faces as we walk into the storm.

10:00 AM

4 tornadoes confirmed, and they are moving fast in the south. We aren't in danger, but my grandparents home may be. Grand Isle, which is a gulf coast city, has 15 Ft. waves which have already breached the Gulf Coast. Hurricane Gustav is now a category 2, despite the popular belief that we would be hit by a category 4. We are just damn lucky.
The surge from Gus has over-topped the Intercoastal Canal, and is slowly rising. I can only pray that the water doesn't flood.

11:00 AM

The wind is 50 Mph here, and 70 Mph in Houma. They say trees are ripped, and over 300,000 people are without power. The generator just kicked in.
Limbs are falling down all over, and reports of damage has been reported throughout the South Eastern region of Louisiana. One story in Houma shows that a man took his 8 children onto a boat, because he felt that his steel Shrimp boat is the perfect shelter. Most people want him to be arrested for child endangerment. A loose barge threatens to enter the Intercoastal Canal which would cause a breach in the Intercoastal Levee.

The sound of railings flying around was nothing new. I often found myself assisting in picking up pieces of tin and other materials that could have been considered dangerous.

11:50 AM

Multiple roofs have been ripped of many buildings, Gus made landfall, and is currently ripping the Southeastern region apart. We have electricity, but then again I don't have the internet. It's really annoying.
I may return home, but if the weather stays like this, I'm afraid I may be stuck here even longer. I don't like it here, the floor is flat, and painful. My body is sore, and the lights blink. Almost in a minute interval.
Power is technically gone for those without generators.
The barge was caught by the Army Corps of Engineers preventing a breach in the levee. However, the threat of the water over topping is still very high. Accidents are happening everywhere. One in particular involved a woman driving, she was older, she swerved and hit a tree. Apparently alcohol was involved. Home Depot is slowly ripping apart, but the Sheds are actually very efficient. Houma reports are stating that Houma is being "Hammered". They cannot pronounce any of the words. We are watching the weather very closely. The worst is yet to come.

This shed picture progression was caught by me.

The electricity is gone. the electricity is out.

The next part will feature my house. As i return home.