Next Hurricane - Rita - RRRR??

[smiths]

its the sun, stupids! <humour><br>have you ever heard about what jupiter and saturn do to some of their planets, they massage them like rubbery balls constantly, with massive fields of electro magnetic force tearing between them,<br>if the earth is creaking and bending, opening up more underwater volcanoes and above ground ones, and more earthquakes occur and a changing climate, i speculate that it has got be as a result of the suns activities<br>it is the primal force acting upon us and all we stand on top of,<br><br>and, <br>hoagland quotes the same old william cohen quote from 97' and the same defence papers that everyone else does, and lt. colonel bearden or whatever his name is,<br>you could write a hundred defence papers on contolling the weather and it wouldnt help you actually achieve it,<br>always the word anomolous thrown in, every hurricane in the atlantic is now supposedly forming, building and moving in an anomolous way,<br>thats weather, always has been,<br>every time the germans tried to attack england on masse they got thrown back by englands anomolous weather, <br>the english built a web of towers for radar detection and if they had thought about psyops they should have spread the rumour that the towers for controlloing the weather and they were going to unleash hurricane winston onto germany <br> <p></p><i></i>

[GDN01]

Jenz, what is happening is unbelievably sad. Hundreds of thousands of people are in shelters all across the U.S. with no idea of when, if ever, they will return to their home - the place they want to be.<br><br>They have suffered in ways most humans will hopefully never experience. They were left to die by a govt. that obviously does not care about the people. They are just now beginning to realize they will have to start a new life in a place where they have no family or friends, no job, no belongings. <br><br>The child I was holding, his mother was there in the shelter, I just didn't know who she was. There are about 2,000 children who are either lost, or whose parents are lost. The govt. agencies can't just place them in homes without some effort first to find their families. For many of them, it was a decision on the parents' part to have their children evacuated, in an effort to save their lives, while the parents stayed in New Orleans, to wait for another bus to take them to some other destination - and there was no process in place to take down contact info that would help re-unite them. Families and individuals are just now beginning to surface from the shelters, realizing they can't stay there forever and they can't go home - and must begin to rebuild a life. It is very sad and very difficult.<br><br>And now the reality is setting in here, where I live, that we are the next hit. Every model shows this next hurricane coming in to Galveston and Houston. Will it be a Category 3, or 4, or 5, as it gains strength coming across the gulf? I've already got a family from the south part of Houston coming to my home. I'm trying to get a shelter prepared in my work place for more. We are all feeling panicked and trying to put plans in place to be more effective in the aftermath than what happened in New Orleans. <br><br>I need to get out tomorrow and buy water and food. I have two families that I've been helping here from New Orleans who I need to get supplies to - they can't stockpile food and water on their own. <br><br>I feel like I can't do this. I can't deal with one more disaster. But this is what I do. I know I will keep putting one foot in front of the other and do what has to be done. But I'm exhausted. I don't know how much more I can take. <p></p><i></i>

[jenz]

praying for you <p></p><i></i>

[smiths]

i havent got a clue what it must be like for the displaced and the people who are trying to help, thanks for the accounts and heartfelt respect to you for what you are doing, <br>good luck<br>ps, sounds a bit naive but could you aid people by writing a simple set of guidelines for what to do and what not to do, in a situation like an approaching hurricane, given your real world experience and witnessing accounts of others who have been through it <p></p><i></i>

[GDN01]

Thank you, Smiths, for your kind words. I'll try to give some advice about disaster preparedness.<br><br>First, don't work so hard and long trying to help others that you don't take care of yourself and your family. I've spent the last two days - 16 hour days at the office - working on disaster preparedness plans and preparing shelter options for people to our south, as well as helping the families who we have been caring for from New Orleans. This evening I was informed that the local stores were out of water, batteries, and gas stations are running out of gas. I just got home with a few supplies - but I don't feel prepared.<br><br>The Red Cross and FEMA do have good advice on their websites for the kind of supplies you should have on hand. Most agencies suggest having enough supplies to take care of yourself for 3 days - I think you should prepare for at least 5. And if you can stockpile before there is a need to, you will be in a better position to take care of yourself.<br><br>Basics include: <br>2 gallons of water per person per day. This will be enough for cooking, hygeine, and drinking.<br><br>Don't bother with a generator unless you can stockpile lots of gasoline. Learn how to use it before you need to. <br><br>If you can stay in your home, you can use your toilets even if there is no water supply by putting water in large containers that can be used to refill the tank between flushes. If you don't have enough water to flush your toilet - figure out how you will take care of this need. 5-gallon bucket with plastic trash can liners that can be tied off and stored in larger containers is one way to do it. You don't want to have people getting sick from bad sanitation conditions.<br><br>I think it is best to work with friends or neighbors if you plan to stay in your area through a disaster. People who are alone are more vulnerable in the aftermath. <br><br>If you are going to evacuate, do it early. If you are staying where you are, get there and do not travel until you know it is completely safe.<br><br>Have a radio with batteries to stay informed.<br><br>Do not plan on using your cell phone during a disaster. A car charger will help but in my experiences, cell phone reception is spotty at best, and frequently the systems are overloaded, or towers are down. <br><br>Get LED lamps and flashlights. They use less batteries and are safer than candles and propane fueled lanterns. You don't want to have a fire hazard - you probably would not have a fire department to respond, and the water pressure could be so poor that it wouldn't help if they did.<br><br>Camp stoves that use propane fuel are helpful to heat canned soups and cook with. Use paper plates and plastic cups so you don't have to worry about washing dishes. Have lots of trash bags on hand.<br><br>Get tarps and a staple gun so if a window breaks or you have roof damage, you can cover it as quickly as possible to prevent further damage.<br><br>Let your family know where you are and have a plan to let them know your status as soon as possible. Write all important phone numbers down on paper in case your cell phone goes dead and you end up at a shelter or somewhere and can only make calls from a pay phone or someone else's phone. <br><br>Have cash on hand. Sometimes after a disaster stores will open but cannot handle cash card or credit card transactions.<br><br>Fill the gas tank of your car and consider having a couple containers of gasoline stockpiled.<br><br>Keep informed of the potential danger so you can react in a timely manner and not get caught off guard. <br><br>I hope this helps. If you have specific questions that I haven't answered, let me know and I will try to help. <p></p><i></i>

[GDN01]

Rita has just been upgraded to a Cat 3. It strengthened more in the last 12 hours than they have ever seen a storm strengthen. They didn't expect this for another 24 hours. They are saying it will be a 4, could be a 5. <br><br>If it comes in at Galveston, or just to the west - I don't want to imagine what is going to happen to us here, and to all the people south of here. <br><br>And I can't leave. I've got this shelter set up and have to be here. People from Galveston are already on their way tomorrow. This man called this evening, in tears. He has a brother in a wheel chair, a wife, and an 8 year old daughter. They live near Galveston in a mobile home. I told him we'd help. And now I'm worried that this isn't going to be safe, either. My kids are scared and want to leave - maybe I should send them away to get them safe. <br><br>I keep going into these moments where I convince myself I'm just being panicky because of all the work I've been doing and because I went to Louisiana and saw how awful it is there. I keep thinking - it's going to be like that here. And I try to tell myself I'm over reacting. But then I see how big this hurricane is getting and how quickly it is strengthening and I feel sick to my stomach. <br><br>I know I said this in the first post, but I don't know how much longer I can keep going here at the pace I've been - and there is no end in sight. Three days before landfall and I don't know how I'm going to get through this. I need help here. <p></p><i></i>

[professorpan]

It's now Category 4.<br><br>Please take care. <p></p><i></i>

[DrDebugDU]

Try to send them to family members or friends far away. As far as yourself goes, get plenty of food and water to last a week, because that'll be the biggest obstacle. I wish you lots of luck, but don't take risks for your children. <p></p><i></i>

[AnnaLivia]

GDN01<br><br>i've just checked the atlas. i think i could drive Des Moines to Dallas in less than 24 hours. are your kids old enough to ride a bus that far without you? is there an adult who would come with them? if you want, i will drive there and get them, and take them to a motel if it's possible to get a room, or i would bring them up here, even. or take them wherever you say. i can stay with them until it's all past. whatever it takes. you just say the word. if there's more people than just your kids, fine. with the seats out of my van, we'd be illegal for no seat belts, but i could hold 15 people, pretty sure. and/or if cash is what would help, i can scrounge up a little of that, too. you are not alone. you just say the word, and i'll make this happen. <p></p><i></i>

[somebody]

Go to Houston at the very least. That's about an hour from you. Please<br>Or go 3 hours to San Antonio! That's my area. And we are still expecting high winds & rain. It's a Cat. 4 now, and the experts know this will probably be big. Unless you are well inside the Houston area, you're going to get hit. Don't even hunker down! <br><br>Can the Red Cross give these other folks shelter somewhere, if you all can't travel? <p></p><i></i>

[Sweejak]

I'd offer my place outside of Austin, I still can but arrangements would have to be made very soon.<br>I was planning to fly out of Houston for the DC demos. Needless to say I've changed routes. <p></p><i></i>

[AnnaLivia]

i'm going to keep this bumped, hoping to hear from you, GDN01. i have PM'd you my email and phone. my kids' dad has gone to gas up the van for me already. i'll load water and food on my way out of town. i have a cellphone so if possible, your kids could stay in touch with you. i'd be alone, so can't take any babies unless other adult comes along. shy of that, anything is possible. <p></p><i></i>

[somebody]

GDN01.... speaking as a mom.... DO NOT get seperated from your children! They need you. And they are already scared. Please do not put yourselves at risk. Find, find, find, another way to get the people you are trying to help to safety. Schools always open up shelters somewhere.... that may work. But you need to leave the area. And we both know what the traffic gets like, so you need to decide soon, if you haven't already.<br>But please, for your childrens protection.... stay with them! It's not worth the risk. Please let us know how you're doing if you can. <p></p><i></i>

[GDN01]

Thank you Anna - it is so kind of you to make such an offer. I just got off the phone with a friend in Dallas and she is coming to get my kids and take them back there. <br><br>I am telling people who are now calling for shelter that we will help them if they can't get further north, but they should try to go north and west. This will help reduce the stress of caring for others when we don't even know how we will care for ourselves. I've got contacts further north that I'm working with to send people their way. We are still two days out - we should be able to get people out of here. <br><br> <p></p><i></i>

[GDN01]

Somebody - my kids are teen-agers and I know this person well, as do my kids.<br><br>I would not send them to a shelter or want to get separated from them like what happened in the aftermath of Katrina with families. And I'm sending them far enough north that they will not go through the scariness of the storm. <br><br>When it is your job to help out in disasters, you can't leave when a disaster strikes. The agency I work for is supposed to help in these situations which is why we are taking people in for shelter and trying to provide help for the people who are calling, asking for it. I can't leave. This is my work. We may have extensive damage here - I am just north of Houston, but it won't be as bad as the area south of Houston, and some people can't get any further north than here. We have to help them. <br> <p></p><i></i>