Someone's Home

I went with lb0313's friend Wendy to her home to pick up a few things. They live very close to a breach in the London Avenue Canal. To look from the outside of these homes it may not look that bad but wait til you get inside. It's utter ruin. The walls and ceilings are worthless. Everything must be gutted out. Possessions left in the home were destroyed. Clothing just falls apart when you touch it. Dirt and dried mud are everywhere. You can see the water lines on walls and windows. You can not live in these homes. There are a number of FEMA trailers in front of homes but not so for most. I ask where are the rest of these people? They say they just don't know. There is much not known here.

Wendy and her husband have purchased a new home. They are not able to live in it yet though.... electricity issues. They paid off their mortgage with their insurance settlement. But many haven't received such settlements. Also they bought the home some 15 years ago. People who purchased homes more recently at much higher prices would never be able to pay off their mortgages from the insurance settlements I am told.

Wendy and her husband don't know exactly what they'll do with the home. For starters it would need to be raised yet they aren't sure exactly how high as the flood maps are not completed. For now they'll sit on it. But one can tell just returning here for a few minutes is hard on Wendy.

Meanwhile Wendy's 13 year old son who has been in Memphis with relatives so he can attend school just arrived for Mardi Gras. Remember there were no schools open at the beginning of the school year so many people have sent their kids off to other parts so they will not fall behind.

People here are in limbo. They are waiting...for insurance settlements, for flood maps, for the city plan, for jobs to return. There is so much uncertainty.

Here is a video tour of Wendy's home......