Hands On USA - Gulfport/Biloxi

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2005-10-11T06:14:00.000-07:00

Ken says:
We arrived home last night after a 3 hour delay in Houston. It's good to be home, but at the same time a little strange. I kept looking around the house last night and thinking something is different, something is out of place. Then I realized that for the past week I hadn't been inside a house that wasn't moldy and trashed. My eyes weren't used to clean, fully intact rooms.

There used to be a councilor at Hands On who would run some short re-entry training sessions for people who were ready to head back into their everyday life and out of Biloxi. He left the second day I was there, and some volunteers were slightly mocking the sessions after he left. But, I can see why you might need something like that. It is really difficult to sort through the experience and figure out what it all means. I know it has affected me, but I just don't know how yet. I dreamt about piles of trash, and last night, my cat was up against my feet and for a minute, I thought she was a pile of debris I needed to shovel. It is certainly difficult to concentrate on getting back to work right now. And I was only there one week. Many volunteers have been there for four weeks, and will be there for many more.

I will be posting the few picks I have to the Snapfish site. Marcus has a good amount as well and we'll post them there or somewhere else. Thanks to everyone for the support and encouragement. I would highly encourage anyone who is up for it to take some time and help out with Hands On USA. We may try to organize a larger group to go down mabye at Thanksgiving. I will also look into ways to help them remotely. Right now they just don't know how they need help from remore folks, but maybe we can help them figure that out.

The group is doing incredible work and the volunteers are some of the most selfless, dedicated people I have ever met. There is such a diversity in ages, skills, backgrounds and home towns, but there are few conflicts and everyone makes it work. They are helping a section of Biloxi that not many people wanted to venture into before the hurricane and they are really getting things done. As one resident put it, "Ain't no one out here but y'all willing to help us out."

Marcus adds:

I've been walking around in a bit of a daze most of the day, somewhat remorseful to have left. I missed my family and that's essentially why I'm back, but the work left to do down there pulls at me. Speaking with my wife about the different crews at work there (cutting trees, gutting houses, tarping, surveying the streets to check in on residents), she asked, "Will the organization help build houses? How will the people get up and running again?" Honestly, the big picture is too overwhelming to digest at once and all I can think about is how to get more people to go down there. We have to keep the flow going until those areas like East Biloxi are cleared and ready for a new foundation, however that's built.

Spread the word and let people know there's an opportunity for everyone down there to help - it's not relegated to manual labor. As one of the nurses pointed out in our last meeting, about 95 percent of the cases they see among the residents now require mental health professionals. Like Ken wrote, the organization could use people who can get things started and keep 'em moving, remote or otherwise. Although I'm the first to admit that 3 or 4 days just doesn't seem like that much, it's because there's so much to do, not because your help wouldn't make a dent. There are those that need supplies, those that need a yard cleared so they can get their FEMA trailer, people who need a jumpstart in getting their house back together and inhabitable - but mostly it seems there are people down there who just need to talk with someone. Just talk.

As the plane pulled away from the airport and headed out over the water, I snapped a few photos of the blue sea that sits inland - the blocks and blocks of tarps covering the roofs of houses left standing. I'd like to go back someday soon and make sure those tarps unveil the life that's there, that will remain - so I can finally see the big picture.

Falling Into A Trashcan Hurts Your Head

2005-10-11T05:52:00.000-07:00

Ken says:
Our last full day in Biloxi (Sunday) was a very productive one. We worked on an interior crew, tearing down walls and pulling out appliances in two and a half houses in East Biloxi. In one of the houses, the homeowners were there. The husband, Arthur, helped us with the demolition. They did not stay in the house during the storm, but did stay in town. Arthur said he would never do that again. Marcus and I pulled out a washer, and we discovered some very raunchy smelling food that was left in the dishwasher. Oh, and also, I somehow fell headfirst into a giant trashcan and bonked my head. I don’t know if I can explain it in writing, but remind me to describe it for you next time we talk.

After lunch at the Urban Ministries free lunch area (Where Donny Osmond will be making a lunch appearance on Monday), I went with another volunteer, Janus, to check on an elderly man we visited a couple days ago. He was in bad shape then and refused to go to the hospital, so we wanted to make sure he actually went. I saw one of his neighbors outside and asked her if she had seen him. She told me he went to the hospital the day before and then she invited us in to her house. She recognized our Hands On hats since we had cleared some trees from her yard last week. She was an elderly woman with two of her grown sons living there. They had damage, but nothing too major, even though the water line was about 4 feet in the house. She really wanted to talk, and talked our ears off for about 20 minutes.

This seems to be pretty typical with a lot of hurricane victims there. The Hands On medical team said that at this point 95% of their time is spent talking and listening to victims. Most physical and medical issues are taken care of, but they need to talk to someone about the challenges they’ve had and continue to have because of the storm.

After that, I joined up with Marcus and the rest of the interior team and knocked out a house on Lee street. Towards the end of the job, I was shoveling the debris off the kitchen floor and suddenly heard a spraying water sound. I snapped off a small water line that had run into the refrigerator, I guess for an ice maker. We went to the curb and shut of the water to the house, but this family had already received a FEMA trailer, so turning the water off at the curb also turned the water off for the trailer. So, someone just crimped off the end of the pipe I busted and we turned the water back on.

The team then moved on to another work order further East, where the storm damage is worse. It was the first trip either of us had made that far East, and the scene was unbelievable. The area was nearly flattened, with very few houses still standing. The blocks that we were on will most likely just need to be bulldozed and rebuilt.

500 cockroaches

2005-10-09T00:03:00.000-07:00

Ken's rantings:
So, we're just getting back from the local pub, aptly named "The Pub." Please excuse any spelling and/or grammatical mistakes. Today we loaded all the dogs into a mammogram bus. Don't ask. We cleaned up the shelter and took off for some field work. Marcus and I ended up at a house/aparment building on Nixon street. I had never emptied a kitchen before, and I hope I never have to again. All the drawers, closets, cabinets were still filled with food, pots, utensils, etc. The stench was indescribable. We did demoltion on the propery and encountered a huge amount of cockroach friends. Each drawer I opened revealed a new colony, and they would scurry to the next safe spot. Then I would open that safe spot and they would scurry again. This pattern continued until eventually, we had hundreds of roaches scurrying everywhere. The weird thing was that these were pre-hurricane roaches. They were in the walls, floors, everywhere. But they were our friends, and we bonded.

I took some pics today, but my camera is all the way upstairs, and it is late, so y'all will just have to wait. Did you notice my use of y'all? I'm absorbing the Mississippi way. As we approach our last full day here, I feel like we have only scratched the surface. So many people need help and I encourage everyone to think about volunteering time in the area or donating to any charity that is helping Gulf Coast victims. Just imagine all of your belongings thrown out on the curb while you live in a tent in the back yard. This is what many people are living through right now. Anyway, one of the volunteers here has done a great job in capturing some images and thoughts of his experience. Check out the links section of the blog to see some photos he took. See if you can pick us out. He's much more diligent about updating his cite and he drinks far less beer at night, so his thoughts and pics might actually make a little bit of sense. Go to maplegreen.com/katrina.

Marcus??

Ken said to write maybe two sentences, so I'll try - well, it was what they call a "good day." Honestly, there's so much here and no amount of words of pictures (should I get off my fat ass and publish them) that would correctly transmit the amount of help these people have tried to control. I am super-tired. Must go to sleep. Talk with you more. Much, wore...

Daryl

2005-10-07T22:14:00.000-07:00

So, now that Marcus has arrived, we'll split the blog postings into two sections. I'll write my ramblings, and then Marcus will write his insightful thoughts.

Ken's stuff. Did the animal shelter stuff again today. We were tired of how long it took to get the dogs walked, fed, cages cleaned, so we took over and got it all done in about an hour's less time. Then I came back and did some office work at the base. After that I hopped a ride with Travis from Raleigh, NC and headed for a huge effort we had in East Biloxi. The Air Force had about 120 people who volunteered to help us today, and I joined in to help clear interiors of houses. Basically, we tore down all the drywall that was wet and moldy and left the studs,frame and floors of the house. The smell was overwhelming in most houses. Hard to describe, but imagine sewage combined with wet dog combined with old cooking grease. On top of that, some tubs and toilets had to be removed. We found a dead fish in one tub. Anyway, it was a smelly, hot, dirty job, but we got through it and will probably do more in the coming days.

Marcus arrived and was put to work right away. I first spotted him when I was on the back of a pickup driving away, and later met up with him at base camp for beers. Funny footnote I forgot to mention - the couple I had been hangin out with, Jen and James, kept calling me "Kevin" and I just kept letting them call me that since I let it go too long without correcting them. When they met up with Marcus, they discovered my real name and the hilarity insued.

Marcus speaks.

I was a little dismayed that no one knew my good friend Ken, as I'd known him for 5 years, but instead this "Kevin" or "Daryl" for that matter. What a scene - I'd arrived without much information or visual anticipation, to find this hubbub, this hive of activity. Dave Driscoll from Massachusettes picked me up from the airport without much fanfare - he'd mentioned my hilarious cohort Ken yet nothing prepared me for the decimation that I saw first from the air and then from the ground. I got to work almost immediately with a crew that watned to get into the shit, East Biloxi.

We got there quick and without much resistance from anyone. Amid a crew of Marines that had been given the day off to work on the poorest areas of town, we cleared the interiors of two homes - the memorable portion being the time one of them decided to empty out a washer that had month old laundry fermenting in sewer water. Without a mask, without gloves, this Marine emptied a vat of nastiness that I, armored in mask and gloves, had to leave the house twice so as not to puke. I've been up elephant's assholes and that smelled like clementine compared to the rank we got from that washer. We cleared two homes in 4 hours with the Marines - each of whom I wish I could kiss.

So many more stories - yet we must wake up and proceed to the animal shelter in less than 5 hours. More to come, those who continue to read. Much, much more...

Today

2005-10-06T21:17:00.000-07:00

Today was a long day at the animal shelter. We arrived at 6am to help with morning feedings, walks, cage cleaning. We shot over to Burger King for lunch. I haven't eaten at BK or McD's for a long, long time, but I just couldn't stop thinking about a whopper all morning. It was good.

We came back to base at lunch to try to recruit some members of a 40 person church group who had stopped in for the day. I explained that we needed help at the shelter, and could use 2 or 3 more people. I just got blank stares. The animal shelter work is kind of an ugly stepchild to the debris clearing and interior house clearing. I guess I can understand that, since you are helping people and you get an immediate response, and maybe the church folk think they'll score more points with God if they help people instead of dogs.

I must admit, I felt a little trapped today and a bit angry, since we are committed to help them for at least one more day. But then I thought about the volunteers at the shelter. There are 3 full time volunteers who have been sleeping in tents for weeks with portapotties and no showers. The work is extremely tedious, and the heat and smell can be a bit much at times. With 40 or so dogs and 20 cats, it's a lot to handle. So, I feel like we are helping ease their load in some way. Today, after getting them ready for transporting all the dogs, we cooked some dinner for them on their barbeque grills. They handed us some chicken that was in a cooler for I don't know how long. Hopefully our friend Sam O'nella doesn't pay a visit tonight or Friday.

Dinner for us at our home base was incredible. Ron, who may be the one man who snores louder than me (one volunteer said, "That guy has some serious medical snoring issues.") cooked an incredible meal. Roast beef, ham, rice pilaf, steamed veggies. He used to cater for 20 years and worked all day on breakfast and dinner. I hope he is here the rest of our stay. After dinner, I sharpened some chainsaw blades and somehow did not cut my self or others around me.

Well, I have to go rest up for the truimphant arrival of Sir Marcus. No pics today, since I forgot my camera. I'll make sure I get some more up tomorrow.

Dogs, Trees, and a One-Legged Man

2005-10-05T20:09:00.000-07:00

Today, Wednesday, I got a chance to see a lot of Biloxi. I didn’t take any pictures, because I didn’t feel right being a “tourist” in the face of all this destruction. Hands On does encourage us taking pics at the job sites, so maybe later in the week, I will snap a few. Pictures would not do it justice, though.

I started the day pretty tamely, going to a local animal shelter to walk dogs, clean cages, play with fiesty kittens. We saw FEMA there, adopting a dog to use as their mascot. So, don’t let anyone tell you that FEMA is not doing anything down here. Somehow I was assigned as crew chief for this shelter, since they are going to need help on Friday shipping the animals to another shelter. So, now I need to recruit some people to help, which will be difficult since the shelter is not really within the mission of Hands On. One thing I have learned, though, is that the mission here is really to help wherever is needed.

In the afternoon, I set out with my new friends, James and Jennifer from Boston, hopped in their pickup and headed to a tree clearing job site. Along with about 6 other people, we chopped up two giant trees in a retired couple’s yard and a demolished and cleared a tool shed that was crushed by one of the trees. FEMA is delivering trailers to Katrina victims, but they require a clear space before they deliver. That is one of the main things Hands On is doing.

We then headed into a region of East Biloxi hit even harder. This area had all buildings marked with specific code that described if the house was condemned, how many people were found dead or alive. Only one home I saw had a deceased code. We joined another crew and helped a couple clear a space for a FEMA trailer. The husband had been trying for at least a week to clear the space, but since he had one leg, it was pretty difficult. We cleared the space in about 1.5 hours.

As we were leaving, another guy struck up a conversation and told us his war story. He rode out the storm with his dog and disabled brother. The water rose to the ceiling, and he was forced into the attic. At one point, he had to swim under the water to unlock the door to the attic. He will most likely be able to rebuild, but his three motorcycles were washed about ¼ mile away, and stolen almost he next day. Since he’s at the end of his street, so, debris - including 5 bodies - washed up in a giant pile outside of his house. At this point, he was just happy to have someone to talk to, and he talked our ear off.

We drove back to base on rt90, which is right along the gulf coast. The highway is closed to all traffic except volunteer groups. There are some crazy scenes along there. Barges washed into hotels, a spiral staircase that survived while the house around it disappeared, large stone mansions where three of the four walls crumbled, and you can see the rooms inside like a dollhouse, and dozens of large buildings reduced to just the slab.

No matter what you might hear on the news, two things seem clear. One, there is not a rebuilding effort here – it’s still a disaster cleanup effort and will be for a long time. And also, FEMA still does not have its act together. As an example, one of the crew chiefs was working today and approached by some FEMA suits. The suits asked if he new where they could get some tents. He gave them four tent vouchers and they went on their merry way.

Background Info

2005-10-03T13:25:00.000-07:00

I'm getting packed and ready to head down to Gulfport at 7am on Tuesday. If you're curious about Hands On USA, and their mission, take a look at their website. Looks like they just added a video and a lot of other interesting info. The basic mission started with helping police and fire personnel get their homes into shape. Now, they have branched out and have many initiatives underway in conjunction with the city of East Biloxi.

Thanks to everyone for the support and well-wishes in the past few days. Hopefully, we'll have a chance to update this blog regularly and let everyone know what we are up to.

http://www.handsonusa.org