|
|
In the Big Empty, a Calm After The Storm
- Article from:
-
The Washington Post
- Article date:
-
September 2, 2008
- Author:
-
|
Copyright informationCopyright 2008 The Washington Post. This material is published under license from the Washington Post. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Washington Post. (Hide copyright information)
|
The Big Easy became the Big Empty -- few people and no
floodwater, hardly, given expectations. Man, was it strange. Strings
of Mardi Gras beads from parties past flapped like pennants from
shredded awnings. But it was a good strange.
Midway through Hurricane Gustav in late morning -- with wind
uprooting palm trees, rain shooting sideways and water in the
Industrial Canal sloshing over the levee like a menacingly full
bathtub agitated by an evil child -- the streets were empty, which
was no surprise. It was hellish out there.
But then the wind and rain subsided, and all those evacuees from
Houston to Atlanta in motel rooms and overloaded relatives' homes
must have heaved a sigh of ...