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Post by TRK on Sept 15, 2008 17:30:22 GMT -5
It's good to hear you and your family are ok, Phil.
We have friends in Pasadena who toughed it out in their house; they called Saturday evening to say they were alright; the only damage was some shingles blown off their roof.
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Post by sloanrodgers on Sept 16, 2008 1:54:43 GMT -5
I believe many coastal people judge approaching hurricanes by the churning monsters that previously wrecked havoc on their lives and homes. Each person or town has their own standard of what a bad hurricane looks like in the radar or satellite images. The problem is that despite outward appearances every hurricane is different and changing. Sometimes they wait for a kitten and then find themselves facing a tiger of a storm with nowhere to run. I went down to the Virgin Islands after Hurricane Hugo struck and scourered the Isle of St. Croix. I still shutter at the destruction I saw as I flew in a Huey over the denuded landscape. The destruction was horrible, but could have been worse. Luckily only 14 were killed. The 18th Airborne Corp and other units were able to stop the d@mn looting, feed the people and restore order. I think the U. S. has a lot more experiance with these disaster reliefs than they did 20 years ago and hopefully their reaction will keep improving. Always expect the unexpected from a spinning mass of air or water as you just don't know what it's going to do. Sorry I sound a bit preachy, but I'm reminded of Hugo, whenever one of these things hit us. P.S. I'm glad you and your family made it through okay, Phil.
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Post by Paul Sylvain on Sept 16, 2008 6:52:22 GMT -5
Up in the DFW area where I've been since May, we had a little drizzle, a shower or two, a slight breeze above normal, and that was it. The thing must have past far enough east of us to not do much. The images of Galveston Bay, though, show how much worse this could have been. It's going to take a while for that mess to be straightened.
I was living on Long Island when Hurricane Gloria made first landfall in '85, I think, about two miles from where we lived. It wasn't a massive storm, like some we've seen since, and we were spared any serious flooding thanks to the tides not aligning with the surge when it hit. Even with that, we had no power for almost two weeks. The part of the town I was living in (East Patchogue) had opted out of going with city water, which meant all the places around me had well water. No power, no pumps, no water --- for two weeks.
The reason, though, is interesting. Long Island Lighting (LILCO, I think it was called) had poured all its financial resources into a nuclear power plant project on eastern Long Island. They did not do thr routine tree and limb cuttings needed to keep lines clear. They did not replace old and rotting poles. When Gloria hi, it took all these thing out. It was a mess.
I hope they can start restoring power and water and basic essentials to the Galveston area soon.
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Post by tmdreb on Sept 16, 2008 21:21:17 GMT -5
I was in St. Croix in 2000, and one of the more odd experiences I had there was coming across a damaged and abandoned house while walking. It had little roof to speak of, and it was obvious the owners just left it as it was after whatever storm destroyed it. There were clothes and other stuff just left behind. It was bizarre.
They've said it'll be a month before power is restored in Galveston. I don't know if they mean for the whole island, just most of it, or whatever. I don't spend a lot of time watching the news.
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Post by sloanrodgers on Sept 17, 2008 21:13:41 GMT -5
I'm sure St. Croix appeared a lot prettier in 2000 than the island did in the Fall of 1989. One day my unit went on a little mission to Fredericksted. As we walked into an expansive courtyard, I saw a big banyan tree in the center, which I said looked really weird. One of the Crotan men gave me the stink eye and said: "Hey, Iz upside down mon." Hurricane Hugo had ripped this tree out of the ground, then dump it in nearly the same spot in the courtyard. What I initially thought were leafless limbs were actually the roots. It's one of my fond memories of my visit to the island and I would like to return someday.
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Post by tmdreb on Sept 17, 2008 21:54:49 GMT -5
It was very pretty. It was just explained to me while we were there (visiting a friend who lived there at the time) that it didn't have as much of the social scene as the other islands because of the big storm.
My wife got groceries today. Not much in the way of refrigerated or frozen foods, but we did eat a frozen pizza tonight. Well, we cooked it first. She said the store was pretty packed.
There are still a lot of folks without power, though the ones I've talked to are doing as well as can be expected. My office is one of the places without electricity. I'm off again tomorrow (Thursday). My wife and her friends are going to a movie. She's not back at work until next week. Her school has some water damage.
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Post by sloanrodgers on Sept 18, 2008 21:14:16 GMT -5
I'm sure it was, but I think parts of the carribean Islands are still in ruins after Hugo. I sincerely hope that your situation improves in the next few weeks. I also pray that the process of rebuilding Southeast Texas isn't slowed down by money problems and red-tape as it has elsewhere.
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doc
Full Member
Posts: 88
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Post by doc on Sept 30, 2008 8:45:19 GMT -5
Gents:
Some of you may be wondering how Ike treated the San Jacinto Battleground State Historic Site.
He was not as unkind as he might have been--but bad enough! The battleship gift shop is gone. Staff members have established a temporary gift shop in the Officers Galley on the main deck of the ship. The good news is that the Battleship Texas itself appears to have suffered no damage.
Many of the park's trees sustained wind damage. The clearing of debris is taking place as I type. The staff has ordered three 30-foot dumpsters to receive the fallen limbs.
The San Jacinto Monument received no damage, but a small amount of water made its way into the elevator pit. As a result, the staff has closed the elevator until they can conduct a full inspection. Prudent. That, my friends, would be a long drop.
None of the museum collections were compromised--for which we are thankful.
Other sites did not fare as well. Ike totally destroyed Sea Rim and Galveston Island State parks.
While the battlefield site dodged the bullet, many staff members did not. The storm displaced many and others sustained severe damage to their homes. It will be some time before the site returns to normal.
If you ever considered making a contribution to the San Jacinto Battleground State Historic Site, I can think of no better time than now.
Dios y Tejas,
Doc
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Post by sloanrodgers on Oct 1, 2008 17:40:04 GMT -5
Doc. This is indeed sad news. Thanks for the notification. I am relieved that the U.S.S. Texas and the San Jancinto Monument were spared by this destructive hurricane. These are trying times.
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