Ike...reports from the ground

[NoHall]

Our local paper reported several days ago (and I assume it was from the AP) that they expected "swept away" fatalities to mount, but no one could even speculate on the numbers.

Very sad. I can't help but hope that the stories you heard are just wild rumors.

 

[DD]

Wow...what a great and hopeful post NDY!

Update...PawPaw has power! It came on Saturday. One of his pals went over this morning and checked the house. One of the branches from the BA pine tree did puncture his roof and is still stuck there. Now, I have to work on getting him to call the insurance co. :roll:

Leslie just called...after 10 days, her power came on at 1 pm today! The BA pine tree has been removed from her garage roof. She and her family are happy happy to have real A/C! The grocery stores by her are still pretty bare. It is very dangerous to drive around the area because the traffic lights are out and people's nerves are out, as well. :shock:

So, PawPaw is leaving us tomorrow. He is very anxious to get back. Leslie will be there to meet him and will help get him settled and groceries bought...his fridge is empty! We will miss our PawPaw, but I know he wants to get home.

Aww Kitty, I know you'll be sad to see PawPaw go. But I know he's got to be chomping at the bit to get home and check things out for himself.

Hello to all:

I'm back home for a few days. I've been informed today from Galveston that there is more to the story than is being reported. I have no verification, however, this information is coming from parties coordinating with FEMA.

A 4 y/o child was found with a life vest on 3 days after IKE. She had initially been with her entire family, however, they are all MIA.

There was a group of 35 people who tied themselves together during the storm in an effort to survive. All were drowned except for onel.

Again, I have no verification that this is factual, except that the source is extremely reliable. I continue to hear these stories from multiple professional sources, yet no official confirmation except that FEMA did request additional DMORT teams to the region.

All the indicators are showing that the fatalities will start to increase dramatically to what is officially being reported. I hope that I'm wrong.....

This is so sad, AH. I hope you're wrong too, but thanks for reporting.

 

[InletBchDweller]

wow. so sad that after a storm passes the destruction it cased keeps lingering for months on end. We have several new generators in the box here in BR that someone from SoWal brought to us for anyone that needs them. Arkie h or LATB if you know anyone that is in need I can drive over there and deliver - as far as they will let me...

 

[sunspotbaby]

25 things learned from IKE

This was forwarded to me from my sister in Houston. I don't know who sent it to her but it probably rings true for a lot of people there.


We are fully restored with electricity, cable, and internet at home. I want to thank each of you for your continued prayers and support during this very enlightening time in our lives. I'm not going to bore you with a long spill about the horror and devestation that has surrounded us for the last 12 days. If you want that just tune to CNN and I promise you'll get your fill quite quickly. I will tell you that it was difficult but survivable. I will also tell you that I have no intention of riding out another one of these things so if you live north of me, MAKE ROOM!!!



Ok, now for the lessons learned aspect. Here are 25 things I learned from Hurricane Ike:



1. Coffee and frozen lasagna can be made on a BBQ grill .

2. No matter how many times you flick the switch, lights donʼt work without electricity.

3. My truck gets 17. 21675 miles per gallon, EXACT LY



4. Kids can survive 5 days or longer without a video game controller in their hand.

5. Cats are even more irritating without power.

6. He who has the biggest generator wins.

7. Women can actually survive without doing their hair or make-up - you just wish they didn't have to.

8. A tried and true method of non- lethal torture- cold showers.

9. There are a lot more stars in the sky than most people thought.

10. TV is an addiction and the withdrawal symptoms are painful.

11. Disposing of all perishables really does mean ALL perishables. You will quickly find the ones you forgot.

12. There are a lot of dang trees around here.



13. Animals are much smarter than humans.

14. There's a reason for that little bottle of Tabasco sauce.

15. People will get into a line that has already formed without having any idea what the line is for.

16. Not all Hummers can be driven under water!

17. Seriously, there are a lot of dang trees around here!!!


18. Tele-marketers and bill collectors funct ion no matter what the weather is doing.

19. "Shelter in Place" is a really nice way of saying "You're screwed".

20. No one really knows what the "electric feed grid" is or how it really works.



21. Laundry hampers were not made to conta in such volume.

22. If my store sold only ice, chain saws, gas and generators ... I'd be rich.

23. Tree service companies are underappreciated.

24. I can walk a lot farther than I thought.



25. I have an awesome and amazing God!



For those of you still trying to recover from this, please know that I continue to pray for you. For those who are back on your feet, I encourage you to extend to others the grace and mercy that has been bestowed upon us.

 

[DD]

Thanks for posting ssb. Funny, sad, entertaining, enlightening.

 

[Miss Kitty]

...ssb, your sister, rocks! What a great read....typical Texan, making lemonade out of lemons.

BTW...I had thought this to myself, but yesterday, a sowaller said to me on the shellphone..."Hmmm, Don't you find it interesting that we are not hearing any information about the needs of the survivors of Ike like we heard about Katrina?" Not to disparage the survivors in NOLA, but here in Texas, we just pull up our boot straps and get it done. It also demonstrates what leadership will do for it's citizens.

 

[sunspotbaby]

...ssb, your sister, rocks! What a great read....typical Texan, making lemonade out of lemons.

BTW...I had thought this to myself, but yesterday, a sowaller said to me on the shellphone..."Hmmm, Don't you find it interesting that we are not hearing any information about the needs of the survivors of Ike like we heard about Katrina?" Not to disparage the survivors in NOLA, but here in Texas, we just pull up our boot straps and get it done. It also demonstrates what leadership will do for it's citizens.

Come to think of it, I haven't seen the Reverend in Texas raising hail about the lack of services for the great state of Texas.

BTW I think you all have the best looking governor in the U.S. !

 

[ktschris]

Not to take away form the pain and devistation of Texas...but I found this to be interesting. 24 hours after Ike hit TX, it made its way up the Mississippi and we felt it here in St. Louis. I think the death toll here alone was 11 people. 12 inches of rain in 4 hours. This is from today's St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/ne...0B9AF9D8C527EE13862574D1001C7928?OpenDocument

I'm awestruck how powerful this storm was. I lived in Florida for a few years, I know of a lot of people who would not have dreamed of leaving for a Cat 2 or 3 storm. Makes one pause, things have change. I still pray daily for those effected by this storm, in TX and all the way up to landlock MO.