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Post by Deleted on May 10, 2011 17:34:58 GMT
Yesterday afternoon I went and visited some friends who live up on the Mississippi River,on the other side of the levee, the area known as the batture.Their house is on pilings,a somewhat ramshackle, however,sturdy,dwelling where they have lived for the past 18 years. They graciously invited me to come by and see the rising Mississippi River,due to crest here in NOLA sometime over the weekend,I believe. I have seen the river water this high once before...back in 1973 around the time I first came to NOLA to attend university here. There is a string of about 10 houses or,as some refer to as 'camps'. All but 3 of the dwellings are inhabited with the exception of maybe one or two that are used for weekend getaways. Otherwise,this is where these folks live full time,all year long.They will evacuate if the rising water threatens to enter their home,and,during my hour and a half long visit there,it rose approximately 6 inches.... We sat on their back deck,that which wasn't under water,as you will see,and sipped iced tea while I snapped some pics. There was a wild,tranquil beauty I cannot describe. Blue herons,several species of ducks and snakes,lots of driftwood. The trees that normally would be on dry land obstructed any of the sweeping views of traffic on the river,even from the rooftop it was difficult to see out too far. I felt as though I was totally removed from civilization as I knew it. I saw these lovely people at the farmer's Market this a.m.,buying their weekly produce etc. They said they passed the night peacefully,without worry,although,they did say that the water had indeed risen overnight. Driveway entrance... pedestrian entryway side of house Back porch back porch view view from the rooftop view of the neighbor's house from the rooftop Neighbor's house on the other side A few feet above the grassy area in this last pic is where I ride my bicycle. I will go by and check on my friends later in the day.
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Post by mich64 on May 10, 2011 18:48:11 GMT
Hi Casi, this is devastating. I have been watching the coverage of the Mississippi in the US and also the Assiniboine (sp?) here in Canada. I cannot imagine the level of stress all of these people are going through. The images really show the dangers and the poor dogs even looked stressed. That propane tank that is half submerged scares me as well, as do the thought of snakes in the water! Wishing the best for all affected. Mich
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Post by Deleted on May 10, 2011 21:45:00 GMT
Absolutely wonderful photos of river life, but the rise of the water is inexorable. I was reading about problems in places like Memphis recently, and everything that happens upriver obviously arrives downriver sooner or later.
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Post by lola on May 10, 2011 22:55:36 GMT
Savage beauty, casimira. I wouldn't mind sitting on that deck myself and passing the time of day. How far is that porch normally from the river?
I'm afraid it rained her again today, so that much more coming your way. We're about 8 miles from the river here, and on high ground. I haven't been down to see the riverfront, but it doesn't appear to be our year to get submerged.
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Post by Deleted on May 11, 2011 13:08:20 GMT
Thank you good people for your comments. I took a walk up there last evening and the water is still quite high. It hasn't reached the stage of entering my friends home. One or two of the houses up there that are situated much lower do indeed have water in them and I'm sure no one is living in them at present.
In answer to your question about the back porch Lola, it depends on the time of year, Normally so to speak there is water under it but,certainly not that high. Other times when the river is very low, the water is much further out and barely under the house at all. If you look at that last picture with the big electric tower in it on the right,that structure is usually on dry land.
I didn't think about it until later but,when large vessels on the river sail by,I'm not quite sure of how much of a wake that they create that would surely threaten water coming into the houses at least temporarily.
I'm going to try and get up there again today in which case I will take some more pics to compare.
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Post by Deleted on May 11, 2011 13:23:59 GMT
I remember all of the fishing camps along the Chef Menteur Highway. They always fascinated me when we would drive to New Orleans, since that was the only road to go there before they built I-10. I drove through there after Katrina, though, and about 98% of everything was gone (just like after Camille). The 2% that were there had been built in the last few months. I'm always amazed at how people will keep going back to such places again and again, even though they know that the house has a chance of lasting only 10 or 20 years and is completely uninsurable.
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Post by imec on May 11, 2011 13:52:36 GMT
I feel like we've been given a rare glimpse into a side of the iconic Mississippi we perhaps read or wonder about but never really witness. This is almost identical to the vision I conjure up when I think of Cajuns (and I suspect these people aren't) living in the backwaters of Louisiana. Thanks!
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Post by mickthecactus on May 11, 2011 14:38:05 GMT
I've always wanted to cruise the Mississippi.
Wonder if I'll ever manage it......
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Post by lola on May 11, 2011 14:55:59 GMT
Stop off in St. Louis and we'll buy you a cup of coffee.
I had an old hippie/poet/college professor/songwriter/storyteller friend who used to spend his summers on riverboat cruises entertaining people.
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Post by mickthecactus on May 11, 2011 15:03:26 GMT
it's a deal Lola.
Shall I meet you at the fair?
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Post by lola on May 11, 2011 15:44:55 GMT
Yes! We'll leave some lights shining.
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Post by mickthecactus on May 11, 2011 16:14:39 GMT
Better practise the Hoochee Koochee then...
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Post by mickthecactus on May 11, 2011 16:16:34 GMT
Is this due to heavy rains? If so, you must have had ours. We've had virtually no rain here in my part of the UK since Feb.
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Post by Deleted on May 11, 2011 22:02:26 GMT
I remember all of the fishing camps along the Chef Menteur Highway. They always fascinated me when we would drive to New Orleans, since that was the only road to go there before they built I-10. I drove through there after Katrina, though, and about 98% of everything was gone (just like after Camille). The 2% that were there had been built in the last few months. I'm always amazed at how people will keep going back to such places again and again, even though they know that the house has a chance of lasting only 10 or 20 years and is completely uninsurable. Yes,there were quite a few of those camps there when I first came to NOLA,and,some of my husband's relatives had some camps out there that I visited a few times. These were on Lake Pontchartrain as opposed to the Mississippi River. They are long gone. The last of the old fishing camps on the lake on Hayne Blvd. were wiped out about 15 years ago by Hurricane Jorge. A dear friend of mine had one and was devastated when she went out there the following day to see it literally gone. I was with her when she first witnessed it,it was heartbreaking indeed. It had been in her family for many generations. The rising water is caused by melting snow and spring rains North of us,the mouth of the Mississippi being in Minnesota. Here in NOLA, we haven't had a drop of rain in 6 weeks.
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Post by bixaorellana on May 12, 2011 0:53:08 GMT
Actually, the mouth of the Mississippi is more than a hundred miles south of New Orleans, where the river empties into the Gulf of Mexico.
It's the headwaters of the river that are in Minnesota.
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Post by Deleted on May 12, 2011 2:32:30 GMT
Gee, thanks for that correction Bixa, .
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Post by bixaorellana on May 12, 2011 16:59:09 GMT
Ha -- I know you knew!
Anyway, think about this: if they called where the river started "the mouth", what would they have to call where it emptied out?
That first view from the roof is so beautiful. I always envied the people who had batture houses.
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Post by Deleted on May 12, 2011 17:35:36 GMT
My parents always fantasized about having a house on the water, but they were very cautious people and their "better judgement" would not allow such a risk.
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Post by bixaorellana on May 13, 2011 18:05:31 GMT
Casimira, I saw on the news that the levees have been closed. What is happening with your friends & the other batture houses people now?
Side note: while looking up this flood & the one in 1927, I found an army film showing Hoover touring the disaster in 1927. As the earworm, "President Coolidge came down in a railroad train ...", I found this sentence in an online history lesson: PresidentCalvin Coolidge did not visit the flooded Mississippi Valley, instead sending Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover. Huh!
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Post by Deleted on May 14, 2011 12:53:00 GMT
Casimira, I saw on the news that the levees have been closed. What is happening with your friends & the other batture houses people now? Side note: while looking up this flood & the one in 1927, I found an army film showing Hoover touring the disaster in 1927. As the earworm, "President Coolidge came down in a railroad train ...", I found this sentence in an online history lesson: PresidentCalvin Coolidge did not visit the flooded Mississippi Valley, instead sending Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover. Huh! I don't know anything about the levees being closed, I was up there last evening right before sunset and there were more people up there than I had ever seen. (observers). There was a Levee District patrol car up there with an officer just sitting in his car. There was an announcement 'advising' people to not go up there but,no one is heeding the warning,and,there is no enforcement. There were a dozen or so guys up there fishing and one could see fish jumping out of the water. At 8 p.m. last night,Governor Jindal announced that the Army Corps of Engineers is opening up the Morganza Spillway located just outside of Baton Rouge over the next 24 hours. This operation is being executed to divert flood waters from entering the cities of Baton Rouge and New Orleans but,will cause additional flooding to some areas West, in some already flood prone areas,mostly agricultural to my understanding. Side note: Was there any reference to the" little fat man with a notepad in his hand"?? hee hee... ;D
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Post by bixaorellana on May 14, 2011 15:37:39 GMT
Yeah, there was footage of Hoover followed by a bunch of little fat men, striding along muddy streets greeting people. They're all in ties and wearing hats. www.archive.org/details/mississippi_flood_1927 This can also be found on youtube, but without the accompanying text & thumbnails. The news story I saw said that enforcement of the levee closing would be at the discretion of local law enforcement agencies. Re: the Morganza Spillway -- go to my updated hometown thread to see how high up the water is in St. Francisville. You'll be able to orient yourself by looking at the last scene in the linked video in #38. The sheriff is standing at the foot of Catholic Hill. The flooded street beyond him is the road that leads to the ferry landing. That's some high water!
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Post by Deleted on May 14, 2011 18:32:42 GMT
I saw they they have been cutting more levees upriver to flood the fields and save the towns.
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Post by Deleted on May 14, 2011 20:05:40 GMT
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Post by Deleted on May 15, 2011 16:46:59 GMT
That still looks okay. But I have seen a lot of media photos of Memphis showing submerged cars. I always wonder about places where the water comes up too fast to move the cars. (Or maybe just nobody cares about careless people?)
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Post by lola on May 16, 2011 0:17:15 GMT
I'm afraid we've still been raining on your parade the past three days, NO, all up the valley from here to MN.
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Post by Deleted on May 25, 2011 0:28:16 GMT
Flying East out of NOLA last week I saw stunning views from the air of the river,at it's crest. The return flight I saw not so stunning,but,alarming views of a brown Lake Ponchartrain caused by the opening of the 2 spillways emptying Mississippi River water into it. I was aghast at seeing the once blue,green,sometimes grey colored lake BROWN!!This is reeking total havoc with the shrimp,crabs and oysters,the whole ecosystem/ food chain is basically f'd with the filling up of "fresh" water into the saline water of the lake. My understanding is,at least the fish in the lake can swim toward the Gulf to survive.
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Post by Deleted on May 25, 2011 21:55:53 GMT
I did read the other day that most of the oysters will die due to excess fresh water. I can imagine that the same goes for a lot of the crabs and shrimp.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 12, 2011 18:25:27 GMT
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Post by Kimby on Jun 12, 2011 20:18:16 GMT
The rising water is caused by melting snow and spring rains North of us, the (headwaters) of the Mississippi being in Minnesota. And a whole boatload of water is headed your way from Montana via the Missouri River, which empties into the Mississippi River at St. Louis. We have flooding in Montana, too, lots more rain in the forecast, AND the snow pack is 3 TIMES what it normally is this time of year. When all that melts, look out below!
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Post by Deleted on Jun 12, 2011 21:06:31 GMT
In that hot June sun, it will all evaporate before it reaches the Mississippi delta! Maybe.
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