Hurricane Harvey - August 2017

[Hope4More]

Thank you so much for being in close contact with geevee, Hope4. Every day, more stress and anxiety is added into everyone. All I can do is pray for them all to be safe, even if there is horrific loss of property. This is so overwhelming and nearly incomprehensible to those who have never encountered anything remotely like this.

I have a feeling that everyone here wishes they could do something, anything, to help folks there right now who are going through what I agree is incomprehensible to most of us, myself included on both counts.

 

[Bravo]

:grouphug: raying:

 

[oceanblueeyes]

Bridge just collapsed

I have worried the entire time hoping dams wouldn't become breached, and bridges collapsing, but I knew deep down in my heart this would most likely happen. Both things happened to us when we had our own 500 year flood and this will probably windup being a 1000 year flood or more.

The longer the water stays on the ground the more unstable roadways, dams, levees,large trees, and bridges will become.

I posted early that the recovery from this nightmare will take over a decade to fully recover like it did in some areas that were hit in our area. But now, I believe it may take 10-15 years. So much of the landscaping will forever change. I imagine like in our area homes which are destroyed but still standing will remain that way for quite awhile before they are all either rebuilt or destroyed

There is also a very good chance in certain areas the soil will become contaminated from all of the toxins seeping way down into the ground where people get their water from whether it is from a septic system or from a water supplied from the city/county.

Has anyone heard how the waste management sites are holding up? If they become comprised, and unable to pump or flooded or lose power then more raw sewage will pour into the rivers, and other waterways and then into all affected areas. There are so many factors at play here that could make this horrible disaster even worse in the coming days, months, and years.

God help all who struggle in this area. They are living the worst nightmare imaginable and its far from being over. All of the 15 trillion gallons of rainfall from all of these hard hit areas all has to come south before it finally flows back into the Gulf. Every river, lake, bayou, creek, retention pond, and dam that are out of their banks..or will be... up above the area first hit by Harvey will come down again to towns that were first hit by the hurricane to flood again. That is what happened to us. We were saturated by heavy downpours for over a week but so were many counties up above ours. Once the floodwater from those areas began to come down winding up in the Flint River here it made the flooding far worse. The Flint River bridge which is a very high bridge became submerged, and another bridge going over the Flint collapsed, and was never rebuilt. In our flood area we lost around 67 citizens and most were due to roads giving away or bridges collapsing, and they were swept away in the raging floodwaters even though the first responders were telling everyone to say off the roads, and bridges. We had over 200 coffins floating in the Flint River.

This one is just the most horrific natural disaster I have ever seen, and every day my heart breaks more, and more for our dear friends in Texas.

God be with them all.

 

[oceanblueeyes]

That is very impressive in terms of number of paragraphs.

i have watched live nonstop since he landfilled

This was 5 days ago

I have not seen ONE not ONE not ONE army navy whatever anything.

I have not seen one person in a military outfit

I have not seen ONE army navy vehicle.

not one
nothing

I have not heard the roar , in the skies above, of transport planes hauling tons of stuff in

I have not seen one Fema person I have heard from the FEMA guy 2 times in the first day

thats it

nothing

I have seen rain soaked exhausted private boat owners rescuing people .

I have seen private pick up trunk s

I have seen private company dump trucks hauling people out

i saw a front loader loading people

I have seen private company furniture trucks hauling people back and forth/

I have seen private jet skiers.

I have seen canoes

I have seen citizens using thier air mattresses to get out

I have seen families wading for hours in the water to get out with a garbage bag

I have seen infants being held in mommies arms as she wades through 4 feet of water

I have seen private citizens using their Kayiks.

I have seen private flat bottom boats

I have seen private ski boats.

I saw coast guard helicopters the first day. Not since

We have two dams in peril. Bridges are collapsing a levee just collapsed

I have seen many articles and videos of them working their butts off. Maybe some channels aren't covering it for some strange reason, and are just covering the private citizens who are helping along with just showing the reporters in the area. But they certainly are there and all a very active and many have been from the very beginning. I saw 7 huge H-60 Navy helicopters who are there rescuing many of those who are stranded.

 

[oceanblueeyes]

The media is not explaining this right and it is gonna cause huge problems.

They are making it sound like the areas around the dams are going to tsunami .

WIth that model in peoples heads it make us think only the areas they are mentioning are in trouble .

It is a cascade its not like this big swish - yet- but it really reduces flee time everywhere not directly around the dam

They need to clear up the misperceptions tho . When the sun comes out the way it being portrayed on the media is going to deaths.

Rain is irrelevant now (not really but you know what I mean) - if you live in *advertiser censored* in five days (despite 5 days of sunshine) your house will be destroyed water flows downward toward the gulf.

It is gonna be a lava flow (moving) not "filling" up

Am I making sense??

I am not sure it will be at a slow pace like lava flow. If any of the dams are breached and cant hold the water back any longer it will spill out at a much faster pace since water is so heavy, and has so much force behind it.

 

[EuTuCroquet?]

CBS News via MSN

Biggest health threats from Harvey flooding

[FONT=&amp]While cholera is far more common in third-word countries, Glatter says the possibility of it occurring in Texas "wouldn't be impossible."[/FONT][FONT=&amp]"These types of bacteria can live in mixtures of murky water," he said. "It's possible to have this type of infection, especially if the water supply becomes contaminated."
[/FONT]
[FONT=&amp]Other infectious diseases that can be passed through floodwater include hepatitis A, typhoid fever, and Leptospirosis, a bacterial infection that can cause muscle aches, vomiting, abdominal pain, and diarrhea.

[/FONT]<snip>

[FONT=&amp]If your house becomes flooded during the storm, Glatter says, carpeting and fabric-based furniture should not be salvaged.
[/FONT]
[FONT=&amp]"Bacteria can leach onto fabrics and lead to airborne infections," he said. "I would not recommend holding onto anything with fabric that absorbs floodwater."
[/FONT]
[FONT=&amp]Hard surfaces that have come in contact with floodwater, including walls, floors, stoves, and countertops should be thoroughly disinfected. Wearing rubber boots and gloves while cleaning homes is important to reduce risk of infection.
[/FONT]
[FONT=&amp]Mold is also common after heavy flooding and can exacerbate asthma, allergies, or other respiratory diseases like COPD. Mold can appear in as little as 24 to 48 hours after floodwater recedes.
[/FONT]
[FONT=&amp]"Don't touch it. Wear rubber gloves, wear a mask," Glatter said. "Try not to remain in any dwelling where there's mold."[/FONT]

 

[CARIIS]

I've been scared, first for our friend Geevee, but as I'm learning (including from you, thanks) and reading more, I think many folks aren't aware of how long term and how catastrophic structural damage is going to be. What structure is built to survive a once in 1,000 year event?

49 inches is prelim total

As i ruminate I cant help but think air drops

Just big giant planes dropping life all over the place!

Every river (weather man) downstream shall hit records over the next couple of months

 

[oceanblueeyes]

US military stands ready to assist Texas, if requested
Barbara Starr-Profile-Image
By Barbara Starr and Ryan Browne, CNN
Updated 3:47 PM ET, Mon August 28, 2017

The Defense Department had not received any official requests for help from Texas as of midday Monday, but is still identifying resources that could be used, the sources said. Officials say a request for assistance could come at any moment.

[video]http://www.cnn.com/2017/08/28/politics/hurricane-harvey-pentagon/index.html[/video]

I have already seen them there and working. The Coast Guard has already rescued a lot of people stranded out to sea and the Navy is there with their H-60 helicopters which have the capacity of rescuing over 55 people at one time.

They can only assist and must be asked to do so by the state officials.

IMO

 

[scmom]

I have already seen them there and working. The Coast Guard has already rescued a lot of people stranded out to sea and the Navy is there with their H-60 helicopters which have the capacity of rescuing over 55 people at one time.

They can only assist and must be asked to do so by the state officials.

IMO

Great news.

 

[CARIIS]

Ah ha

I could never understand with the dams while they kept saying they were really worried downstream shipping lanes :

During flooding in 1994 caused by about 20 inches (50 centimeters) of rain in the Houston area, eight pipelines broke across the San Jacinto basin, spilling almost 1.5 million gallons of oil and petroleum products. The National Transportation Safety Board says more than 500 people suffered injuries, mostly minor burns, when fuel from those pipeline breaks ignited.


Hundreds of petrochemical industry pipelines crisscross Houston and southeast Texas, carrying crude oil, highly flammable fuels such as gasoline, and explosive natural gas.

https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/louisiana/articles/2017-08-29/the-latest-heavy-rains-present-risk-to-houston-pipelines

 

[CARIIS]

Ugh this poor guy stuck in his truck for a long time finally decided to get out water moving to fast he is now stuck in the middle holding onto a post in the highway ugh

 

[CARIIS]

yeh!

the power company men found out about him and driving toward him now in this huge ugly machine !!!

 

[Plombage]

,w,

Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk

 

[CARIIS]

yeh first nationial guard helicopter I have seen !!! Yea! There going after pole guy

for some reason the big ugly thing could not go over to him?

i don't know where anything is but the location they are at is got a lot of water but it is moving really fast. it is an expressway

I have not seen moving expressway water? Its been standing so is this going mean as stuff starts draining they are all gonna start rushing that's really hard to escape in waist high water moving against you

 

[Bootsctr]

CARIIS, thank you for being so faithful in posting! You've lived it, so it means a lot that you're here!

 

[MelmothTheLost]

Houston top cop worried ‘how many bodies’ will be found

Houston — Crews overwhelmed by thousands of rescue calls during one of the heaviest downpours in U.S. history have had little time to search for other potential victims, but officials acknowledge the grim reality that fatalities linked to Harvey could soar once the devastating floodwaters recede from one of America’s most sprawling metropolitan centers.

If I've missed an announcement, apologies, but I suspect the name Harvey is going to be retired.

 

[Bootsctr]

I have seen many articles and videos of them working their butts off. Maybe some channels aren't covering it for some strange reason, and are just covering the private citizens who are helping along with just showing the reporters in the area. But they certainly are there and all a very active and many have been from the very beginning. I saw 7 huge H-60 Navy helicopters who are there rescuing many of those who are stranded.

Ocean Blue Eyes, your insight is invaluable! From your first post here on this thread, I think you hit the nail on the head in regards to what Texas will be undergoing in the coming days, weeks, months and years!

 

[Bootsctr]

Bravo, I loved your conversation you had with your mother-in-law! Made me laugh out loud! Something I really needed after watching this tragedy unfold. She's a sweetheart!

 

[Bravo]

Bravo, I loved your conversation you had with your mother-in-law! Made me laugh out loud! Something I really needed after watching this tragedy unfold. She's a sweetheart!

Awww thanks. She really is a gem. Yes we gotta find something in the face of such tragedy.

 

[Bootsctr]

If I've missed an announcement, apologies, but I suspect the name Harvey is going to be retired.

I hope so! He will long be remembered for sure!