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Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina -- Your Thoughts, Messages and Stories Blog
by Special Editorial
Tuesday September 20, 2005
Hurricane Katrina
I lived in Biloxi, MS on the Tchoutacabouffa River (pronounced Choo-ta-ca-buff) and unfortunately decided to stay after consulting with neighbors who were there during Camille, and said the water only got to their back doors. Since I lived in a 2-story house, i thought, "no problem, I'll just go upstairs with my icechest, radio, flashlight, Bible and cats and ride it out." Big Mistake! I slept on and off during Sunday night, while watching the local news, and by the time the power went out and the sun came up I knew I was in deep trouble. The water was fast approaching from the river, so I went upstairs with all my provisions. About 7 A.M., the wind started getting really loud, like a Jet engine, so I got in my walk-in closet with my bible and a flashlight, and kinda dozed off again (from sheer exhaustion). I was awakened by the feeling of water bumping the floor, and I knew the upstairs was fixing to flood. I had just enough time to throw 2 of my cats into the attic, and since we had spanish tile on the roof, I decided not to join them since I knew I couldn't punch a hole through that. I threw my other cat into a carrier and by this time the water was up to my thighs, all in a matter of minutes. I crawled out my bathroom window, and stood on a couch on the upper deck until it started to float, then it was time to get on the roof. By this time the wind was howling, and so was my cat, who had already peed all over himself. Through my fear I felt enormous guilt for staying and subjecting them to this. This was about 9:10 a.m. and I stayed by the chimney until the water started coming up the roof, which is about 30 ft.
The river had turned into the ocean, with waves, whitecaps and all. It was terrifying. I was praying the whole time, and the only thing I had thought to grab on my way out was a wooden Rosary that I had brought back from Venezuela. It was around my neck, and I just kept asking God to send a Hedge of Protection around me and my cats and Guardian Angels to protect me. I realized that if the water went over the roof I would probably drown as the current would have swept me away. I saw my pool house floating on the other end of the roof by two enormous trees that were now sheared off that used to provide shade over the back porch and pool. I slowly made my way across the roof and onto the pool house, all the time hanging on to my cat in his carrier (which I had to periodically dump the water out of, so he didn't drown). I sat on the poolhouse and hung onto a tree branch to keep from floating away with the cat carrier between my thighs, hanging on for dear life. All of a sudden, a bunch of roaches and spiders started crawling all over me, looking for higher ground, and I started freaking out. I kept trying to slap them off, and after a while I just had to send my mind to a different place, because if I didn't I would have ended up doing something stupid, like jumping in the water.
Eventually the pool house started sinking, and this is where I almost died. I managed to get my cat back up on the roof, wedged behind one of those trees, but since the poolhouse was sinking, I couldn't get any purchase to push off of, and I finally had to get in the water and climb one of the half-sheared off trees, and the current was really, really strong, and the gusts of wind had to have been well above 120 miles by this time. I just barely managed to get back on the roof, and haul me and the cat to the other side, where i got on the steepest part with my back to the eaves, and just started praying and freaking out again. I asked God for forgiveness of my sins and to please take my cats quick. I really did not think I was going to make it, and kept praying for the guardian Angels, and this is when the wet Nutria showed up. ( A Nutria is a HUGE Swamp Rat) so I suppose God does have a sense of humor, and I told him if that's what he was sending to look over me, I was taking it. Mind you, all this time my cat was howling and yowling for his very soul, done messed himself by this point, and I couldn't do a damm thing about it. All of a sudden, I heard this voice in my head that said "Be calm, my child, help is on the way" and I KNEW, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that it was God speaking to me, and a certain sense of peace came over me and I knew I was going to make it. About 15-30 minutes later, my neighbors came and rescued me in their boat. They had seen me on the roof in my bright orange rain jacket. I lost everything I owned, my car, except for my life, and my cats, and my family, and those are the most important things of all. Thanks to Dan and John O'Conner, my Heros forever. And to Dan's lovely wife Sarah, for taking me in for the following days and helping me not to lose my mind. Cathy Jenkins
Tuesday September 20, 2005 | # | comments (0)