Refugees from NOLA have traveled as far as Dallas to find motel rooms.
I talked to my Mississippi friend who lost everything. As I look around my house, everything is a hard concept for me to really comprehend. He told me that, as far as the eye can see, there are only concrete slabs in his area. No houses and no trees. He found that his flood insurance is really through FEMA and they won't be doing anything for a couple of months. Their immediate goal is to erect a tent city. He is going to take his family to Beaumont, Texas where he has relatives. The children will enroll in school there. He is a Programmer for a Defense Company so figures he will keep his job. Most likely they will delay the project and maybe move it and relocate him. Others aren't so lucky. A story on this mornings Yahoo Finance reports that entire communities have no jobs.
BTW, my brother is a "Storm Boss" with an insurance adjusting company. He is currently working in South Florida. He says it will be about a month before they can really get rolling on the outskirts of this storm. To do their job, they must have gasoline, power and water, food availability, internet connectivity, and a place to stay. In other words, there must be some sort of viable infrastructure which doesn't currently exist. Remember, they can't do the flood damage. That takes FEMA. On Hurricane Andrew, he was gone to Florida for 8 months and all of his crew worked 14 hour days for the entire time. This one should keep him working for a couple of years away from home.
He also said that every scam artist in the country is on their way to the storm area. It always happens. Right now, bogus telephone boiler rooms, both in the US and abroad, are being set up to solicit money. Be very careful. Donate to the Red Cross, Salvation Army and other known charities. Donate blood. The parasites will also be milking the tragedy.
We also haven't seen the other coming problem. Pestilence will follow.
Dave
