Here in Central Mississippi Hurricane Gustav has been more of a nuisance than anything else. My apartment building never did lose power and the only effects we got from him were some wind and rain - the wind gusted up to 20 MPH; the rain was just a steady, light and soaking type - which is exactly what we needed. We've been in a dry and near drought state for quite a while, but all the rain we've been getting lately - even prior to Gustav - has helped us tremendously. We are under a flood watch now, however, but I'm not sure my immediate area will have any problems. I think it's more around the Mississippi and Pearl River areas as well as near other waterways than around this area.
I'm a native Louisiana girl so I've been keenly watching the goings on in my home state. I had a bad case of nerves and anxiety Monday and Tuesday about what was going on down there. I talked to my brother a couple of times on Monday - before Gustav made landfall - then tried to call him later in the day several times and couldn't reach him.
I finally heard from him on Tuesday - he and Pat had learned that a Burger King in their city had power and was open, so they went out to get something to eat - he said he was tired of potted meat sandwiches. He said that it took them 30 minutes in line to order and then another 30 minutes to get their food. They were taking it home to eat. By the way - no - they did not sustain any damage to their property nor any flooding, but the power is out at their house (as is expected) and he had no idea when they would get it back.
I was about to ask him about what the status of Pat's pre-op consultation with the cardiovascular surgeon was (the appointment was for Wednesday - yesterday) and if they knew if the heart valve replacement and arterial bypass surgery would take place on Friday (9/5/08) as scheduled when the call dropped. I tried several times to call him back, but was unsuccessful. The message I got on my cell phone was that the "network failed".
I tried again yesterday several times to reach him without any success. I finally left a voice mail on his cell phone letting him know why I was calling and asking him to give me a call when he gets the message and let me know what the status is. I do know that the hospital where the surgery is to be performed has commercial power - they're not running on backup generators. So, theoretically speaking, the surgery could go forward if the cardiovascular surgeon is willing. I don't know if they were able to meet with him at his office yesterday and if he was able to do the tests he wanted to do or not since I haven't heard from Bill.
I'm keeping my cell phone turned on and hoping and praying that he will get my message and call me soon. I tried calling 2 of their kids last night without success in reaching either. I got a message that their son's home phone had been disconnected - which I don't understand because it was working on Monday and Tuesday - and their daughter's number rang and rang without anyone ever answering and no voice mail.
I know that Bill and Pat's home phone line is okay - as it just rings and rings, but they use cordless phones, so since the power is/was out, those are useless. I don't think they even have a corded phone to plug in in place of one of the cordless phones. I mentioned that to him when I spoke with him on Tuesday. I was hoping he would take the hint and see if he could find one to use, but obviously not!
I'll post an update the next chance I get after I hear from him - whenever that is!
PJ