We soon got our orders to deliver generator equipement to Galveston, check in with the locals, and then we were to be sent to Houston or even Beaumont. While we waiting for the lead vehicles to go we sat in a parking lot for 6 hours.
When we finally arrived in Galveston we checked in at the hobo camp our company had established for us where we were to go next and we ate some horrid food from a primitive buffet line
We then topped off our fuel tanks at our own private filling station protected by armed guards
My directive was to follow a convoy to drop off a generator at an RT to start the network recover process
After dropping my load off at a site my group was told we were to start working trouble reports near Reliant Stadium in Houston the next day. We were given directions to our hotel which ended up being a total dump. It was run by jihad and he did not like us being there. His nice abode on Airline road typically rents the rooms by the hour and he felt he was losing out of=n his normal business. That is another story in itself. I will say I shared a romm with 3 other people and the TV got 6 stations, 4 of them free porn.
So before I hit the road back to Houston I take a mini tour of the island. I was impressed that Ike knew to fuck with everyone except the phone company.
Everywhere we went emergency workers kept approaching us to verify our well being.
A 30 minute drive back towards the interstate was all I needed to realized this place was fucked up
The last time I set foot on the island I stopped by the local Central Office to take a dump. You can see how high the water line was
When I got inside I was informed the whole office was down and the plumbing was fucked. The whole interior of the building was full of mud and all the switch equipment was toast
So I pinched my ass together to fight the turtle head and decided to find facilities elswhere. As I drove down the block I was sure I had shit myself because the fecal odor was getting horrendous. Then I realized the city wastewater system was fucked too. Here is a nice shot of black water free flowing out of a manhole about a quarter mile from a bayou off of IH10
Although I spent less than a day in Galveston I was glad to get out. I eventually worked in Houston for 6 weeks straight of 12 hour days. Very grueling work. I eventually was told to ship my camera and other "non- essential" items in company mail back to Austin becasue, quite frankly, we were working in the hood most of the time and we did not want to be too tempting for the restless natives. It was so bad that we were all issued "throw down" wallets with 8 dollars cash in them to hand over in the event we were robbed. Luckily most of the people were very cordial and accomodation of us. Loooking back I'm not sure if I will ever volunteer to go to a storm recovery like that again. Sure I made money, but the mental and physical stress lingered for months.
