Wow...what a warm outpouring of concern and love from all of you. For those of you who sent me a person email I plan on getting to those very soon...thank you for your love and support.

I'll try to answer all the questions I can from where I am...however, I'm pretty isolated from where the real problems are. First, here in Mobile the correctional facility/prison was not evacuated...however, I understand the water was up to within inches of coming in...all I know is it wasn't dangerous enough to evacuate the prisioners...however in New Orleans, the story was different...they had all the prisioners outside on a part of the highway.

My husband received pictures from the railroad of the damage done on the way to New Orleans rails...it's devastating...we were both in shock...it could be months before he's able to work again...this storm is affecting everyone in some way either by their homes, lives lost, cost of gasoline...somehow, someway every American is affected. We have all been hurt by this storm.

As far as the folks who did not leave...a lot of them could not...if you've never been to New Orleans let me tell you that there's so much poverty there...it was the highest crime hitting city in America with the most homosides...I think they said 30% of the people there lived on below the minimum wage...it's basically these people (the bulk) who were stuck...they had no money, no vehicles, no way to leave. Tourists, I understand are also stuck because the airport was shut down and no one was being allowed to leave...or anyone else who did have the money to leave.
I have very close friends who live in Biloxi and Gulfport who I've not heard from yet and don't know if they are okay or not. I used to work at the Seabee Base in Gulfport and was told that at one point those in the command center could not get out because of the downed powerlines...I'm pretty sure the base there got hit pretty badly. Another friend of mine who is a retired vet with 3 children (she was raising them alone) lived near the RR by the Grand Casino...the Grand Casino has been destroyed...I do not know if she got out and I'm pretty sure her home has been destroyed. We just do not know where these people are and have no way of finding out if they're okay or not.

I guess I'm more tender hearted when it comes to having sympathy for those still stuck in New Orleans...I don't think it's the average citizen who could not get out who is putting our troops in harms way...It's the hoodelums who have no respect or concerns for anyone but themselves who are to blame...when I see the hospital victims, the tiny babies, the mother's, the old people...these people did not cause this and should not be blamed because they could not get out. Yes, there were those stupid ones who thought they could ride out a category storm 4/5...but I think if they survived their thinking has changed...as have their lives.
I'm not a politician and I don't like to talk politics, but New Orleans officials knew this could happens and it was politics that has kept this city from being able to respond in the way they should have...I hope this is a wake up call for the rest of the country in what could happen if other cities were put in harms way from any kind of disaster that could affect thousands and thousands of lives. I'm certain that our Federal/state/city Gov's will look at what went wrong/what they did wrong and what they could have done within the following weeks/months/years.
The bottom line is there are thousands of people dying and suffering at the moment from lack of planning/action by those we put in power...if this is an example of how they handle things here at home then I think we could be in trouble. I don't normally like to preach politics...but, having been so close to this I think it's time this nation wakes up at what can happen in our own country.
Again, thank you all for you concerns and well wishes of love. I am touched more than I can ever say...my life is wonderful compared to so many others...I cannot complain about anything...we're back up and running and although my husband's job prospects are questionble at the moment, we'll ride through this one way or another...I'll send some photos of the railroad to those who would like to see them...it's unbelieveable.
God's speed and pray, pray, pray.
I love you all
Dee