Hurricane Gustav in Baton Rouge

Although I could not take a photo then, let me describe to you what I saw around Baton Rouge on our drive back to New Orleans after Hurricane Gustav. The first thing I saw were many large trees flat on the ground, torn out by the roots. Then there were freshly cut logs from trees all around the sides of streets. (This was four days after the storm, and people were cleaning up.) I saw that almost no one had electric power. In some cases, the strong winds had knocked down large trees; and they crashed right through homes, destroying them. People were milling about outside in the neighborhoods, on front porches, walking on sidewalks, sitting on front lawns. Debris and tree branches were every where on the ground.

It was said on the radio that Hurricane Gustav was the worst hurricane to ever hit Baton Rouge. It was not Katrina (but nothing else was); but for Baton Rouge, it was very bad. It is possible that the state capital will be without electric power for many days or even weeks. The storm went on to attack much of the rest of Louisiana as well. It was difficult to find gasoline, food, bottled water, and other supplies anywhere in the area. The heat and the humidity increased as we approached New Orleans on our re-entry to the city.
-- Adrian