I haven’t written on the blog for the past week or so. My mind and energy have been wrapped around the flood in my area last week. There is a lot to say readers and I encourage you to take some time to read the longer than usual post.
Today is September 28, 2009, one week after the floods that hit the Atlanta, Georgia area. The floods hit several areas but Douglas, Carroll, Paulding, and Western Cobb Counties were the locations where the most people died and homes were destroyed. I live in Douglas County. A man on the news said he was able to save his dogs but not his cats. He didn’t say whether he found them or just that he had no way to take them with him when he fled for safety. The background pictures of his mobile home and cars were covered in mud, which means the water covered his home, his belongings and probably his cats.
In 1991, a couple of tornadoes came through Douglasville – the county seat of Douglas County, west of Atlanta. Officially there was one recorded but I know that there were two that merged into one because my family we in the path. One went over the top of my house and the other at the back of my yard. We lost thirteen trees and one was a 200 year-old red oak tree. The tornado got down in the hollow of the old tree that was the home of the babies – baby birds, baby squirrels, baby chipmunks, and various insects. But the wonderful great-grandmother oak would not fall on the house. All the other trees went east, the directions of the tornadoes but she went north and wrapped herself around to the back of my house hitting only the roof of the kitchen.
When the final bills were in to the insurance company, we had almost $30,000 damage and $14,000 was that one tree. The tree specialists had to get her down to the ground because she was resting against another tree. One wrong move and she would have fallen toward the house and destroyed it and us. We also lost the majority of our monthly business and income but the insurance company for the business wouldn’t pay what we lost.
In the days following that natural disaster, we were confused and scared - and thankful. But we did not know how to deal with the people coming around and the contractors and insurance companies. Our next-door neighbor had had the same insurance for over 40 years and had never filed a claim. That insurance company was not going to pay for her roof to be replaced because there was some rotting on the trim boards and because the city required the roof to be brought up to code. She was an elderly lady and her adult children had to get attorneys and fight the company. The adjustors treated the woman rudely and just didn’t care.
Last year, our area had two really big hailstorms with grapefruit size hail. We called our insurance company and roofers in August. It took until May and three different roofing companies to get things worked out. Meanwhile, all those different people walking on the roof caused it to leak in places that it hadn’t leaked before. So that had to be fixed also. I am grateful to the company that eventually did the job because they went to the courthouse and city hall and went to bat for us to get the insurance company to do what needed to be done as well as comply with the historical society rules because our house is 120 years old and in the downtown historical district.
Are you asking now if we had damage during the flood? At this time we do not know of any structural damage. Business in the current economy was non-existent and the flood has not improved that situation. We have pressure washers, wet vacs and pumps and do yard clean up all the time. We are reducing our rates and making the contacts we can find to help people however we can. We have to prove we are local & will be here in the future.
But the real reason I am writing this is to address the emotions of being in a natural disaster. According to the predictions, it is just the beginning for the next 3 years. When the rain was coming down and falling and falling and not stopping, it was frightening. My dog is afraid to sit in her chair in the room by the door where she could see raging water running by the door while sheets of rain and thunder and lightning were happening. I had a cat outside and I had to stand outside for about an hour trying to get her to come out from under the cabana in my yard. It eased up a little and she peaked out the edge of the building when I grabbed her. She was so frightened. Today is the first day I have allowed her to go back outside.
It rained again on Saturday. I felt scared reminding myself, it is just rain. It is just rain. We lost our water for 2 days and when they got it back on, it wasn’t fit to drink or wash clothes in – well, they said we could wash clothes and after three days added we could wash clothes in hot water. They didn’t put that in the first messages.
They post to only hire local contractors but not to pay anyone up front. The first part is good because people from South Carolina and Alabama and other states are showing up – and they won’t be there after the work is done is they stay around to do the work. But that admonition not to pay anyone up front is really hard on honest small businesses. There have been problems with contractors taking the money and disappearing. But only big companies can afford to buy materials up front. Small companies in the current economy especially do not have the capital to buy things especially when the customer might not be honest. The customer may have no intentions of paying the contractor or perhaps their “damage” is not flood damage and they are taking advantage of the situation. The dishonest on either side hurt the ones – like during Katrina – that really need the help.
The local FEMA programs are doing everything they can to protect the ones who really lost and they need to protect the contractors as well. My husband had all sorts of anxieties about going to clean up the smelly messes and being taken advantage of after taking risk with his health and equipment.
It is all scary. Mother Nature can be fierce when things are out of balance. And you get scared. You don’t know whom you can trust but you have to trust. When the tornado hit, there were hundreds of houses damaged and destroyed. But things were different afterwards. We got a new roof over my kitchen and we needed that. A few years later, a tree that died because of the 200 year-old red oak tree had died. A big wind came through and broke off the trunk of the tree and landed it on our back porch. The washer and dryer were not damaged. We needed a new porch and used some of our own money to fix the foundation at the back of the house and build a patio with good drainage that pulled the rain water away from the back of the house and down hill to the front of the house. What we did because of that storm damage kept the flooding water from running inside the house this time and kept water away from the whole foundation at the back of the house which is low and on the ground – downhill from the entire back yard.
For anyone in a disaster such as a flood, hail, or a tornado, it hurts to lose your belongings and pets and homes and vehicles. But things will get better. Good will come from it. You must keep your faith strong. Know that the God in others is going to be there to help you. People will help. You must keep calm and let go of your anger, your pain, your fear, and let your understanding of God help you through the difficult time. Chaos always precedes growth. Find the good in your situation and what you can learn from it. If and when there is a next time, you will know how to keep your sense of humor, riding the waves if need be. Go to the Internet when you can and find what FEMA says to prepare for your pets for instance. Don’t try to drive through floodwaters. And maybe we all need to reduce our material possessions and spend less money on “things”. And there are basic things such as what to look for when you buy or rent a new house. Many of the places that went under water should never have been built in those areas. But that doesn’t take away the feelings you have about the things you lost. I know myself that it hurts. I have been there. I also know that the longer you dwell on the pain, that the longer you will feel the pain. When you start to look for the ways you can grow forward, you are making a choice to live in the now and let go of the pain. You will heal much faster and find some really wonderful things in your life ahead. I know this is true. I have been through it and looking forward to the new part of my life.
My children, now all grown, went through the tornado also. I know how scary it can be for them. I can help and if you find yourself or someone you know in the aftermath of a natural disaster, refer them to me. I want to assist others. I don’t have a lot of money but I have a big heart and I will share.
Katherine Ari.
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