This was the Halloween that wasn't here in New Orleans. Hurricane Katrina has so destroyed the area that even fun diversions like Halloween hardly exist anymore. There was little evidence of Halloween this year- few decorations, virtually no haunted houses, trick-or-treating, adult parties etc. With so few residents left in the city and those that are here too anxious, worried, stressed and busy, there was little reason to have Halloween celebration.
When I watched TV programs or internet activities about Halloween I felt as if I lived on an isolated island, that those just don't apply to my (once) Halloween rabid city. Three months after Hurricane Katrina, my area seems to be having more and more tricks and fewer tricks with each passing day.
Here's some of the Halloween tricks played on New Orleanians this year.
1) It appears almost certain that our NFL football team, The New Orleans Saints, and possibly our NBA basketball franchise, The New Orleans Hornets, will be moving to other cities next year. They are already as gone in the sense that neither is playing any games here this season. With no usable stadiums and few fans, the only boos to be heard this Halloween are those we throw at the owners of those two teams if they dessert a sinking ship (New Orleans) after the destruction of the storm. And those two high profile businesses are just two of many more that will or have left us.
2) The city is still in an arrested state f development, more than two months after the hurricane. There are few people here, fewer businesses open and few prospects for much improvement before next Halloween.
3) The look of livable neighborhoods here is the same as after the storm. Little has been repaired in most homes as residents here line up for contractors that are scarce. Many people (me included) have yet to even have an insurance adjuster access damage for insurance purposes. For us, fixing anything must wait until damage assessment and a proposed insurance settlement is offered.
4) I miss my favorite diversions here! No more Lemon Chicken from 'Wok It To Me Restaurant' That establishment received 6 feet of water and has never reopened. Jane's Laser Tag is gone, probably damaged beyond repair. And her karate classes have yet to resume....and on and on and on.
5) Where is my doctor? In fat where is anyone's doctor. It seems many have packed up and abandoned their patients, as they seek a practice that will provide better income. Need a hospital in New Orleans? Ha! There are only a few open.
6) Friends and acquaintances are missing. No they haven't drowned. They packed up and moved to other cities to start life anew. Many have no jobs or homes left here and are forced to relocate. I know Jane misses here two best friends, who moved to Houston, Texas and Greensbourgh, North Carolina after the storm.
7) The anxiety level is no illusion now. I know I have trouble sleeping, and many others do as well. We wonder what the future will be here, but can only guess and be optimistic that normality will return sooner than later. Sooooooooooo Happy Halloween to you and me and everyone who can suspend their imaginations for awhile and forget the reality that is not the treat we would like to have this year.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Healthy Treats For Goblins
You didn't get any good Trick or Treats this year? No candy for you.....but then...this year there was a movement to give the trick or treaters "healthy" treats. Oh my. Is there anything worse for a kid on a holiday than healthy food? I think not. But the food nutritionist nuts were out in force this year promoting those kids of alternatives to candy (Bah Humbug! I give out candy...lots of it...when I am not eating it).
Poor kids who run into a house that distributes healthy Halloween goodies. It's the secret fear of every trick or treater. They ring the doorbell and shout "Trick-or-Treat"! And, plop, a dour looking grown-up drops an apple or orange into the bag. No M&M's, or Twixts bars. No Milky Ways, Skittles, bubble gum or candy corn, just the usual healthy fare that adults regularly thrust in the faces of their little goblins and ghosts. Apples can be tasty, but at Halloween? It's like serving high fiber cereal instead of chocolate cake at a birthday party. Anyone giving those healthy treats deserves a trick or too.
Here are 6 "healthy" of this years more prominent alternatives that were suggested as alternatives to Halloween candy.
1) Play-Doh- That's right. Hasbro, makers of the toy molding clay promoted Play Doh as a treat with the slogan, "A Halloween treat doesn't have to be sweet". They got that right! Put Play Doh in my trick-or-treat bag and you will likely have Play Doh in your face as I scream "Where's the candy?"
2) Granola Bars- Quaker Oats wants you to give the kiddies fun size granola bars and made bags of the fun sized Chocolate Chip Granola Bars for distribution. Call them fun bars, but they still taste like chocolate laxative. No normal kid wants that.
3) UTZ- The makers of Utz Pretzels says to give them too much salt, not sugar. So they sold half ounce bags of bat and pumpkin shaped pretzels for the kids. "It will never overtake candy", said a Utz spokeswoman. Right..but it will raise the kid's blood pressure even higher than the sugar goodies. I doubt pretzels are healthy.
4) Raison bags- Sun-Maid suggests its mini boxes of golden raisins as a candy alternative. They slogan Sun made hurled at us was, "How clever, a healthy snack disguised as a raisin." Hey! Aren't raisins those inedible globs kids refuse to eat and toss out of their apple pie slices.
5) Apples- Instead of the usual apple in the bag approach, U.S. apple growers banded together and introduced a treat of sliced apples in pre-sealed bags. "It's better for you", was the slogan. Hmmmmmmmm It may be better for me, but I won't eat that on halloween unless you cover it in cinnamon and sugar!
6) Floss & Go- Get ready for this "treat". It's dental floss! The dental floss company, Floss & Go wants parents to hand out its "all natural floss" instead of un natural, but delicious candy. The company slogan is a frightening omen to all parents. "6 to 12 year olds are the age group most prone to getting cavities," it said.
Right! Little witches and gouls should have rotten teeth!! So throw away that dental floss and hand over the candy. Happy Halloween!
Poor kids who run into a house that distributes healthy Halloween goodies. It's the secret fear of every trick or treater. They ring the doorbell and shout "Trick-or-Treat"! And, plop, a dour looking grown-up drops an apple or orange into the bag. No M&M's, or Twixts bars. No Milky Ways, Skittles, bubble gum or candy corn, just the usual healthy fare that adults regularly thrust in the faces of their little goblins and ghosts. Apples can be tasty, but at Halloween? It's like serving high fiber cereal instead of chocolate cake at a birthday party. Anyone giving those healthy treats deserves a trick or too.
Here are 6 "healthy" of this years more prominent alternatives that were suggested as alternatives to Halloween candy.
1) Play-Doh- That's right. Hasbro, makers of the toy molding clay promoted Play Doh as a treat with the slogan, "A Halloween treat doesn't have to be sweet". They got that right! Put Play Doh in my trick-or-treat bag and you will likely have Play Doh in your face as I scream "Where's the candy?"
2) Granola Bars- Quaker Oats wants you to give the kiddies fun size granola bars and made bags of the fun sized Chocolate Chip Granola Bars for distribution. Call them fun bars, but they still taste like chocolate laxative. No normal kid wants that.
3) UTZ- The makers of Utz Pretzels says to give them too much salt, not sugar. So they sold half ounce bags of bat and pumpkin shaped pretzels for the kids. "It will never overtake candy", said a Utz spokeswoman. Right..but it will raise the kid's blood pressure even higher than the sugar goodies. I doubt pretzels are healthy.
4) Raison bags- Sun-Maid suggests its mini boxes of golden raisins as a candy alternative. They slogan Sun made hurled at us was, "How clever, a healthy snack disguised as a raisin." Hey! Aren't raisins those inedible globs kids refuse to eat and toss out of their apple pie slices.
5) Apples- Instead of the usual apple in the bag approach, U.S. apple growers banded together and introduced a treat of sliced apples in pre-sealed bags. "It's better for you", was the slogan. Hmmmmmmmm It may be better for me, but I won't eat that on halloween unless you cover it in cinnamon and sugar!
6) Floss & Go- Get ready for this "treat". It's dental floss! The dental floss company, Floss & Go wants parents to hand out its "all natural floss" instead of un natural, but delicious candy. The company slogan is a frightening omen to all parents. "6 to 12 year olds are the age group most prone to getting cavities," it said.
Right! Little witches and gouls should have rotten teeth!! So throw away that dental floss and hand over the candy. Happy Halloween!
Autralia/New Zealand
My trip to Australia and New Zealandwas a good one, especially because it gave me a break from the chaos here. I think both Australia and New Zealand are beautiful countries with high standards of living. I noticed prices for most things were higher in Australia than here. New Zealand seems rather sleepy and civil and Australia more alive and aggressive.
But both are nice places in which to be. The cultures there is primarily English and (in Australia) "American". I was able to see Kangaroos, Koala Bears and Penguins close up. The march of the "Little Penguins" was fascinating. While in New Zealand I saw the "Glow worm Cave" and a good deal of the northern island. It is quite spectacular in it's scenery and still not too heavily populated.
In Australia, I visited Ballaarat, a city where the Australian gold rush began. There is a replica of "Old Ballaarat built for tourists, including a working gold mine. I also took a tour of the Australian Ocean Road, which is stunningly beautiful. My friend there, Vonny, was kind enough to show me other things and spend a good deal of time with me.....despite that I burned a cheesecake topping in her oven when we were preparing food for several of her friends...Hehe, I am innocent of course (I am always innocent!) because her oven temperature is much hotter than the readings show.
Anyway..the cheesecake turned out ok in the end.. Here are a few observations from me about the Melbourne and Auckland
1) Both are very clean and have adverse population. I could see that immigration is flowing in both places. Apparently, both think they are underpopulated and want more residents there to stimulate their economies.
2) Most vulgar generation- the Aussie young, both men and women! They do have vulgar mouths when in public. My..I have never heard so many obscenities in public places. It seems that it is fashionable for the youth to curse in public in Australia. Strange, because in New Zealand no such language can be heard.
3) Food- It is mostly bland, but hearty. I found the entrees to be more visually appealing than delicious. The food is average, but needs more seasonings, herbs or spices to stimulate my tongue. The best cuisine there for me was the Chinese ethnic food. However, the bakery items are very good.
4) People- Very friendly in both cities. In Auckland there is a shyness, but once one speaks to a New Zealander there is usually a chatty and friendly reply.
5) Shopping- Melbourne does have nice shopping for those interested.
6) Cell report- Sigh.... It's out of hand there to. There are so many rude cell addicts, particularly in Melbourne. I guess I can not escape the cell phone fad that is seemingly everywhere.
7) Best tourist attraction- Sovereign Hill in Ballaarat. That's the gold mine town replication. It is historically true and very interesting. I even mined for gold and found as mall flake in a stream.
But both are nice places in which to be. The cultures there is primarily English and (in Australia) "American". I was able to see Kangaroos, Koala Bears and Penguins close up. The march of the "Little Penguins" was fascinating. While in New Zealand I saw the "Glow worm Cave" and a good deal of the northern island. It is quite spectacular in it's scenery and still not too heavily populated.
In Australia, I visited Ballaarat, a city where the Australian gold rush began. There is a replica of "Old Ballaarat built for tourists, including a working gold mine. I also took a tour of the Australian Ocean Road, which is stunningly beautiful. My friend there, Vonny, was kind enough to show me other things and spend a good deal of time with me.....despite that I burned a cheesecake topping in her oven when we were preparing food for several of her friends...Hehe, I am innocent of course (I am always innocent!) because her oven temperature is much hotter than the readings show.
Anyway..the cheesecake turned out ok in the end.. Here are a few observations from me about the Melbourne and Auckland
1) Both are very clean and have adverse population. I could see that immigration is flowing in both places. Apparently, both think they are underpopulated and want more residents there to stimulate their economies.
2) Most vulgar generation- the Aussie young, both men and women! They do have vulgar mouths when in public. My..I have never heard so many obscenities in public places. It seems that it is fashionable for the youth to curse in public in Australia. Strange, because in New Zealand no such language can be heard.
3) Food- It is mostly bland, but hearty. I found the entrees to be more visually appealing than delicious. The food is average, but needs more seasonings, herbs or spices to stimulate my tongue. The best cuisine there for me was the Chinese ethnic food. However, the bakery items are very good.
4) People- Very friendly in both cities. In Auckland there is a shyness, but once one speaks to a New Zealander there is usually a chatty and friendly reply.
5) Shopping- Melbourne does have nice shopping for those interested.
6) Cell report- Sigh.... It's out of hand there to. There are so many rude cell addicts, particularly in Melbourne. I guess I can not escape the cell phone fad that is seemingly everywhere.
7) Best tourist attraction- Sovereign Hill in Ballaarat. That's the gold mine town replication. It is historically true and very interesting. I even mined for gold and found as mall flake in a stream.
Figuring Insuraance Losses
I have written quite a bit about insurance since hurricane Katrina damaged my house and every other one in this area. But this concept of housing insurance is a nebulous one at best. That is, one never knows what settlement the insurance company will propose to the owner of the damaged property.
There seems to be no set standard that all insurance companies follow, yet most insurance contracts for housing are much the same. So the whim of the adjuster and the company often determines what settlement the property owner receives. But what about those who have no or the wrong kind of insurance?
Every home owner in the U.S. is offered two kinds of home insurance when purchasing his or her home. There is flood insurance, for damages caused by water to the structure that comes from "below" and Homeowner insurance, damage to the home caused by all other causes and water damage that comes from "above" (rain or other precipitation that comes through the home ceiling and damages the contents).
Any person who borrows money from a mortgage banker when buying his or her home must buy Homeowner Insurance, But flood insurance is not required. there is the rub. As many as 50% of the homeowners who had flooding of their homes from Katrina did not buy a flood insurance policy, and hence, have no coverage for their flood damage.
Surely, anyone living in this swampy land, filled with water and 6 feet below sea level, should have enough common sense to buy the flood insurance. It is cheap in comparison to Homeowner Insurance because the federal government subsidizes the cost of it. But many people try to "save money" by skipping on the flood coverage.
In St. Bernard Parish (adjacent to the city of New Orleans) every single come was covered with water and is now unlivable. They will all probably be bulldozed. yet, only 20% of those residents had their homes covered with flood insurance. So what is the government to do? Can it force insurance companies to cover their damages under their Homeowner policy provisions? Will the government pay the damages for those people.? Or will those homeowners be left in the cold, penniless and homeless, a terrible place to start when rebuilding their lives.
That's just one dilemma facing the Katrina crowd.
There seems to be no set standard that all insurance companies follow, yet most insurance contracts for housing are much the same. So the whim of the adjuster and the company often determines what settlement the property owner receives. But what about those who have no or the wrong kind of insurance?
Every home owner in the U.S. is offered two kinds of home insurance when purchasing his or her home. There is flood insurance, for damages caused by water to the structure that comes from "below" and Homeowner insurance, damage to the home caused by all other causes and water damage that comes from "above" (rain or other precipitation that comes through the home ceiling and damages the contents).
Any person who borrows money from a mortgage banker when buying his or her home must buy Homeowner Insurance, But flood insurance is not required. there is the rub. As many as 50% of the homeowners who had flooding of their homes from Katrina did not buy a flood insurance policy, and hence, have no coverage for their flood damage.
Surely, anyone living in this swampy land, filled with water and 6 feet below sea level, should have enough common sense to buy the flood insurance. It is cheap in comparison to Homeowner Insurance because the federal government subsidizes the cost of it. But many people try to "save money" by skipping on the flood coverage.
In St. Bernard Parish (adjacent to the city of New Orleans) every single come was covered with water and is now unlivable. They will all probably be bulldozed. yet, only 20% of those residents had their homes covered with flood insurance. So what is the government to do? Can it force insurance companies to cover their damages under their Homeowner policy provisions? Will the government pay the damages for those people.? Or will those homeowners be left in the cold, penniless and homeless, a terrible place to start when rebuilding their lives.
That's just one dilemma facing the Katrina crowd.
Recovery
One of the things that has hurt my own city is the apathy by the rest of the world toward what happened to New Orleans. We received little more than rhetoric from other nations. While America is the first to rush aid, money and expertise to any area that suffers a natural disaster, it seems as if the world ignores us when the same happens here. Did you read of the New Orleans mayor's plan to start jump the economy here?
It is a novel and perhaps good idea. Knowing that this city is built partly on tourism, Mayor Nagin announced a plan (which must be approved by the state to be enacted) to jump start gambling here. He wants the casino's up and running quickly. Further, he wants more casinos than we have ever had and no restrictions on their size or operating capacity. That would surely lure some tourists back.
This plan is good because my city is broke. Without a huge cash flow the city will default and all services (well, what is left of them) will be stopped. In fact, yesterday the U.S. Congress voted to pay the debts of New Orleans and surrounding hurricane ravaged cities for 3 months. It appropriated 700 million dollars to do so, all in an attempt to keep the area alive and to spur a return of some of the population.
Businesses are in dire straights, with no workers and a very small base of population from which to sell their services. Many are wondering why the federal government (the corrupt Bush administration) is giving billions of dollars in service contracts to firms that are not from the New Orleans area, while ignoring the New Orleans companies that can do that work. For instance, our restaurants want contracts to feed the many thousands of contractors, federal officials and other personnel that are here in the recovery process.
Restaurateurs say that without that business they will be forced to declare bankruptcy, given that there are no tourists and few locals eating out now. Despite there attempt to make the Bush administration see that giving the restaurants here the contracts is a means of keeping them alive, the Bush administration has instead given bloated contracts to "friends" of the administration. This is not only in the restaurant industry, but in many others.
For instance, many New Orleans companies want to be a part of the debris removal squads. We have more rubble, trash and debris than has ever accumulated at any other time in history. But Bush and his cronies are giving no-bid , expensive contracts to their supporters. The saga goes on and on here. We have been cursed with an horrific storm and an incompetent and dishonest president and administration.
Oh well, enough of this complaining. I have seen the terrible Bush operation for 6 years, this latest performance by them is no surprise
It is a novel and perhaps good idea. Knowing that this city is built partly on tourism, Mayor Nagin announced a plan (which must be approved by the state to be enacted) to jump start gambling here. He wants the casino's up and running quickly. Further, he wants more casinos than we have ever had and no restrictions on their size or operating capacity. That would surely lure some tourists back.
This plan is good because my city is broke. Without a huge cash flow the city will default and all services (well, what is left of them) will be stopped. In fact, yesterday the U.S. Congress voted to pay the debts of New Orleans and surrounding hurricane ravaged cities for 3 months. It appropriated 700 million dollars to do so, all in an attempt to keep the area alive and to spur a return of some of the population.
Businesses are in dire straights, with no workers and a very small base of population from which to sell their services. Many are wondering why the federal government (the corrupt Bush administration) is giving billions of dollars in service contracts to firms that are not from the New Orleans area, while ignoring the New Orleans companies that can do that work. For instance, our restaurants want contracts to feed the many thousands of contractors, federal officials and other personnel that are here in the recovery process.
Restaurateurs say that without that business they will be forced to declare bankruptcy, given that there are no tourists and few locals eating out now. Despite there attempt to make the Bush administration see that giving the restaurants here the contracts is a means of keeping them alive, the Bush administration has instead given bloated contracts to "friends" of the administration. This is not only in the restaurant industry, but in many others.
For instance, many New Orleans companies want to be a part of the debris removal squads. We have more rubble, trash and debris than has ever accumulated at any other time in history. But Bush and his cronies are giving no-bid , expensive contracts to their supporters. The saga goes on and on here. We have been cursed with an horrific storm and an incompetent and dishonest president and administration.
Oh well, enough of this complaining. I have seen the terrible Bush operation for 6 years, this latest performance by them is no surprise
Labor Costs Rising
Labor costs are exploding in New Orleans and the surrounding area. My city has the deserved reputation for being a poor one. We had so many poorly educated, unskilled workers here (the storm has chased many of them away) that we were considered a third world entity in the U.S. But with my city virtually destroyed and in need of rebuilding, there is a shortage of workers here now, and they are seeing the demand for their labor become increasingly more profitable. Just today I saw numerous signs and placards promising double or more the wage rate prior to the hurricane. In the fast food industry it's even more pronounced. A cutthroat, post-hurricane labor market, in which too many employers are seeking too few workers, has prompted some of the New Orleans regions biggest fast food chains to offer workers thousands of dollars in signing bonuses to sign up or switch to their fast food outlet.
For instance, Burger King recruiters have been visiting federal disaster recovery centers and newly reopened high schools offering a $6,000 bonus, paid in monthly installments, to anyone promising to work full-time at a New Orleans Burger King restaurant. New part time workers (mostly teenagers who work after school) are being offered $3000 for signing up.
Almost over-night, because there are to few people and too many jobs (there is now housing for anyone new, so the equation is unlikely to change), Hurricane Katrina has transformed my city from an employer' market of low wages caused by a surplus of under-educated workers, to one where too few workers hop from job to job as the pay scales they offer keep increasing.
To further exacerbate the labor shortage, there is a slew of new jobs involving hurricane clean-up and repair that are low skilled but pay at least $15 per hour (as opposed to the pre hurricane fast food wage of about $6 per hour). The higher wages should stick even after the initial post storm hiring frenzy stabilizes, because the local labor pool will likely remain too small for years to come. Without housing for workers they will not come to New Orleans to work.
Hurricane Katrina destroyed much of the city's housing. The good aspect is that we'll never again be a minimum wage concentrated area. But services will now be more expense and harder to obtain. Just ask me how hard it is to find a contractor to start work on repairs needed to my house after the storm.
I can tell you it will probably be months before one will begin the work, because there just isn't enough labor left in this market. So Hurricane Katrina has entirely changed the labor dynamics in this city, just one of many effects of the storm of the century.
For instance, Burger King recruiters have been visiting federal disaster recovery centers and newly reopened high schools offering a $6,000 bonus, paid in monthly installments, to anyone promising to work full-time at a New Orleans Burger King restaurant. New part time workers (mostly teenagers who work after school) are being offered $3000 for signing up.
Almost over-night, because there are to few people and too many jobs (there is now housing for anyone new, so the equation is unlikely to change), Hurricane Katrina has transformed my city from an employer' market of low wages caused by a surplus of under-educated workers, to one where too few workers hop from job to job as the pay scales they offer keep increasing.
To further exacerbate the labor shortage, there is a slew of new jobs involving hurricane clean-up and repair that are low skilled but pay at least $15 per hour (as opposed to the pre hurricane fast food wage of about $6 per hour). The higher wages should stick even after the initial post storm hiring frenzy stabilizes, because the local labor pool will likely remain too small for years to come. Without housing for workers they will not come to New Orleans to work.
Hurricane Katrina destroyed much of the city's housing. The good aspect is that we'll never again be a minimum wage concentrated area. But services will now be more expense and harder to obtain. Just ask me how hard it is to find a contractor to start work on repairs needed to my house after the storm.
I can tell you it will probably be months before one will begin the work, because there just isn't enough labor left in this market. So Hurricane Katrina has entirely changed the labor dynamics in this city, just one of many effects of the storm of the century.
Adjusted Value
Here I sit and wait for my insurance adjuster to give me an assessment of damages the company proposes to pay. It's been more than a month since Hurricane Katrina hit and I filed a claim. But my damage assessment is easy.
I had little water damage. The rest is view able and relatively easy to verify. I know I will not receive what it will cost to repair my damages, but so be it. I am a lucky one. My home was not severely damages. It will not have to be gutted or bulldozed. But what about the 350,000 homes that will be crushed to dust by bulldozers?
How does one determine if a home is fixable or a lost cause? That's the job of the adjuster (they are usually building contractors) and city officials who can order a home destroyed if it is "unlivable" or a safety hazard to anyone. Conventional wisdom here is that a house flooded near or to the ceiling for more than a week will have to be torn down. But that isn't always the case. Sometimes homeowners never give up the notion that their house can be saved. So much for those overly optimistic owners. Most of the homes that flooded here were inundated with from 6 to 15 meters of water and mud that slashed around inside for a week to 21 days before draining out. A thick layer of mud covers the floors, and mold is evident from baseboard to ceiling.
The stench of the house requires face masking material to avoid vomiting and too close contact with the mold spores. Even the nails joining wall studs have rusted in the brackish floodwater, compromising the stability of the houses. There her are those that were lifted off their foundations by the raging water...
To determine if the home is to be saved or demolished the inspectors consider the type of construction (wood is a lost cause), the length of time that the structure was submerged and what was in the water (don't ask here. It was toxic, fecal and disgusting). there is no single rule of thumb, but most buildings in New Orleans are older and wooden. Thus, a high mortality rate for them is likely.
Too, some entire neighborhoods and one entire parish (county) St. Bernard, will be leveled, leaving nothing but open ground. Then there is the impediment to demolition- the fact than many older New Orleans homes are historically relevant and on the registry of "do not destroy", legally protected from demolition.
New Orleans was unique and people here do not want it looking like "every other city in the world". So how does one demolish a significant portion of our homes and yet not destroy the character of the architecture? That's the $64,000 question is this dying city that is already on life support and not expected to survive.
I had little water damage. The rest is view able and relatively easy to verify. I know I will not receive what it will cost to repair my damages, but so be it. I am a lucky one. My home was not severely damages. It will not have to be gutted or bulldozed. But what about the 350,000 homes that will be crushed to dust by bulldozers?
How does one determine if a home is fixable or a lost cause? That's the job of the adjuster (they are usually building contractors) and city officials who can order a home destroyed if it is "unlivable" or a safety hazard to anyone. Conventional wisdom here is that a house flooded near or to the ceiling for more than a week will have to be torn down. But that isn't always the case. Sometimes homeowners never give up the notion that their house can be saved. So much for those overly optimistic owners. Most of the homes that flooded here were inundated with from 6 to 15 meters of water and mud that slashed around inside for a week to 21 days before draining out. A thick layer of mud covers the floors, and mold is evident from baseboard to ceiling.
The stench of the house requires face masking material to avoid vomiting and too close contact with the mold spores. Even the nails joining wall studs have rusted in the brackish floodwater, compromising the stability of the houses. There her are those that were lifted off their foundations by the raging water...
To determine if the home is to be saved or demolished the inspectors consider the type of construction (wood is a lost cause), the length of time that the structure was submerged and what was in the water (don't ask here. It was toxic, fecal and disgusting). there is no single rule of thumb, but most buildings in New Orleans are older and wooden. Thus, a high mortality rate for them is likely.
Too, some entire neighborhoods and one entire parish (county) St. Bernard, will be leveled, leaving nothing but open ground. Then there is the impediment to demolition- the fact than many older New Orleans homes are historically relevant and on the registry of "do not destroy", legally protected from demolition.
New Orleans was unique and people here do not want it looking like "every other city in the world". So how does one demolish a significant portion of our homes and yet not destroy the character of the architecture? That's the $64,000 question is this dying city that is already on life support and not expected to survive.
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