Katrina beat us up, but we are alive

[FanTC]

I typed this hastily upon arriving in Missouri.
Not alot has changed since.

The night before the storm, we sat watching and waiting on the storm and powr outages that we coastians tend to get occasionally.
I sat there smoking dope and mentally strenthening myself for the typical evacuation, followed by a day or 2 of no power. I was talking on ICQ to karla and hermit and Lowry and readying myself and stood sure that we would ride it out at home, as our place was stucco and block and had stood Camille in 69 and prolly many before and after her wrath.
Well, as Katrina drew closer the evac orders were more and more stern and I watched as the bitch got bigger and badder, yet still was only going to graze us. Steve called and said that his girlfriends dad had demanded that we come up to the country to ride it with them. I declined the offer, believing that we'd be fine, yet changed my mind when the storm drew closer, fearing the damage we'd sustain from the massive trees that grew in our yard. I called back and my friend had decided to pull his invite, but I told him I was coming up there and if it was a problem I'd just make him the first pre storm casualty..
We left a couple of hours before the deadline to get out, driving the 20 or so miles north into the boonies in 50 -60 mph winds, trees and stuff beginning to fly thru the air.
That night we waited on the storm sitting out on the porch and smoking dope as we watched the winds increase and the proverbial shit hit the fan.
The winds had kicked up to about 120 or so and I talked briefly on the phone, assured that everything was gonna be just hunky friggin dory.
Several bowls later, the storm tore us up out there too, killing power and we watched trees snapping and dropping around us until things slacked off many hours later.
The old man whose house we were at headed outside with the wind still cranking about 70 and started gathering up pieces of his roof...mainly the crown molding from the roof and told me to grab a ladder. In the killer winds, the old man and I climbed up on the roof and patched it as we were being blown like theres no tomorrow and pelted with horizontal rain. I was blown off the roof twice, but we got the thing patched and stopped the flood in the kitchen.
Several hours later, the storm was over to our knowledge and the country folks were out starting to clear trees and shit off roads to make travel easier, or rather possible. The old man and I rode to Gulfport to find his son that was MIA. We got to his neighborhood and the sheer devestation there and the whole route to the area simply floored me. That was when the tears began.
We found people wandering the streets, wading water, and looking terribly lost and confused and tried to get info from them, but the shock had set in and everyone was quite numbed.
We got to the old mans sons house after hiking miles thru fallen trees and power lines and passed many bodies on the roads in ditches and some in trees and scattered body parts littering the area too. The house was totalled, mud and water filling every room, and no signs of life anywhere. The old man nearly lost his mind right there but said we were going to prowl around and hunt other places. As we headed back to his truck we came upon a house that had been simply shifted off it's foundation and moved about 50 feet down the road. That's when the stench hit...that unforgettable smell of death.
There was an old man and other people trying to get in the shifted house so we stopped to assist them in any way we could. They were looking for the old ladies that lived in the house. After a half hour I was able to squeeze thru a busted window and pull one out. She had apparently drowned in the flood waters. We helped get her body out and in a decent spot to await the crews collecting the dead.
That night we slept in the heat, 98 degrees with 100% humidity and zero circulation of air. The old guy had a gas grill and pulled out a roast and sliced it to grill meat to eat with the crackers we had. The gas ran out before cooking was complete, blood ran out the side of my mouth as I ate. I ignored it and chewed it the best I could, that was the first food I had had in the two days we had been out there, and I was starving.
Shortly before sundown, Carol and I and Sugar and Itty loaded up and tried to get back home to survey damages at our house. We made the 20 mile or so trip in a matter of a couple of hours, winding off the road to avoid the trees and poles and power lines and general debris.
In Long Beach, we noticed that every crossing over the railroad tracks was guarded by police. I stopped to ask if we could go check our house and was informed that the police had no say, that the entire coast was under martial law and total control of the US military. Choppers and military transports roared through the sky and down what roads were passable, so we rode around a while looking at what was once the most glorious place on the planet to live....now in total devestation!

[FanTC]

We drove along railroad street east and west just along the tracks and looked south down the roads, where you would normally see the waters of the gulf of mexico at the ends, now all that could be seen was rubble.
I saw several roads that had boxcars from trains sitting across the roads and atop homes... further down, I saw a barge resting atop an entire block of homes.
The smell of death and rotten flesh filled the air, as 40 tons of chicken had scattered across a few miles of Gulfport, mixing with the smell of death and natural gas leaks,A million pounds of shrimp had been spilled too. The stench burned through everything, stinging my eyes that still poured tears as they had for a couple of days.
I saw a friend I had lived next door to a year or so ago and stopped to check on him. He told his tale of stepping out of his apartment into water chin deep and watching his car float away. He had been forced to swim to the nearest main road fom his apartment and then a few blocks north to the tracks and higher ground. Within 15 minutes of his evacuation, the apartments were crushed by the surge, killing 19 other folks that had stayed there.We made sure he had a place to stay and moved on, running across many other friends that had lost everything too, and were camping in yards along the roadway. I tried to cross the tracks and walk the block or 2 to my house and was drawn on by Nat'l Guardsmen with M16s, so I got my ass back out the way. The area south of the tracks was totally off limits as they did body search and search and rescue missions. It seems there were hundreds of dead expected to be found in my neighborhood
We camped in Steves parents yard that night and ate 3 generic ritz crackers and a swallow of water each that night... supplies were pretty well gone. The next day Steve called his parents house and said they had gotten a generator and food etc delivered that night up in the country.
We headed back that way, and had a delicious meal of potted meat and stale crackers again, but got to watch the news on the lil emergency tv. No gas, no food, no water, no ice anywhere within 150 miles. The generator was running low on gas, so Steve and Lisa headed out to go find some-in Florida. They drove north thru Ms, across Ala into Fla, then back. Before leaving, they tried to talk me out of my credit card and all cash to pitch in. I had refused, not planning on being there long and needing everything I had. They returned the next day with 2 bags of crackers and shit and about 25 gallons of gas...which they claimed had cost 900 bux,but I later learned had been given to them by family.The 900 had been spent on their habit. Steve informed me that he'd sell me gas to get out " if the price was right", to which I told him to go fuck himself slowly.
Later in the day the old man "gave" me 2 gallons of gas, bringing our tank up to a quarter... with only 500 miles to go.
I paid the old man 20 bucks for the 2 gallons of gas and we loaded up our cats and crackers and headed north.
We got as far as 40 miles South of Jackson Ms and saw a gas line.hot damn,we'll have gas and food and get to run the AC! right? 4 hours later we learned that not only was there gas, but there was no plan on getting any for a few days or weeks, and the power was still out. We bought a hot gatorade and split it to wash down a cracker or 2 and pulled out heading north, just hoping to get to somewhere safe before we ran out...I had an 1/8th of a tank now, having wasted an 8th to get this far.
About 20 miles down the road we found a station, roughly 20 miles south of Jackson and got in line,at least 2 miles long. A few hours later we got way up close, as the line was gone,there was no power or gas.
I pulled to the side in a parking lot and set up a spot to camp, close to bushes so we could at least potty in private and we began our wait.Some guys pulled in the lot and gave us 4 bottled waters before they left... water that probably saved my cat's lives, as they were dehydrated and getting very sick. The gas wait ended after 15 hours and finally, we had gas and could run the AC.
About 9 or 10 hours later we managed to get here in Missouri, after recieving a call from Linkster offering aid, and still have no clue whats left of our house if anything.
When we left hastily, we grabbed 2 changes of clothes each and the clothes we had on, our towers and monitors, and mice and keyboards and the cats and their food and litter box... that's what we currently know we own, until we can find out more about our house.
I called the police at home and they still have zero say or knowledge of anything, as the military still controls the city. From what we can gather from news and friends that are still down there or evaced elsewhere, we have about a 3% chance of having anything left.
As for now, we are in standby mode trying to decide where we go from here... FEMA isn't doing shit for us, Red Cross has blown us off and every other aid program directs us to them. The only aid we have gotten is through the generosity of the adult webmaster community.
I just know I want to go home. We had a lil stray cat named Bert that I let in the house before we left to keep him from dying in the storm and I'm afraid he might not have made it. Again, I don't know, as we can't get info on our house.
We had just met the people that moved in across the street from us as we were loading up to leave. The man and his wife and 4 kids, several dogs, cats and birds were planning on staying because the shelters refuse to let animals in. I fear for their safety as well.
Over the past couple of days, we learned that Bert the cat was not found in our house, which stood, but suffered extreme water damage. Other than that, we are playing the waiting game for further news about our house etc.


Thank you one and all!

[Erick G]

WOW what a story!
Glad you made it out alive.

[Cleo]

Glad that you made it out alive. Your story sounds absolutely horrific.

[sue-fl]

Damn that was a hell of a story. So sorry you have so much damage to your home. But at least you and your wife are alive and together. Glad to hear you made it and your ok. Take care!

[MrYum]

Wow...what an ordeal

So glad you and yours got out in time. Property can be replaced or repaired...you can't.

[Chop Smith]

Say FanTC, is there anyway to paypal or epassport you a few bucks? Glad you made it.

[karla]

since his ordeal began, i have been working extremely hard on getting donations and assistance for mark (fantc) and carol). his paypal address is fantc@cableone.net. (all dontations will be appreciated and are definitely needed for them to rebuild their shattered lives). he is having difficulty with his epassporte addy, but i will privately give you his westen union information, so you may wire ANY funds you can spare to his location from ANYWHERE in the world. my icq is: 328-598-121. please feel free to contact me, or send him paypal direct.
thank you all! and for those who have already donated, thank you from the bottom of my heart!

[Chop Smith]

TPat and Kinky had sent me money for mine and Bo's little relief effort. I matched their contribution and paypalled it to Mark and Carol.

[FanTC]

I just reread my post and am afraid it may be taken wrong. It was a reply to multiple questions I had been asked and not a solicitation. I had talked to Linkster after the gas incident and told him as soon as we got to high ground and got internet access that I would post here. We appreciate the hell out of the help and are at a point where aid of any kind can't be dismissed, but in no way do I want anyone to regard this post as a solicitation.

Sorry in advance for any misunderstandings.

Chop, Bo, TPat, and Kinky ...I owe you. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts. I owe you guys. I'll do any web work or menial tasks you need in return to show our gratitude. Just name it.

[plateman]

wow I read that all, has anybody thought about his sponsors not making him wait for a payout.. I know it sucks when your not real stong on money and having to wait 2 weeks or a month for money owed from sales.. and maybe someone should contact his host to make sure they dont turn off his stuff.. with karla and chop and tpat and linkster helping I am sure that is taking care of.. thought I'd mention it though...

I dont know fantc but atleast if he is making sales and his epassporte works and there is a money termial close by, that has to be a good thing..

fantc you may have lost everything, but atleast you have your lives... thats all I can say.... hang in there bud..

[binxgook]

FanTC, I dont really know you but I see the devastation that has occured on the t.v. Actually, alot of survivors are being relocated to a area about 20 miles south west of me called Bird Island. People thier are opening thier homes up to who ever needs it. FanTC, I extend an invitiation to you and yours if you need a place, You have one here in Minnesota. I realize its quite a hike but if you need it, it's here. Pm me if I can help in any way.

[Chop Smith]

Originally Posted by FanTC

...in no way do I want anyone to regard this post as a solicitation.

I did not take it as a solicitation. I was the one that asked for your paypal/epassporte addys.

Just get things together and head back south as soon as possible. We have lots of rebuilding to do down this way. If ya'll need a place to stay, you can camp out with me here on the lake (about 130 miles from the Long Beach Marina)

[FanTC]

binxgook- I appreciate the offer. We are currently in Missouri at my cousin's house. News and police reports say that my neighborhood and alot of the coast south of the tracks are going to be fenced off with razor wire for a while, then reopened to us.
http://www.sunherald.com/mld/sunhera...a/12606118.htm
We are actually fortunate in that our house stood. The devestation around our house is unreal, but at least we have a place to go back to eventually. Here is an enlarged aerial photo of my neighborhood, with captions added to mark locations and what was there before Katrina.
Chop should recognize the area, as his boat was at the harbor in the bottom left of the pic.
http://www.portal-to-porn.com/LBAerial.jpg

Thanks again for the offer. Once we get home and get things back to semi normalcy, everyone is invited to my place for a post hurricane festival.

Save your confederate money, the South will Rise Again!

[Maj. Stress]

Mark,
It's nice to see you posting agian. I'm glad that you made a wise choice and got out of the way of the storm (kinda, I don't think 25 miles is far enough but at least you survived). You know how to reach me if you need anything.

[Ramster]

I am so glad you guys are alright. I read about your ordeal from the start when you were trying to survive. Glad to see you posting.

[LowryBigwood]

Hey Fantc,

Glad you got outta there, and it's good to see you posting here. It's very cool of you all offereing assistance to Mark and his wife Carol. I'm sure they could use all the help we can muster, I sent a little bit via paypal when this first went down, and am thinking about maybe putting up some links with Fantc's linking codes in there, and maybe drive a few sales for him for a while.

It would be cool if some of the higher traffic guys here could do the same, a few sales from several people could start adding up his funds pretty quick. A lot of you here have been very generous and caring regarding this situation, but the truth is, more is needed if you can help in anyway.

Thanks everyone, have a good night.