Joy! Joy! Joy!
August 31st, 2005 at 2:56 pm by Dee O'Neil Andrews
I just now arrived in Abilene and am on my mom's terribly slow connection (via telephone) and in checking my latest post to you all (P. S. One More Thing), found the following 20 minute old comment from my precious son Mark and word of Tom, as follows: "Hey Mom, It is Mark. My family and I have made it to Eunice at Dad's house.
I-59 was impassable yesterday.
We made it out through I59 South to I12 to Baton Rouge and then on to Dad's house.
Tom is fine.
He went to check on yall's house yesterday evening. I am planning to go back in with some supplies and mainly gasoline, as there is NONE to be had. I want to try to get gasoline to people in order to get people out of Picayune, (the women, children, elderly, and special needs...like yourself. Love Mark"
Please join me in profusely thanking God for this wonderful news and greatest blessings I could ever have. I am not well and so needed to try to get some rest to recuperate and this will make that task so much easier!!!
Thank you all, thank you all, thank you for your glorious prayers to our Father on our behalf. I am going to try to call Mark as soon as I get off here, or reach him by email at his dad's house.
Pray I'll be able to reach him!
Wonderful, wonderful!!!!
I had just posted Mark’s reply at my blog and at Mike Cope’s blog.
That is such a relief!
Praise the Lord! Dee, that is good news.
God’s Grace.
It is so good to “hear” your voice! Praise God! We are still praying for your family.
Dee,
I can’t help but keep checking back to see if there is any update from you.
So glad you are where you need to be. A college friend of mine that lives in Picayune is headed back there in the morning. He is an engineer and works for the county engineer or is the county engineer. So we are gathering all sorts of supplies for him to carry back. I hope the church building is overrun with supplies. I will talk tonight to him about Tom.
It looks like New Orleans will get worse before it gets better.
so much loss it is hard to comprehend.
Great news Dee! Your bloggin family has been in prayer for you and MANY others!
In HIM,
DU
Precious Dee,
Take a long hot soak in the tub and get some deserved rest.
You are precious to me and so many.
I am thrilled you are in Abilene, and I know your mama is joyous to have you there.
We are continuing to pray for you, Tom and all the countless others who are trying to survive.
Love you with the love of the Lord,
Hoots
Praise the Lord!! Best news of the day! I will keep up the prayers.
Phew. Now I can breathe for the first time in days.
What wonderful, wonderful news!!!!
This IS good news! Get some rest. I’m still praying.
Have you found tom yet? Have you connected?
This is great news. Praise God! Some of your blogger friends are having coffee at the Starbucks on Buffalo Gap this morning at 8:30 and we would love to meet you and pray with you. Maybe we can see you there
Denise W
That’s wonderful news, Dee! You remain in my thoughts and prayers.
Hey Mom,
I’m about to leave in a few minutes to go back to Picayune. The price of gas is going up by the minute as I speak. I tried to email you detailed info through you charter email address, but I believe it is down because charter was located in Slidell. Tell Houston Costolo that the COC is fine and appeares to be unscathed. I will try to contact someone there to tell them Houston is trying to reach them to establish aid relief there at the church. I love you and will tell Tom you are fine.
Here is an email I tried to send out earlier.
Hello Everyone,
First, the family and I are fine. Although you all should already know this because right after the Hurricane came through I was able get a telephone call through to my brother and told my brother, David in Virginia, we were fine and that we came through the storm with only very minor damage to our home (we lost only about five shingles and a few holes in our fence). A few phone lines were working yesterday in Picayune, MS. It is a hit and miss. The phone lines that are working are the land lines and not the cell phones. Supposedly, Mike and Cindy Raybon’s phone was working yesterday. I’ve spent hours trying to get hold of them and others outside of Picayune, but it is a hit and miss situation…..mostly miss.
Picayune came through the storm well. Mostly wind and tree damage. Most of the damage is from trees falling on homes and some wind damage here and there to businesses. As far as I know there hasn’t been a single fatality in Picayune, MS. There was a rumor that Crosby Memorial hospital was destroyed. It is false. I saw the hospital with my own eyes and it is in working order. The Catholic church however had damage to the roof. No apparent visible holes in the roof, but bare plywood board was visible and the tar paper and metal sheeting was gone. First Baptist Church had only very minor roof damage, it is a steel and concrete structure with a masonry brick fasade. WalMart appeared to be in good shape. Gas stations mostly had the roofing covering the pumps gone. No looting has occurred yet in Picayune, MS that I am aware of…unlike the footage of looters in New Orleans.
Trees are down EVERYWHERE. Major roads through town are now passable. Neighborhood roads/side roads are being cleared one by one. All towns in ALL of southern MS and Southeast LA is islolated by trees blocking the roads. It looks like the Nazis tactics used of felling trees across roads as they retreated from the allied advance through Europe. It took until almost noon yesterday for the trees in my neighborhood to be cleared enough to take automobile vehicles in and out. We had to form a neighborhood posse with one chainsaw between us to get our street cleared. The city of Picayune was overwhelmed to get to our street yesterday to clear it. As of yesterday, City Hall in Picayune said it was going to be 30 days before Picayune has power. Picauyune has clean water, at least to our neighborhood behind Claireborne Hill. There is a natural gas powered generator pumping water into our neighborhood. The first truck with aid from outside arrived in Picayune yesterday late yesterday evening, but what Picayune needs most (after power of course) is gasoline trucks with fuel…selling fuel directly from the trucks. Gasoline to operate chainsaws, vehicles, generators, etc.
People were out everywhere checking out the damage to home, businesses, other family and friends. HOWEVER, there are NO GASOLINE stations open for service because there is no power. Most people only have one tank of gasoline. Some people have enough gasloine for several days. A few people has gasoline generators, but the gas will be gone in a few days…if that long. We only had a full tank of gas from right before the storm and made it out by the hand of God.
The only way in and out of Picayune that I am aware of as of yesterday and last night was I-59 South to I-59/I-12 interchange. Take I-12 out to I-55 or I-10 in Baton Rouge. Currently, if you leave Picayune, MS the first available gas that I am aware of is in Baton Rouge. Baton Rouge is now about double in size and growing in population. Baton Rouge is the first major city currently accessable out of Southern MS and New Orleans. Lines were at stores everywhere.
There is so much to say and I am too tired to say it all, but I am planning to go back into Picayune, MS tonight to bring in gasoline. I want to get as many people out, especially the women, children, and elderly. There are members of my church who are awaiting news, fuel, etc. and I need to get back in contact with them. Kevin Mars got in contact with me and he is coming to Eunice, (hopefully by tomorrow afternoon) to help me going in and out of Picayune with gasoline. His mom, sister, grandmother, and other family are still in Picayune.
If you know anyone in Picayune, MS then I will try to get news to them if you “reply” and send me an email. I can’t gurantee that I’ll be able to reach them but I can leave messages with people in Picayune. Here are the people who I have seen, know, or heard that are safe and okay as of Tuesday:
Mike and Cindy Raybon and family (in Picayune)
Hugh and Tanya Carr and family (in Picayune) Home is fine. Truck and Katy’s car are tree damaged.
Roy and Cindy Bennett and family (in Picayune) Home is fine.
DiV Hobgood and family (in Picayune) Home okay, sky lights are gone and pine tree on the garage.
Kevin and Saint Mars and kids (in Birmingham AL heading to Asheville, NC)
Diane and Laura Mars (in Picayune? condition unknown) Diane Mars home condition, unknown.
Ms Dorothy Ducoute (in GA, supposedly trying to return to Picayune) Her home is okay with some shingles missing from the wind.
Dennis and Lisa Pitts and family (in Northern MS) Home has one tree on the roof but doesn’t appear to be damaged externally.
Sally Spell (out of Picayune, MS but whereabouts unknown) House is very damaged by two or three pine trees.
Patricia Dawsey (location unknown) Home appears to be okay.
Tom Andrews (in Picayune, MS) Home in Slidell, condition, unknown. Tom was going down to Slidell yesterday to check out the home.
Right now people in Picayune, MS need gas/fuel to get the women, children and elderly out of Picayune. It is typical southerner weather, 90oF, high humidity, and like a pressure cooker.
Regards,
Mark A. O’Neil
1218 Highland Dr.
Picayune, MS 39466
P.S. I am so aggravated with the national media. There are 100,000’s of thousands of people trapped in small communities that are being ignored and information is not being given to those who live there and are desparate to have some media /communication there too.
Love Mark