Katrina Spawns “Homesteaders”
How many weeks has it been now since Katrina came close to destroying New Orleans? From the Seattle PI, After Katrina, living on the second floor, Dr. Joe Thompson
…focused on the half of his house left intact by Hurricane Katrina: High above the floodwater, the craftsman-style house’s second story had survived the storm unscathed.[…]
Tired of hotels and imposing on relatives, families are returning to their partially destroyed dwellings, taking refuge above the warped wood and stripped wallboard and cocooning themselves in a world of familiarity - even if only one half of it survived.
They have no electricity or hot water, many cook outside and use the hose to wash dishes, but at night you can see candles fickering in a window and flashlights moving in the upstairs’ windows. These are the “homesteaders”
Lynn and Bobby Shirer live on the second floor where it is cozy and it is home!
Come morning, the couple pads down the spiral staircase and re-enters the world of destruction they’re trying to patch: Walls are stripped to the studs on the bottom floor of the elegant Georgian. The wood floors, bloated with floodwater, have been ripped out. Like a burial shroud, a blue tarp covers their ruined furniture.
We’ve had Northwest storms in the winter that leave us without electricity for brief days or at most a week, but to go for weeks…I can’t imagine the hardship!
Katrina Spawns “Homesteaders”
Katrina Spawns “Homesteaders”