Gustav

[daparish]

Please, please, please say a prayer for everyone along the Gulf Coast!!! I am really starting to panick. I have already called Beth (Ms. Min). Thanks so much Beth for listening to me. It is really not looking good for New Orleans again. Friday is the anniversary of Katrina. I know we choose to live here and hurricanes are something we need to deal with, but I can't believe we are facing something that has the potential to do much more destruction than Katrina if it comes up the mouth of the Missippis River. Bret (Sgt Tigger) - you and Sherrie are in my prayers. I know how hard you were hit for Katrina because I know what my family went through and they live in the same parish as you do. Also, a special prayer to Bret and the rest of the policeman and fireman who put their on lives in danger to be sure everyone else is save. God bless.

[tinkerbell04]

I was thinking of all of you as I watched the vening news tonight. My thoughts and prayers are with you as we continue to watch the storm. Please stay safe.

[DisneyDog]

I am quite nervous for all of you, having lived through 4 hurricanes in one year in SW Florida. We didn't really have much damage in any of those storms, but as a northerner not used to hurricanes, it was nerve wracking for us. My heart and prayers go out to all of you. I will (figuratively) be holding my breath for you until Gustav is over.

[MississippiDisneyFreak]

Well....I'm kind of worried too....the Mississippi Gulf Coast is still devastated and hasn't recovered from Katrina....if NO gets hit we will be in trouble too...one of the models actually puts it on Biloxi...I am taking my family to my sister in North Mississippi and I have to return within 24 hrs. or when declared safe because I am a dispatcher with Marine Patrol....when the storms move out and floods start coming we will have to get boats in the water!!!! Please send prayers and pixie dust so that nobody in the coastal states gets slammed too bad...

[SgtTigger]

Bret (Sgt Tigger) - you and Sherrie are in my prayers.

Thanks Lori.........

Things are getting crazy around here.......

Since this is the first storm since Katrina people are very on edge......
Work is Bad....... real crazy it is 5 days out and I dont think I can take this for 5 days..... I have been doing great for now till I sit and think about it I guess....
Sherrie will be out of here so that is a good thing..... just not sure if she is going to Houston of Hammond...... Just wait and see.......

[Marilyn Michetti]

My prayers are with everybody in Gustovs path. Katrina was so horrific ! Please, everyone, be O.K. (No icon quite fits this one).

[BronxTigger]

Friday is the anniversary of Katrina.

and prayers for all of you.

[disneydeb]

God bless all of you in the path. I know wounds are still open from Katrina. I want you to know you are in my prayers the next few days.

[daparish]

Well....I'm kind of worried too....the Mississippi Gulf Coast is still devastated and hasn't recovered from Katrina....if NO gets hit we will be in trouble too...one of the models actually puts it on Biloxi...I am taking my family to my sister in North Mississippi and I have to return within 24 hrs. or when declared safe because I am a dispatcher with Marine Patrol....when the storms move out and floods start coming we will have to get boats in the water!!!! Please send prayers and pixie dust so that nobody in the coastal states gets slammed too bad...

My prayers are with you and your family and the entire coast. If NO gets a direct hit, unfortunately Mississippi will bare the brunt of the dreaded east side of the hurricane. God bless and stay safe.

[daparish]

Sherrie will be out of here so that is a good thing..... just not sure if she is going to Houston of Hammond...... Just wait and see.......

I actually booked yesterday in Baton Rouge thinking I would be a head of the game. This morning I called to confirm and found out that even if you book with a credit card and receive the confirmation, the hotel will not be honoring any reservations. They said that since Katrina they have a large corporation that signed a contract with them to reserve all rooms once a hurricane is projected to hit SE Louisiana. This means that all these people believe they have rooms and when they get there they will not be honored. There are no hotel rooms available in all of Louisiana. I was able to book Birmingham, Al. We are going to wait and see. I am in Kenner. If it's going to be bigger than a Cat 2 and keeps the same projected path we will leave. If it is a Cat 2 or less my family will probably all come to my house and we will wait it out together. We did not flood for Katrina but that was the luck of the levee breaking on the opposite side of the 17 street canal. Stay safe!!!

[Strmchsr]

All ya'll are welcome in my area of Montgomery!

I'll definitely be praying for those of you directly in the path. I'm gearing up as well coordinating and training all of our disaster response teams. The only good news I might could give you is that I've been watching the models closely and it appears there's a chance that Gustav could pull in a good bit of dry air once he's over the Gulf which would weaken him considerably. Chances are Gustav will be a major (Cat 3+) hurricane, but at least there's a legitimate reason to hope for weakening.

[BronxTigger]

I had to go look at Google maps. (The satellite view of the delta is amazing, by the way....ETA: I wish I had not zoomed in....)

The closest hotel room you could get was in Birmingham? How many hours does that take (in normal traffic)?

I also did not realize Baton Rouge was so close to New Orleans. For some reason I thought it was more towards the middle of the state. I guess you learn something new every day.

[buzznwoodysmom]

Oh boy this storm has me very scared. DH is in the national guard and he just got the call that he has to report for duty at 8am tomorrow morning. That means any picking up and getting our house ready for the storm is all up to me. I have no idea what I am going to do. The thought of having to go out and get plywood to board up our windows my self makes me feel sick. This is our first hurricane season in our new home so we don't have any "hurricane supplies" for this house yet. Wish me luck! This will also be the first time DH has to report for duty during a hurricane. He was still in Iraq for Katrina. So please pray for him to stay safe. Prayers to everyone in this storm's path.

[mickeys_princess_mom]

They said that since Katrina they have a large corporation that signed a contract with them to reserve all rooms once a hurricane is projected to hit SE Louisiana. This means that all these people believe they have rooms and when they get there they will not be honored. There are no hotel rooms available in all of Louisiana.

This is wild. I'm sure we'll just stay here, but boy it's nerve-wracking watching and waiting, isn't it? Was trying to reassure my classes today. You could have heard a pin drop. Some of these kids are just getting over Katrina experiences. Wish we were in the Magic!

[LauraleeH]

I'm praying for everyone who will be affected.

[Mousemates]

will be praying for you guys.

[disneydrmr]

Thoughts and prayers for all in the path! Please stay safe! And Sgt Tigger - I"ll be saying extra special prayers for you and the rest of the police (and other rescue personnel) in the area! Please everyone - stay safe.. get out of the path.. and let us all know your status as soon as you can!!!!

[MNNHFLTX]

Yeah, this is one to watch, isn't it? And of course, the frustrating thing about hurricanes is that there's nothing you can do but just keep monitoring where it's going and prepare as best you can. At best--and this is about a positive a thought as I can come up with right now--I guess we will find out if we (as in our cities, state and country) have learned our lessons from Katrina (and Rita, as far as an evacuation fiasco).

We are 70 miles inland in Houston, so I am not so concerned for myself. But I will be praying for everyone along the coast. Bret, a special prayer goes out for you and your fellow officers.

BTW, right now the local news there are plenty of hotel rooms inland in Houston, although that could change if it looks like Gustav is heading toward Galveston at all and people start to plan an evacuation.

[MississippiDisneyFreak]

I had to go look at Google maps. (The satellite view of the delta is amazing, by the way....ETA: I wish I had not zoomed in....)

The closest hotel room you could get was in Birmingham? How many hours does that take (in normal traffic)?

I also did not realize Baton Rouge was so close to New Orleans. For some reason I thought it was more towards the middle of the state. I guess you learn something new every day.

Its about 2 hrs away but with a storm that's not very far....Baton Rouge was affected with Katrina too, not quite as devasting as New Orleans...any towns on the North East side of the storm will be hit particularly hard....like Slidell, La

[MississippiDisneyFreak]

I actually booked yesterday in Baton Rouge thinking I would be a head of the game. This morning I called to confirm and found out that even if you book with a credit card and receive the confirmation, the hotel will not be honoring any reservations. They said that since Katrina they have a large corporation that signed a contract with them to reserve all rooms once a hurricane is projected to hit SE Louisiana. This means that all these people believe they have rooms and when they get there they will not be honored. There are no hotel rooms available in all of Louisiana. I was able to book Birmingham, Al. We are going to wait and see. I am in Kenner. If it's going to be bigger than a Cat 2 and keeps the same projected path we will leave. If it is a Cat 2 or less my family will probably all come to my house and we will wait it out together. We did not flood for Katrina but that was the luck of the levee breaking on the opposite side of the 17 street canal. Stay safe!!!

that's awful, I booked hotels two days ago so that I could be sure my son and my mother had a safe place to go....however that's in Mississippi, I'm hoping the deal you are talking about doesn't apply here.