One of Hurricane Laura's Victims is No Longer With Us

Hurricane Laura was a category 4 storm that hit our area in August 2020.  A little more than four years after Hurricane Laura blew through Southwest Louisiana and we're looking at another one (Hurricane Francine).  This one yesterday showed coming directly for Jennings, LA, where we live.  With the latest update, it appears the storm is projected to hit somewhere around Morgan City at 7 PM tomorrow night.

For Hurricane prep, we always secure things in the yard and barn, make sure we have water and gasoline on hand, tie anything down that can blow and cause damage and prepare for power outages.  We're still preparing, but it looks like for now we are "outside the cone."  That's good news for us but bad news for whoever gets it.  One positive thing is that there is a strong ridge sitting right on the coast from a cool front.  Experts say that once the storm gets closer, wind shear will tear Hurricane Francine apart and she'll weaken in strength.  They project a category 1 storm with 90 mph sustained winds at landfall.

In Lake Charles, one monument still stood for four years as a testimony of the destructive force of Hurricane Laura.  I still call it the Calcasieu Marine Tower, but it changed to Hibernia Tower and I think most recently Capital One Tower.  Whatever its name, it had to come down.  It was an eyesore.  I was last in the building in 2017 when I had to go get a TWIC card for my job.  Other than the communication antennas on its roof, the building was empty.  Here is a photo I took of the building in July.  You can see all the windows that were blown out and had been patched with plywood.

Well, a demolition crew was hired and this past Saturday morning at 8 AM, the building was set to come down.  It was quite a sight.  You can click the arrow below and watch the demolition.  I came down perfectly.

That building was the skyline of Lake Charles, sitting right on the lake beside the Civic Center.  With it gone, it looks totally different.  As I understand, there are plans to revitalize the downtown area.  Hurricanes are a display of the might and destruction of nature.  We hope to not see anything like Hurricane Laura ever again!

The Disappearing Stump

Our oldest son, Russ, had catastrophe strike a little over a year ago when Hurricane Laura hit the area.  The neighbor of his had a big water oak tree that was rotten in the middle.  When to strong winds blew, the weakened tree succumbed to the hurricane force winds and fell directly on Russ' roof.  It took many many months to get a contractor and materials to make his home whole again.  But alas, it is done.  Looks real nice, too!

Russ had a smaller water oak tree in his front yard.  It was slightly more than two feet in diameter.  The tree was healthy, but Russ didn't want to go through another tree on his roof.  He called a tree service and they chopped the tree down.  The front yard definitely looked a lot different.  One thing the tree service didn't remove was the stump.  He could have called a stump-grinding service, but he didn't.

He did something that I'm afraid my hard-headed self taught him.  He took the stump out the hardest way possible - by hand.  We've done it here at our house.  It is done with stubborn determination.  That's a nice way to put it.  One might also call it some less flattering words.  I had read that a good way to remove a stump is to drill a bunch of holes in the top of the stump, pour a gallon of cooking oil into the holes, let it soak it up and then light it.  Trouble is, that did not work very well.

Russ went to the tried and true way to do it - using an ax mainly.  The ax is used to chop slivers of the stump off.  You keep doing this round and round the tree.  Over time the diameter of the tree is being slowly reduced.  Th chips are saved, piled on top of the stump, and used to burn the stump each day.  He also used a sledgehammer and a wedge to chop the stump.

A few days ago, we received the following text from him: "My stump is missing!  I can't find it"

There is only a hole in the ground where the stump once was.  Three ax handles, numerous blisters, and gallons of sweat later, the stump was gone!

It is a testament, I think, of persistence, hard work, stick-to-itiveness, and endurance.  Maybe it is a bit of insanity, too, in following after my crazy methods of doing things.  What can I say?  He's a chip off the old stump block!  It is pleasing to see the fruits of your labors.  No more stump!

He will plant another tree in its place - one that isn't known for falling on homes.  

Tomorrow Marks the Anniversary

August 27th.  On that date last year, Hurricane Laura, a destructive hurricane hit the coastline of Louisiana.  It is tied for first place as the strongest hurricane to make landfall in the United States.  Friends and neighbors are still recovering, still not in their homes after a year.  Buildings are destroyed and still await repair.  It seems like an eternity ago in some ways, but in other ways - just like yesterday.  The wound, though scabbed over, is still tender.  I posted about Hurricane Laura Here and Here.  

So one year later, to quote Yogi Berra, "It's deja vu all over again."  Happy Anniversary!  We are yet again "in the cone."  Tropical Storm Ida.  We are beginning to prepare.  We have checklists and things we do in advance of tropical weather.  We'll enact our plan.

In looking at the projection below, this thing is projected to become a hurricane at 2PM on Saturday and hit Sunday at 2PM.  We live in Jennings.  On the map below, Jennings is directly below the "LA" and sits about 35 miles from the coast.  Last year, at this point in time, they were pretty accurate in the storm's track.  They were 'off' on the category and strength of the storm.

We'll pray and prepare.  We aren't afraid. We serve a God who created all and One who the winds and waves obey Him.  Whatever happens, His grace is sufficient.  We trust in Him.  We will keep in touch with you a little later.

After Four Long Months and One Week!

As you know in late August we were visited by Hurricane Laura - the first of two hurricanes to drop by this summer.  Russ' home had a large water oak tree that fell on top of it, puncturing his roof in many places.  The day after the storm, we arrived and began freeing his house from the grips of the tree.  It was hard work.

Midway through the afternoon allowed us to visibly assess the damage.  Large limbs not only fell through the roof and fell onto the floor inside, but they broke rafters.  Russ was discouraged.  We kept encouraging him, telling him that this is exactly what you buy homeowner's insurance for.  The adjuster was called, contractors sought out, and then the waiting commenced.

And waiting continued.  Trouble is, EVERYONE needed contractors.  Everyone needed roofing materials.  Shortages in supply.  Increases in price.  We put up some blue tarps to try to protect the interior from rain.  Large holes in the roof exposed two bedrooms and two bathrooms inside to rainwater.  

Prior to the second hurricane (Delta) rolling through, we put down more tarps and fastened them down with more nails.  Continued rains caused rainwater to come into the house.  Russ had rooms filled with 5 gallon buckets and pots and pans to collect rainwater.  He had a dehumidifier to try to dry things out after each rain, and he sprayed things down to discourage mold growth.

On Christmas Eve we found a gift of sorts in his driveway.  A pallet of shingles and other roofing materials were delivered to his house!  

And this afternoon on my way back home, I stopped in and saw the roofers put the finishing touches on Russ' new roof!  Lookin' good!

Four months and one week later, Russ has a brand spanking new roof.  No more holes.  No more leaks.  No more raindrops falling on his head inside his house.  What a nice way to start off the New Year!

Pointing Toward Heaven

During Hurricane Laura, strong south winds pushed our church steeple, breaking two of the four anchor bolts out of the roof, allowing the steeple to bend over sideways.  The resulting rainfall swept through the holes in the roof and flood through the ceiling over the baptistry, significantly damaging the church in the process.  But that is why you diligently pay insurance premiums each year, for storms or mayhem.

First things first, a blue tarp was put over the roof to protect the church from further damage.  Then it was determined that a new roof needed to be installed.  We contacted roofers, received a favorable quote and ordered materials.  Prior to roofing, however, the steeple needed to come down.  This was no small task.  We arranged for a crane to lift it off the roof.  I arrived early to unbolt the two remaining bolts from the roof.

The Piddler on the Roof

Some steeples serve as bell towers and have a bell in them that rings as a Call to Worship.  Ours does not.  There is an entryway - a door that can be unscrewed to allow entry.

Once I gained entry, I climbed inside and got to work loosening nuts off of the rusty bolts that had held the steeple in place since 1981.

Just as I got them loose, I heard the crane drive up.  The crane company was not sending any riggers - only a crane operator.  The operator quickly got his piece of equipment ready and instructed me on how to properly attach the slings and clevices so the steeple could be safely lifted without toppling over.

He extended his boom and pointed directions to me as we worked beneath a beautiful blue sky.

In no time at all we had the steeple snugly secured and we were ready for lift-off.

I backed away as the steeple was lifted.  It teetered for a minute, but was quickly stabilized as the crane operator expertly did his job.

He swung it around and laid it on its side in the grass.  The steeple does have some damage and we'll have to show it to the adjuster to see if repairs can be made to it.  What a sad ending for the steeple?  After seeing it pointing toward Heaven, it now lies on its side, broken on the grass.  An inglorious end, one might say.

I read a little about the history of church steeples.  In Europe church steeples were grand, towering over the countryside.  When the settlers came to the new world, they wanted their churches to be like the churches in Europe.  The architects designed the churches to have steeples that would be the highest thing in town.  Places of worship would be easily recognizable from all around due to the high visibility of the church steeples.  The steeples would point the way to Christ, His Word, His Worship.

That is why it is so tragic to see the photo above.  But take heart!  The Church is much more than the physical building.  The Body of Christ is the Believers.  Despite the condition of our steeples, it is the Believer's job to point the way to Christ.  Metaphorically, we should not be lying in the grass, broken and on our side.  We should be lifting up Jesus and pointing the way to the Son.

The People Or the Steeple?

Driving by our church the other day, I pulled in and took the following photo:  You can no doubt see how the roof is covered with tarps to protect it from further damage.

The photo above is the aftermath from Hurricane Delta.  The photo below was taken the morning after the first storm, Hurricane Laura.

To use a boxing analogy, I feel like Hurricane Laura softened up our church with some body punches and then Hurricane Delta, although a weaker storm, came through with the uppercut to the jaw.  Fortunately, it was not a knockout punch.

We'll need a new roof and we have insurance for that.  Shingles littered the landscape.  It took quite a while to pick them all up.  The steeple was blown sideways, allowing driving rain to come in through the ceiling above the choir loft, knocking down ceiling tiles, exposing insulation.  Once the shingles were gone and the strong winds blew, rainwater came in through the ceiling, through walls, windows, and doors causing quite a lot of water damage.  

We have been unable to meet for the past few weeks in our church, but this Sunday we will be meeting for Morning Worship Services in our church.  A local church in a small town just west of Jennings allowed us to meet for services in their church at 1PM for the last two weeks.  What a blessing!  They welcomed us and allowed us to use their church as if it was our own.  True brothers and sisters in Christ!  We also met the past three Wednesday nights in our home for Wednesday night prayer meeting.  

This crazy year with both Covid and hurricanes have emphasized that the church is not the building, not the bricks and mortar, not the wood and glass. The Church is the Body of Christ, a fellowship of believers who meet whenever and wherever they can to Worship our LORD.  We have had "church" under the cedar tree out behind the church during the pandemic.  We have had "church" at our house and at a neighboring church during the hurricane damage.  The church is God's people, not the steeple.

“Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.”  Hebrews 10:25  

We're Back! Again - Safe and Secure

First, Hurricane Laura.  Next, Hurricane Delta.  Two powerful storms coming ashore 12 miles apart from one another such a short time apart.  Really quite amazing when you think about it.  We are safe and sound.  Another stint of no power, but a friend let us borrow a generator.  At night we would turn it on to power our refrigerator, a deep freeze, and an oscillating fan so that we could sleep comfortably.  Electricity came back on for us a little quicker than it did for Laura.  Our neighbors still don't have power.  Our hats go out to all the linemen working so hard to restore power.

We weathered the storm in our home.  Tricia, Russ, Benjamin and I rode it out and prayed.  The electricity went out at about 6pm.  This time the storm passed in daylight hours and you could see the ravaging winds.  It was better to SEE instead of just hear what was going on.  We prayed for the storm to pass through quickly.  The Weather Channel was here in our small town.

Russ had a large tree fall on top of his house in the last storm and had a blue tarp on his roof when this one came through.  I could tell he was worried.  When the eye was above us, it became very still and quiet.  We quickly went to the truck and decided to try to make the 10 minute drive to check on his home while still in the eye before the back end of the storm hit us.  We left and had to turn around because of downed powerlines and poles blocking the highway.

We turned around and drove through high water to find another open route to his home.  We ALMOST made it before things got rough again.  We were glad to make it to shelter in his home for the last part of the storm.  We re-positioned buckets in his house to catch rainwater falling into three rooms in his house.  The next day we put a new tarp up on the roof.  

For several days, we cooked on a Coleman stove you can see on the patio table above.  We also ate some MRE's and food donated by some gracious ministries distributing aid around our town.  Samaritan's Purse was here in Jennings along with many other fine folks, helping in peoples' time of need.  All in all, even though Delta zeroed in on us in Jennings, we felt like the winds were stronger in Laura.

We had no damage to our home once again.  Praise God!  When this storm was coming in, I remarked to my wife that we probably wouldn't have any limbs down since Laura had "pruned" the weak limbs, leaving only the strong.  My theory proved to be incorrect.  We had quite a few limbs down, though not as much as in the first storm.  The entire yard had broken branches strewn about, and it took the better part of a day to drag them all to the pasture.

The cows and goats took full advantage of the buffet of fresh live oak leaves we placed before them!  They quickly devoured and defoliated the branches while we drug new branches in like the next course to a meal.  

Here they are in action from a different angle.  We will have a nice bonfire once things dry out a bit.

The next morning I had to drive in to work to check on the facility.  There were countless 18 wheelers and campers turned on their sides on I-10, including four 18 wheelers turned over on the Calcasieu River Bridge in Lake Charles.  Though out of power, things were okay at work.

Our neighbors called and checked on us during the storm.  They had windows that were being busted out of the frames to their patio by the strong easterly winds.  We talked to them more after the storm.  They took some serious damage to their barn, losing a total of 230 month-old chicks they were rasing to the storm!  Although there was lots of damage, people are safe.  People are thankful that the damage wasn't worse than it was.  People are thankful to have their families, friends and neighbors out of harm's way.  God is good!  Thanks for your prayers and concern.  We will be back Sunday night.

The Burn Pile - Hurricane Laura Edition

A full month and a week after the hurricane, I had a Saturday off where I could take care of some things that sorely needed some action.  We don't live in town so we don't have curbside pickup of trees and debris.  Or so we thought.  Tricia got word that they would be picking up limbs and storm debris for rural citizens.  We burned a whole bunch of limbs and sticks in the pasture, but we still had a bunch left.  Tricia and the boys had stacked a huge pile by the road in anticipation of the truck to come pick it up.  We waited and waited and waited, but it the truck never came.

Finally, we gave up hope.  I figured I would do it myself.  I backed up our truck to the pile and slowly gathered the debris into the bed.  I took the photo below after I had already picked up about half of the pile.  It took a long time.  I started around 9:30 and finished at 3:30. 

Despite not having roadside pickup of debris, I am still grateful to live in the country.  So many neighbors waved while passing by.  Others stopped to talk.  Just friendly country folk.  One neighbor rolled down her window to let me know she had just stopped by and put a bag of oranges and two bags of grapes "just to bless us."  I wouldn't trade simple, country living for anything.

It was such a beautiful day, I didn't mind working.  Not one bit.  I wish I had counted the number of truckloads I took to the back for burning.  Slowly, I began to put a dent in the pile.

Before too long, I was done!  The grass under the pile was dead from being covered by branches and leaves for a month, but it will grow back.

After the second load to the back, I set the pile on fire.  Despite being a little green, the fire roared, quickly consuming the leaves and branches.  Each time I would bring another truckload of sticks and limbs, I would dump it onto the fire and the flames would reach back up to the sky.

As the pile in the front of the house by the road got smaller, so did the pile in back of the house as a result of the insatiable appetite of the fire.  Pay attention to the Rubbermaid water trough lying on its side in the background behind the fire.  It becomes a central character in the rest of the story.

The nosy animals came to check out the happenings.  Each time I would open the gate to back the pickup truck in and unload yet another load onto the fire, the cows and goats would gather at the gate.  I had to be real careful to quickly close the gate or they would get out.  Sometimes the cows would sit right in the path of the truck, and I would have to honk the horn to get them to move.  Pay particular attention to the head of the bull in the bottom right-hand side of the photo below.  He plays another leading role in the story that follows.

On Saturday afternoon, the job was done.  I was tired, but happy. It is rewarding to finish a job of an honest day's work and see the fruits of your labors.  The fire burned all Saturday night.  By Sunday afternoon, all that remained of the pile was a heap of smoldering coals.  

Sunday night at 10PM I was turning off the lights to go to bed.  Something didn't seem right.  I looked out of the french doors and saw a huge fire in the pasture.  It looked like the barn might be on fire!  I yelled to Benjamin to meet me outside.  We both ran out in time to see flames leaping 15 feet into the air.  When I determined that it was NOT the barn afire, I thought it may be a ruptured gas pipeline.  It was burning with such vigor.

As we ran closer, we were able to identify that it was the Rubbermaid trough burning.  And boy, did it burn!  There was nothing we could do but stand and watch it as the flames lit up the surrounding area and thick black smoke filled the air.  We determined what happened.  Bulls, as they are apt to do, like to push and rub on things with their heads.  The empty trough is used as a feeding trough.  The other two catch rainwater off the roof for drinking.  The bulls had pushed the empty trough into the smoldering coals and it caught on fire.

Now we'll have to find another bucket to use as a feeding trough come feeding time!  Good news: the burn pile was gone.  Bad news: So is our feeding trough.  Oh well, it could always be worse.

  

We Survived Hurricane Laura

We're back!  We survived Hurricane Laura.  In the next several posts, I'll report on what's been going on.  In the last post before going silent, I reported about the impending storm.  We hunkered down that night, preparing for the arrival of severe tropical weather.  As we walked outside prior to the storm, we noticed an eerie phenomenon of dragonflies swarming.  I've never seen this before.  It was as if they were predicting some bad weather and were taking flight to evacuate.

It became nightfall as the weather deteriorated.  There's something about a bad storm at night that makes it worse.  The sounds of the wind howling, things banging into the house, and then the beeping of electronics as the power goes out.  Tricia and I and Russ and Benjamin rode it out in our room.  We were silent at times and then prayed many times as the storm reached it's crescendo around 2 am.  It seemed as if things didn't begin to settle down until around 4 am. 

I went outside and walked around in the high wind around 5:30.  I quickly realized that was not a good decision and got back inside.  In the morning we walked around and surveyed the damage.  We were blessed.  Our home was spared.  We have many large limbs and branches down and will not have to worry about firewood this year.

The top half of a Chinaberry tree fell across the gate in the back, crushing it.  We quickly bent it back into shape so that the cows, goats, and chickens could not get out.

The powerful storm stripped the leaves off of the trees, leaving (pardon the pun) the ground full of leaves for the goats to devour.

So although we were slightly on the east side of the storm's path, we escaped a lot of the damage that our friends, family and co-workers experienced nearby.  At Our Maker's Acres Family Farm, we've been 'radio silent' for a little over a week for several reasons.  We were without electrical service for a little over a week.  The second reason is that I work for an oil company that distributes fuel, oil, and lubes.  We are required to go to work shortly after the winds stop blowing to return to work and get fuel (mainly diesel) to run generators to begin the rebuilding process.  Recovery doesn't take place unless fuel is delivered and tanks are constantly filled. 

Once the power grid goes down, generators fueled by diesel keeps people and perishables cool, and allows people to work to remove debris and wreckage and then rebuild.  Our recovery is not powered by wind and solar.  After a week, our electrical power was restored, but not in Sulphur, Louisiana, where I work.  My coworkers lost their homes and barns.  They don't have electricity or running water.  We've been working 18 hour days to try to meet an impossibly large demand for fuel.  Tonight I'm home a little early, but the work continues for the foreseeable future without an end in sight.

I'll post as often as my work schedule allows.  Thanks for checking in on us!

I May Be Silent for a Few Days

I wanted to let you know that we haven't fallen off the face of the earth.  Hopefully, we will be back in contact soon.  Hurricane Laura will be visiting us, making landfall in the early morning hours of Thursday.

If projections hold, we'll be affected.  I'm not worried so much about the water, but the wind concerns me.  We're protecting things as best we can.  I have a job that keeps me away from home, especially in dire weather situations.  Benjamin helped Tricia move the baby chicks in the garage to safety and helped her batten down the hatches.

We'll likely be out of power for a while, so I will post as soon as I can.  We will be praying and I covet your prayers for all in the way of this storm.  Reminds me of this:

Matthew 8:24-27

24 And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being covered with the waves; but Jesus Himself was asleep. 25 And they came to Him and woke Him, saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing!” 26 He said to them, “Why are you afraid, you men of little faith?” Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and it became perfectly calm. 27 The men were amazed, and said, “What kind of a man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?”

Regardless the outcome, we place our trust in Him.  He is the Master of the Sea.  In this world, we are never promised a life without calamity.  In fact, quite the opposite.  But He does promise never to leave us or forsake us.  And He'll help us weather whatever storm we're facing.

Farewell Barry, We Hardly Knew Ye

Last week was a busy week at work. News reports showed that a hurricane would be moving across our area.  I work for an oil company, and we spent an abundance of time filling all of our customers' tanks with fuel and delivering oil to ensure their inventory was stocked in the event of disruptions in supply.

Tricia and I spent time as well at home, walking around outside, securing anything that could blow around during the storm, and preparing for the storm.  We took the swing down that hangs from chains off of the big live oak tree in the back yard.  In an earlier storm it was blown into the tree and was broken.  We brought the American flag inside so it wouldn't get wet and exposed to the weather.  We laid the basketball goal down as in an earlier storm, it blew over and bent the rim.  We put stakes and ropes around a tree that falls in windy conditions to help prop it up.

Then we waited.  The storm was slow in getting here, but Barry finally arrived.  We were blessed to not have any damage.

Barry didn't quite pack the punch that some prognosticators predicted, but it always helps to be prepared.  Barry's effects were less than some thunderstorms we get during the spring and summer.  We always think about where our exposure is with these storms.  One of the biggest is the loss of power and thus possibility of losing all of our meat in the freezers.  We've thought about getting a generator, but we can't bite the bullet in spending money on something that we may never use. 

When all was said and done, we got less than 3 inches of rain and gusty winds that knocked down some dead branches from our trees.  The power only blinked on and off a couple of times.  I think the animals actually enjoyed the inclement weather as it cooled things off and allowed them to comfortably eat grass in the pasture all day long.