The August Flood of 2016

[cajunhawk]

Don't ever want to repeat that. Spent 10 fun filled days in a motel in Pine Bluff, Ark on the vacation from hell. Don't ever want to see that place again and I don't recommend anybody going there because there is really nothing there. Highlight of the trip was going to the local Walmart at 2am and waiting while they unloaded trucks to see if there were any gas cans on it to buy to bring back home when we finally got to go home.

And, after we got home, spent about a week on the camping trip from hell at home with no electricity.

And top that all off, it royally screwed up the 2005 football season. Thanks to the Cajuns for the use of your stadium for the SFA game that year.

Doc

When I started working in Jennings in early 2007, they all spoke about Rita as if it was a complete nightmare. My first trip down to Lake Arthur there was still debris from the storm. Knock on wood. Storms can stay away.

[CajunJack55]

Because of Hurricane Rita, I transferred from McNeese to UL. That storm was the best thing to ever happen to me

[scotto_25]

When I started working in Jennings in early 2007, they all spoke about Rita as if it was a complete nightmare. My first trip down to Lake Arthur there was still debris from the storm. Knock on wood. Storms can stay away.

Same for me. I was transferred to our Lake Charles location back in 2007. The devastation in Cameron was unreal. It was tough sledding out there for a while. Thank goodness I transferred back in 2008.

[RaisingCajun08]

Geeze Doc, I remember how awful Rita was for you guys... I wish you nothing but the best!

Z

I think Rita might have been more destructive than Katrina. Difference, people in Cameron Parish go out and took care of their business instead of waiting for the government to help them out.

[Cajun90]

I think Rita might have been more destructive than Katrina. Difference, people in Cameron Parish go out and took care of their business instead of waiting for the government to help them out.

I hear what you are saying and I have family in Cameron (including those in the office of emergency preparedness) but it definitely wasn't worse than Katrina. While New Orleans got all of the attention there was massive damage to the East of New Orleans. Ask those in areas like Waveland Mississippi how bad it was.

Two major differences. Katrina hit some major population areas while Rita hit some much less populated areas. Katrina was also a massive storm both in wind profile and storm surge in comparison to Rita.

If Katrina hadn't made landfall I believe Rita would have been pretty notorious but Katrina was like dropping an atomic bomb. Rita was just a major carpet bombing.

[CajunDreDog]

We good.
https://icons.wunderground.com/data/...9_ensmodel.gif

[Turbine]

It's raining in Abbeville.

[HelmutVII]

I hear what you are saying and I have family in Cameron (including those in the office of emergency preparedness) but it definitely wasn't worse than Katrina. While New Orleans got all of the attention there was massive damage to the East of New Orleans. Ask those in areas like Waveland Mississippi how bad it was.

Two major differences. Katrina hit some major population areas while Rita hit some much less populated areas. Katrina was also a massive storm both in wind profile and storm surge in comparison to Rita.

If Katrina hadn't made landfall I believe Rita would have been pretty notorious but Katrina was like dropping an atomic bomb. Rita was just a major carpet bombing.

I had to make an inspection of some facilities down in Venice after Katrina. We flew down on a float plane. We told our pilot that we needed to go to the BJ Services dock. Our pilot couldn't recognize where the dock was even though he had flown to Venice many times. We circled around a few times and eventually found it. Before we landed he flew about 5 feet off of the surface to see if there was anything submerged in the water (It was his first flight since the hurricane). He said he felt he could land safely as we didn't see anything submerged for us to hit and wind up doing cartwheels in a plane.

After we landed at the dock the first building we looked at had a warehouse/shop area at one end and an office at the other with living quarters on the second level above the office. The end of the building with the warehouse was peeled open like a sardine can (Literally). The only section with a roof on it was that part of the building with the office living quarters. The water level from the storm surge came to within about 2" of the second level.

We then went to look at another building that was supported off the ground about 10 feet with 8 steel columns. Of the 8 columns only 2 were in decent shape the others were bent or broken and the building was wracked and leaning to one side. I told them to get anything they wanted out of that building and demolish it. The building wasn't worth saving.

After we were finished we took off and flew over Grand Isle. Have only two things to say, one - the land you see when you look at a map is generous and two - anybody that stays down there during a hurricane is flat out nuts.

We had to build some living quarters and some cement silos in Cameron after Rita. I went down there after the first of the year (about 3 months after the storm) to check on the job. It was complete devastation. When I was there that day a supply boat came in to pick up supplies. The guys working down there were so happy to get on the boat and take a shower and get some hot food. When we finished the Living quarters a few weeks later, it was the only livable permanent structure in Cameron at that time.

The thing that I remember the most at both locations was the smell. It was a combination of death and rot. The Vermilion smells bad now as I am sure most major waterways do. Mostly due to oxygen depletion and the water becoming anaerobic.

[McNeese72]

I hear what you are saying and I have family in Cameron (including those in the office of emergency preparedness) but it definitely wasn't worse than Katrina. While New Orleans got all of the attention there was massive damage to the East of New Orleans. Ask those in areas like Waveland Mississippi how bad it was.

Two major differences. Katrina hit some major population areas while Rita hit some much less populated areas. Katrina was also a massive storm both in wind profile and storm surge in comparison to Rita.

If Katrina hadn't made landfall I believe Rita would have been pretty notorious but Katrina was like dropping an atomic bomb. Rita was just a major carpet bombing.

Actually, if you look at the meterological data both Katrina and Rita were close in strength. Both intense Class 5's while in the Gulf. The main difference was that Katrina hit more populated areas and got all the media attention. Most of the loss of life in New Orleans was from flooding that happened after Katrina had already passed. There were areas in Mississippi that got totally wiped out. Similar to what happened in Cameron Parish. I heard of people going back to Cameron Parish and not even able to find where their houses were. The concrete slabs were no longer even there.

http://www.hurricanescience.org/hist...ms/2000s/rita/

Doc

[HelmutVII]

8

Actually, if you look at the meterological data both Katrina and Rita were close in strength. Both intense Class 5's while in the Gulf. The main difference was that Katrina hit more populated areas and got all the media attention. Most of the loss of life in New Orleans was from flooding that happened after Katrina had already passed. There were areas in Mississippi that got totally wiped out. Similar to what happened in Cameron Parish. I heard of people going back to Cameron Parish and not even able to find where their houses were. The concrete slabs were no longer even there.

http://www.hurricanescience.org/hist...ms/2000s/rita/

Doc

They found that in Florida after Andrew. That lead to FEMA requiring latitude and longitude on all Flood Elevation certificates not long after that. Previously they had an address but if the houses were gone there was no way to tell where you were.

[NewsCopy]

Three weeks later, some Lafayette Parish residents still flooded

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KATC

[NewsCopy]

Officials: Heymann Center shelter to close Friday

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KATC