Hurricane Katrina Anniversary
Anyone not living under a rock last year saw the devastation Hurricane Katrina brought to New Orleans and the Gulf Coast region. But many people don’t know that Katrina devastated South Florida first. I know because I was there.
On August 25, 2005 Hurricane Katrina knocked out power to over 1 million people, including me and my husband. Although it was only a Category 1 hurricane, we were without power for 3 days in nearly 90 degree heat and even higher humidity.
The first night was kind of fun. We listened to the storm, lit candles, played the radio (on battery power) and played Scrabble. After the storm blew through, the temperature was in the low 80’s and the humidity wasn’t too bad. We took perishable food from the refrigerator and cooked most of it on the grill, had a candle-lit dinner and went to bed early. We didn’t sleep well because it was warm, but it wasn’t too bad. Yet.
On the second day, reality set in. We used the last of the hot water for our morning showers and heard a report on the radio warning local residents that water might soon be unsafe or possible unavailable due to power being out at the water treatment plants. I never thought about it before, but they use electricity to power the pumps that send treated water out into the public water lines. No power, no way to treat the water; no pumps, no water pressure.
For something to do, we walked around the neighborhood to see the storm damage. There were downed trees, branches and debris; roofs were missing tiles or had gaping holes, and windows were smashed. Cars were crushed by fallen trees, windshields were smashed, interiors flooded. Mobile home roofs were ripped off, walls were collapsed, fences were down, the canals were overflowing, and there was trash everywhere. Homeowners were attempting to cover their houses and clean up debris. Power lines were down; billboards, street signs and traffic lights were down. A local man was killed by a tree that fell on him while he was assessing storm damage in his yard.
We cooked our meals on the grill. Our hurricane food supplies consisted mostly of canned soup and ravioli, plus peanut butter, bread, and canned chicken for sandwiches. We had plenty of water and soda but no ice. Warm soda is nasty, so we stuck to the water. When the sun went down, we lit candles and played board games again while listening to news reports on the radio, but it was too hot to sit near the candles so the games ended early. The night was long and sweaty and miserable.
The third day was awful. The temperature was higher and so was the humidity. The smell of rotting trash, rotten food, and body odor began to pervade the neighborhood. The water pressure was down to a trickle, so no showers. To flush our toilets, we transferred (in buckets) the water we had previously stored in our bathtub. Daylight made it possible to read, but we were getting pretty bored. That afternoon, we heard on the radio that power to the Sawgrass Mills Mall had been restored, so we decided to check it out. It was a dangerous drive, due to downed power lines and debris, but the respite from the heat, humidity and boredom was worth it. After a few hours at the mall I felt human again.
For safety reasons, we decided to drive back home before the sun set. Within a few hours the restorative powers of the mall air conditioning had worn off. By that night I was in hell. I couldn’t sleep; it was just too hot and humid. I tossed and turned and sweated. By 2 a.m. I gave up and went to sit in the living room. I was so weary from lack of sleep and crazy from the heat that I began to sob. It was a good thing that the power came back on that night because in a few more hours I would have completely lost my mind.
Within a few days the gas stations and grocery stores reopened, trash was being cleaned up, and life was getting back to normal. Things could have been much worse, and I soon learned exactly what “much worse” looks like. After watching Katrina destroy the Gulf Coast, buying basic hurricane supplies (like canned goods and batteries) was no longer enough to make me feel prepared or safe.
When Hurricane Wilma barreled down on us two months later, I left town.
On August 25, 2005 Hurricane Katrina knocked out power to over 1 million people, including me and my husband. Although it was only a Category 1 hurricane, we were without power for 3 days in nearly 90 degree heat and even higher humidity.
The first night was kind of fun. We listened to the storm, lit candles, played the radio (on battery power) and played Scrabble. After the storm blew through, the temperature was in the low 80’s and the humidity wasn’t too bad. We took perishable food from the refrigerator and cooked most of it on the grill, had a candle-lit dinner and went to bed early. We didn’t sleep well because it was warm, but it wasn’t too bad. Yet.
On the second day, reality set in. We used the last of the hot water for our morning showers and heard a report on the radio warning local residents that water might soon be unsafe or possible unavailable due to power being out at the water treatment plants. I never thought about it before, but they use electricity to power the pumps that send treated water out into the public water lines. No power, no way to treat the water; no pumps, no water pressure.
For something to do, we walked around the neighborhood to see the storm damage. There were downed trees, branches and debris; roofs were missing tiles or had gaping holes, and windows were smashed. Cars were crushed by fallen trees, windshields were smashed, interiors flooded. Mobile home roofs were ripped off, walls were collapsed, fences were down, the canals were overflowing, and there was trash everywhere. Homeowners were attempting to cover their houses and clean up debris. Power lines were down; billboards, street signs and traffic lights were down. A local man was killed by a tree that fell on him while he was assessing storm damage in his yard.
We cooked our meals on the grill. Our hurricane food supplies consisted mostly of canned soup and ravioli, plus peanut butter, bread, and canned chicken for sandwiches. We had plenty of water and soda but no ice. Warm soda is nasty, so we stuck to the water. When the sun went down, we lit candles and played board games again while listening to news reports on the radio, but it was too hot to sit near the candles so the games ended early. The night was long and sweaty and miserable.
The third day was awful. The temperature was higher and so was the humidity. The smell of rotting trash, rotten food, and body odor began to pervade the neighborhood. The water pressure was down to a trickle, so no showers. To flush our toilets, we transferred (in buckets) the water we had previously stored in our bathtub. Daylight made it possible to read, but we were getting pretty bored. That afternoon, we heard on the radio that power to the Sawgrass Mills Mall had been restored, so we decided to check it out. It was a dangerous drive, due to downed power lines and debris, but the respite from the heat, humidity and boredom was worth it. After a few hours at the mall I felt human again.
For safety reasons, we decided to drive back home before the sun set. Within a few hours the restorative powers of the mall air conditioning had worn off. By that night I was in hell. I couldn’t sleep; it was just too hot and humid. I tossed and turned and sweated. By 2 a.m. I gave up and went to sit in the living room. I was so weary from lack of sleep and crazy from the heat that I began to sob. It was a good thing that the power came back on that night because in a few more hours I would have completely lost my mind.
Within a few days the gas stations and grocery stores reopened, trash was being cleaned up, and life was getting back to normal. Things could have been much worse, and I soon learned exactly what “much worse” looks like. After watching Katrina destroy the Gulf Coast, buying basic hurricane supplies (like canned goods and batteries) was no longer enough to make me feel prepared or safe.
When Hurricane Wilma barreled down on us two months later, I left town.
posted by Patricia at
Friday, August 25, 2006
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