Ike and the Texas Coast

[Mark Sedenquist]

I understand the mechanics of "flotation" -- Still, I am sorry for the loss or your friend.

Mark

[Mark Sedenquist]

Aaron's Blog: Today is Sept. 23, and I'm back home in Austin. Time to clean gear, get a tetanus shot, rest-up for whatever is next. Anahuac briefly had electricity today before it flickered off again. Some of the game wardens and other first-responders are getting a well-deserved break. I'll be adding to and reorganizing this site for the next week or so. At some point I'll shut it down and allow it to stand as a documentary record of Hurricane Ike's impact on one small section of the upper Texas Gulf coast. For some more extraordinary photos and a great shot of Aaron man-handling a baby alligator, click here.

[Southwest Dave]

I bet that little gator was a welcome distraction from the devastation surrounding him, just for a few moments.

The picture of the little pair of shoes, sitting there perfectly really brings a message home for me. :-(

[lhuff]

We went down to Galveston yesterday to check on my Aunt's house. By a complete miracle her entire block was intact and there was only minimal damage and no flooding. The rest of the island looks terrible, though and most of her friends have lost their houses.

Here's a link to the pictures I took.

[PNW Judy]

I don't know if your aunt should be lottery tickets because she's one of the luckiest people on earth, or if she's used up all her luck for the rest of her live. I'm happy her house was spared but, man, was a loss everywhere else.

Thanks for sharing.

[Mark Sedenquist]

Aaron will be providing more information on this blog -- but wildlife officials found a tiger and an African lion wandering in the swamp -- they were pets -- unclear if their humans survived.

Other news is coming out -- but I will leave that to Aaron's discretion. Again, we hope that all personnel in the area continue to be safe.

Very good news about Laura's family -- new photos of more devastation in Galveston in the blog linked above.

Mark

[Mark Sedenquist]

Aaron will be back out in the swamps looking for bodies again this weekend. More news and some insightful considerations can be read in Aaron's blog.

And if you have time -- read Aaron's accounting of his Sept 15th day. Very riveting stuff!

Mark

[PNW Judy]

What a provocative article. How sad that dollars have pushed lives to the back pages.