Convoy into NO part II:
This fellow has been holed up in a high rise on Poydras St. which I saw yesterday.
mgno.com
As you can see, he thinks that it is quite a bit less safe than I thought from my walkaround yesterday. I saw no evidence of what he suggests, thought the High Judicial Mucky Muck who made my trip possible had a bullet hole in his office.
After reconnoitering [love that word] the CBD, we travelled Uptown in a mini-caravan headed by an armed-to-the-teeth US Marshall. I split off from my small group to visit my home and to note, happily, that the damage is minimal. None of my large windows were broken, no entry of water anywhere, the only damage of any significance was to a rooftop air conditioning compressor which had been moved a bit and which will obviously inoperable. A large earth filled concrete planter which must have weighed between 200 and 250 lbs. was knocked down by the force of the wind, a good indicator of the storm's strength.
Army patrols passed every 10-15 minutes by my house as I packed stuff into my car. I'll be stunned if any looting takes place in the future. Very professional and respectful. I saw these patrols everywhere; I hope the poorer neighborhoods are being treated as well as mine.
I was alone, no civilians anywhere.
All the uprooted trees which blocked traffic have been cut and set aside by the National Guard so that the streets are all passable. However, there are power lines hanging everywhere. I expect there will be some fires and other problems when electricity is turned on again.
The city is eerily quiet; the usual city noises are no longer there.
If any of you are ever required to evacuate your homes for any reason, I have a strong recommendation: empty out your refrigerators before you do so. Cleaning out our fridge and that of a neighbor's was nasty, smelly work requiring a snootful of Vicks Vapor Rub to withstand the stench.
Went to a nursing home on Magazine St. to try to locate my long term pro bono client, a 90 year-old blind lady who has outlived all her family, and for whom I and a couple of others provide the only link to her past. The nursing home was abandoned, seemed like it had been looted. No sign of where she may be. The Internet has been inexplicably worthless tool in trying to find her. I fear she finally died. Perhaps a good thing in her case, though dying like she may have is not what I had in mind for her.
Speaking of dying, my son's Beta fish survived! Amazing, tough little guy. No food and stagnant water for a long time, and yet he is, incredibly, alive. Like nothing happened now that he has had a water change and some fish food.
Amazing, but me and mine are a preternaturally lucky bunch. |
