Calling all Mobilians and Mississippians

Discuss the recovery and aftermath of landfalling hurricanes. Please be sensitive to those that have been directly impacted. Political threads will be deleted without notice. This is the place to come together not divide.

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beachbum_al
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Calling all Mobilians and Mississippians

#1 Postby beachbum_al » Mon Aug 29, 2005 3:28 am

I am not sure if I heard this right but is anyone listening to wkrg right now. Did he say around 3am that he thought Katrina would take the most Easterly track and be closer to MS? I thought he said that.

It is getting pretty bad here right now. We are getting a feeder band as I type but still have power.
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#2 Postby ncbird » Mon Aug 29, 2005 3:31 am

Be safe... and know our prayers are with all of you down there.
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#3 Postby mtm4319 » Mon Aug 29, 2005 3:33 am

I wasn't watching, but turned it onto WKRG as soon as you mentioned it in the other thread.
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#4 Postby mtm4319 » Mon Aug 29, 2005 3:35 am

His credibility with me just dropped a bit, as he called this a cat-5 storm.
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#5 Postby beachbum_al » Mon Aug 29, 2005 3:40 am

I didn't catch the Cat 5 saying. I think I need to go back to bed.
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#6 Postby beachbum_al » Mon Aug 29, 2005 3:46 am

KATRINA IS NOW MOVING TOWARD THE NORTH NEAR 12 MPH. THIS MOTION IS
FORECAST TO CONTINUE TODAY WITH A GRADUAL INCREASE IN FORWARD
SPEED. A TURN TOWARD THE NORTH-NORTHEAST IS EXPECTED LATER TONIGHT
AND ON TUESDAY. ON THE FORECAST TRACK THE CENTER OF THE HURRICANE
WILL BE VERY NEAR THE NORTHERN GULF COAST LATER THIS MORNING.
HOWEVER... CONDITIONS ARE GRADUALLY DETERIORATING ALONG PORTIONS OF
THE CENTRAL AND NORTHEASTERN GULF COAST...AND WILL CONTINUE TO
WORSEN THROUGHOUT THE DAY.

MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS ARE NEAR 155 MPH WITH HIGHER GUSTS.
KATRINA IS NOW A STRONG CATEGORY FOUR HURRICANE ON THE
SAFFIR-SIMPSON SCALE. SOME FLUCTUATIONS IN STRENGTH ARE LIKELY
PRIOR TO LANDFALL...BUT KATRINA IS EXPECTED TO MAKE LANDFALL AS
EITHER A CATEGORY FOUR OR POSSIBLY A CATEGORY FIVE HURRICANE.
WINDS AFFECTING THE UPPER FLOORS OF HIGH-RISE BUILDINGS WILL BE
SIGNIFICANTLY STRONGER THAN THOSE NEAR GROUND LEVEL.


http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/text/refresh/MIATCPAT2+shtml/290656.shtml

I think this might be why he is saying what he is saying on the air. That and the lack of sleep.
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#7 Postby hurricanesurvivor » Mon Aug 29, 2005 4:15 am

We're in Picayune. Power's out but I'm still online with my computer hooked up to my UPS. Not sure how long it'll last. The wind is really picking up here and the house is creaking and moaning. Whole family is camped out in one room and everyone else is asleep. Eye is still offshore but expected to turn more this way in the next couple of hours. It seems to be turning a bit more northeast.
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#8 Postby ncbird » Mon Aug 29, 2005 4:18 am

Hurricanesurvivor please keep checkin in with us ever once in awhile while you can and after when you are able. Our prayers are with you and your loved ones.
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#9 Postby okiekid55 » Mon Aug 29, 2005 4:19 am

Here in Pascagoula, wind with gust in the 30 to 40 mph gust, not much rain at this time, good luck in Picayune. Power on, lights are on.
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#10 Postby mds8309 » Mon Aug 29, 2005 4:21 am

I'm located in Gulfport/Orange Grove about 12 miles inland. Power/cable still on and have a secure area in house ready. Winds starting to pick up. Hoping the worst happens when its daylight outside. It seems to be taking a track similar to Camille.
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#11 Postby hurricanesurvivor » Mon Aug 29, 2005 4:21 am

UPS box is beeping nonstop- power is about to go. Good luck to everyone!
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#12 Postby patsmsg » Mon Aug 29, 2005 4:53 am

hurricanesurvivor wrote:We're in Picayune. Power's out but I'm still online with my computer hooked up to my UPS. Not sure how long it'll last. The wind is really picking up here and the house is creaking and moaning. Whole family is camped out in one room and everyone else is asleep. Eye is still offshore but expected to turn more this way in the next couple of hours. It seems to be turning a bit more northeast.


We're in Picyune also. So far the power has been flickering, but holding on. I hate to say it with the eye still so far out, but the winds have been gusting pretty strong here, easily in the 40+ mph range already. The rain has been steady and non-stop.
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#13 Postby manofsteele79 » Mon Aug 29, 2005 6:38 am

Here in Hattiesburg, winds are just now starting to really pick up. Sustained at 28, gusting to 36mph right now. Our short term forecast calls for sustained 70-90 mph gusting over 100 mph. This will be a wild ride.
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#14 Postby hurricanesurvivor » Fri Sep 02, 2005 3:41 am

I'm back! We rode out the storm in Picayune and really got scared between 10-11am as the sound of the wind suddenly began roaring so loud we thought a tornado was on top of us- but it kept up for an hour! Wasn't sure our house would survive the onslaught. We had no way to know which way the storm had actually gone after the power went out, as the only radio station we could get was WWL in New Orleans, and they only reported damage to New Orleans and not where the eye was going once it passed by them. We went outside when the wind suddenly stopped to survey damage. My husband was on the roof trying to put tarp on to cover the damage when the wind suddenly starting picking up from the opposite direction! We had been outside for about an hour at that time. A neighbor ran down the street and told us he had a tv on a generator and that we were only in the eye- the storm wasn't over! We rushed back inside and took up our spot on the floor against a solid brick wall, expecting the same horrific sounds to begin again. I wasn't sure the house could hold up to it a second time. But the southern part of the eyewall wasn't nearly as bad as the northern side and we were okay.
But little did we know that our nightmare was just beginning. With absolutely no communication with the outside world and no power, hence no tv, we really had no idea what was going on outside our tiny neighborhood. The roads were completely blocked with fallen trees, fallen power poles and lines, etc. That first night was scary- pitch darkness outside but you had to keep your windows open or you'd suffocate from the heat. All our window screens were blown off, so we were sharing living accomodations with every bug imaginable.
The next day I still couldn't get any phone lines, either land lines or cell phone, so I got into the car to try to make it to the other side of town to check on my parents. They live in a mobile home and had jokingly told me they were going to stay there. I knew they had more common sense than that, but still didn't know if they had really gone next door to my grandmother's or not. After an hour of picking our way through streets filled with debris, we managed to make it to my parent's home to find it untouched- every tree around them down but none on their home! They had gone to my grandmother's and it was the same story there as well. We grilled that night with steaks brought to us by a neighbor whose freezer was thawing out and ate in the backyard, picnic style, as it was just too hot to even stay in the house for more than a few minutes at a time. Flies and mosquitoes were pretty much taking it over anyway.
The worst time was that night-- there were absolutely no wind whatsoever and the humidity had returned with a vengeance. It was literally too hot to sleep. I laid in bed until 5am, continually getting up to soak a rag in some water and bathe off, then fan myself with a paper plate just to get a little relief. Couldn't afford to take a bath or shower to cool off as water was really getting precious by then, and we had 5 people and 6 pets to keep hydrated and no idea when we could leave.
By the next morning we were desperate to leave, but a neighbor told us the water was rising and we'd probably be trapped in the neighborhood until the water receded. And all roads out of town were closed so it was pointless to leave. Well, we had had enough. We started throwing all our clothes into a suitcase, packed up the laptop and the animals and decided we would get out any way we could. We left the house at around noon on Wednesday and had to drive through several people's yards and even through a fence to get around the flood waters rising-- it already covered the two roads out of the subdivision by the time we left. Our biggest fear in leaving was that we'd get down the road and have to turn back and not be able to get back to our house because of the flood waters, or even worse- run out of gas on the road somewhere because we couldn't find gas. We had no cash and only a credit card with a very low amount of credit left on it- we knew we could only fill up once on the way to Dallas so we had to find a station that not only had gas but would take credit cards as well. We had some scary moments on the trip, having to keep turning around and finding alternate routes when the road we were traveling on would be blocked, and then getting down to fumes in the gas tank while desperately searching for a gas station with fuel around Jackson and Vicksburg. WE had brought our last remaining jug of water with us and as it started to get low we really began to think we might be in trouble- stuck on the road with no gas and no water, and no money to buy either! We finally found gas between Vicksburg and Monroe, LA and then finally got a signal on our cell phone to let my husband's brother in Dallas know we were on the way. He wired us money and we found an open Walmart in Monroe and were able to stop and get something to eat. We were all so hungry and thirsty!!

Finally, after 17 hours of driving, we arrived in Dallas around 5am on Thursday morning, unloaded the van and the car, and fell into the beds our fantastic brother and sister in law had prepared for us all. We're not sure when we can return home, as Stennis is closed indefinitely (where my husband works) but my wonderful family has told us to stay has long as we need to. We've tried to get money from the ATM but it won't process because our bank is headquartered in Gulfport. So we're stuck without money for the time being. So many uncertainties now, but at least we know we have a home and a job to return to when the power is restored. Thank God for our wonderful family to take us in, no questions asked, when we called.
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#15 Postby GalvestonDuck » Fri Sep 02, 2005 6:55 am

Thank you so much for checking in, hurricanesurvivor! (Prophetic name!) We're glad you're safe.
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#16 Postby baygirl_1 » Fri Sep 02, 2005 7:06 am

Glad to hear you are safe. I'm so sorry about your home and your horrific experience. I pray things will get better soon.
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#17 Postby WaryEye » Fri Sep 02, 2005 7:53 am

Also happy to hear that you are safe.. what an ordeal for you. You are blessed with health and family, everything else can be replaced. P.S. At least you were compassionate enough to take your pets with you. :wink:
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#18 Postby beachbum_al » Fri Sep 02, 2005 8:23 am

Glad to hear from you. I can only imagine what you went through. :cry:
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