Bleak.
Really, "bleak" is the only word that comes to mind-- to describe the situation in the Gulf States, to describe my emotions.
Much like the week of September 11th, 2001, I can't stop watching the news. Since Sunday, I've been obsessed with Hurricane Katrina. I stayed up until 4:00 am watching coverage of the coming storm, slept restlessly, turned on the television at 9:00 Monday morning, and I don't feel like I've stopped watching since.
This morning, I watched CNN as I got ready for my weekly trip to Auburn. Rolling across the bottom of the screen on the ticker, it said "Lake Pontchartrain Levee suffers two breaches in New Orleans." And my heart sank. Compared to the devastation in cities like Gulfport, Biloxi, and Mobile, New Orleans had been the one bright spot in the news. Compared to the Mississippi Gulf and "LA" (Lower Alabama), it looked like the "Big Easy" had dodged a bullet.
As long as the levees held.
The rest of the morning, I flipped channels between CNN, MSNBC, and (ugh) Fox News, waiting to hear more about the levees. But there was nothing. Nothing? This was seriously big news... and nothing. Of course, the fact that there's no power, no phones, no nuthin' in New Orleans means the news cycle there is moving pretty slowly.
When I got back from Auburn, I finally saw the news. The bullet that New Orleans had dodged was actually a boomerang. The levee broke. And, at least for now, there's no fixing it.
I guess "bleak" isn't the only word I can use. "Helpless" is pretty close, too.
American Red Cross Hurricane Relief Website
Salvation Army National Headquarters Website
Really, "bleak" is the only word that comes to mind-- to describe the situation in the Gulf States, to describe my emotions.
Much like the week of September 11th, 2001, I can't stop watching the news. Since Sunday, I've been obsessed with Hurricane Katrina. I stayed up until 4:00 am watching coverage of the coming storm, slept restlessly, turned on the television at 9:00 Monday morning, and I don't feel like I've stopped watching since.
This morning, I watched CNN as I got ready for my weekly trip to Auburn. Rolling across the bottom of the screen on the ticker, it said "Lake Pontchartrain Levee suffers two breaches in New Orleans." And my heart sank. Compared to the devastation in cities like Gulfport, Biloxi, and Mobile, New Orleans had been the one bright spot in the news. Compared to the Mississippi Gulf and "LA" (Lower Alabama), it looked like the "Big Easy" had dodged a bullet.
As long as the levees held.
The rest of the morning, I flipped channels between CNN, MSNBC, and (ugh) Fox News, waiting to hear more about the levees. But there was nothing. Nothing? This was seriously big news... and nothing. Of course, the fact that there's no power, no phones, no nuthin' in New Orleans means the news cycle there is moving pretty slowly.
When I got back from Auburn, I finally saw the news. The bullet that New Orleans had dodged was actually a boomerang. The levee broke. And, at least for now, there's no fixing it.
I guess "bleak" isn't the only word I can use. "Helpless" is pretty close, too.
American Red Cross Hurricane Relief Website
Salvation Army National Headquarters Website
Labels: news to me
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