More Destruction

For the rest of the week, we were in what was once a very nice area called Lakeview. It is not far from Lake Ponchertrain. Here we were truly introduced to the hurricane damage. The entire area had been under about 9 feet of water, as it was built on filled in marshland and is actually below sea level. The house we worked on belonged to an elderly man whose wife had died last February.


So many of the people we met already had health or family problems, the hurricane just added more to their burdens. Imagine a neighborhood that, for miles around, is destroyed.





Houses all had water level marks and spray painted codes from the searchers indicating when the house was searched and if anyone was found inside.

There is traffic on the boulevard, but very little life. No kids, no dogs, no cats. Only a few birds and a squirrel or two. Schools and many stores are closed. Some roofs have holes punched in them from where peopled climbed out of the attic to be rescued. Some second story windows have X's on them, noting where people had to be taken out during the flood. Front doors hang at crazy angles. Windows are broken. Most any house could be entered, unhindered. Indeed, the sad fact is that breaking and entering and looting is still occurring. This has occurred more than once at some houses.