This book details the journey of one family's survival after one of the most devastating and destructive natural disasters in this country's history. Erin Akey, her three sons aged 13, 9, and 5, and her mother set out to seek safety as Hurricane Katrina approached their home in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. Erin was a divorced, single mother who had to find a way for her family to survive as they fled the storm, found out that all that was left of their home and possessions was the slab of concrete and nothing else. She had to learn how to navigate the governmental bureaucracies to get help for them to survive, followed by her home insurance company trying any and everything to avoid honoring their commitment to their policyholders, and securing a safe place for them to live during these trying times. The reader is caught up in her trials and tribulations as they journey with her in her efforts to resolve the seemingly insurmountable obstacles she faced. However, this is not just a story of desperation but also of conquest. Despite the misery and heartache, Erin's story has a wonderful and exciting conclusion and the anticipation of a wonderful future filled with happiness and service to those who find themselves in circumstances similar to those she and her family faced. It is a story of courage in the face of adversity, faith, and the willingness to accept the good things God gives us, thank Him, and go forward, in His name, to help others.
After the Rain
By Erin AkeyAuthorHouse
Copyright © 2009 Erin Akey
All right reserved.ISBN: 978-1-4490-2903-6 Chapter One
Friday August 26, 2005 Gulfport, Mississippi
I remember August 26th as a beautiful day. The sun was shining and it was so clear outside. The Port of Gulfport was bustling with activity and I had several ships to visit that day. When I headed to the port, I always made my way down Highway 90, the beach road. I would leave my house and cross over the Bay St. Louis Bridge and head east for about ten miles to the port. I never used the interstate. The scenic drive was so relaxing to me I really enjoyed using that time to collect my thoughts and think about my clients and what I had to do for the day.
For the past three days I had been listening to the radio and watching weather reports about a hurricane forming in the Gulf, but I wasn't overly concerned. It looked as if it would head for New Orleans and it was only a Category 1, so nothing to cause concern. I had briefly mentioned it to my extremely stubborn mother the day before and her response was basically that it wasn't coming towards us and she would never leave again for another storm after the Ivan fiasco. We had evacuated the year before for Hurricane Ivan and had been stuck in traffic for almost twelve hours and it was a complete nightmare. The storm hit about 100 miles away and we were on the west side of the eye wall, so we barely had a limb down in the yard.
On this Friday, there was a ship in port which was captained by a good friend of mine. Captain Petrovic was a very polite and well-spoken Croatian man on the M/V Courtney L. I was glad I was going to get to see Petrovic today. We had children close to the same ages and he always appreciated the little gifts I brought. Today I was bringing him some dolmades from the Greek restaurant. As I made my way towards the port, a report came on the radio that Hurricane Katrina looked as if it were poised to strengthen and they were still saying New Orleans looked like the most likely candidate for a direct hit. I made a phone call to my Grandmother in New Orleans to see if she had a plan to leave if things got crazy. She reminded me of how the storm had brushed the tip of Florida a few days before and all was fine there. I told her I loved her and to please have a plan. I knew my Aunt and Uncle who lived right across the street would definitely take care of her.
When Katrina briefly made landfall in Florida a few days before, it had been a very mild storm. The report also said that the strike cone had narrowed that morning and New Orleans was now in the bull's eye. I got on my two-way radio that was used to communicate with my company's head office in New Orleans, about sixty miles away. I asked the general manager what plans were being made in light of the morning's developments. He told me that they were really in a watch and see mode and to just keep an eye on the weather and leave if I felt it necessary to leave and not to worry about work. He also told me that if I did leave town to take my two-way radio with me, as this would be the only way to keep track of everyone.
Something about his comments unsettled me. I couldn't pinpoint why, but I had a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach about this storm. Looking back I realize that wasn't just a feeling, it was a feeling from God. The more I listened, the more I began to worry. Every person I ran into seemed to be talking about the changes taking place today with this storm. I realized quickly that a New Orleans landfall would put Bay St. Louis east of the eye. I knew from living all my life on the Gulf coast that east of the eye wall is the absolute worst place to be in terms of damage and high winds.
I arrived at the port and drove up to the security gate still half daydreaming about the weather. At the gate, my guard buddy stopped me to chat.
"How's it going today, Erin?"
"Morning. Got a few to see for a Friday. Sure looks busy today." I scanned the east side of the port and saw that nearly every berth was occupied. "How many ships are in Max?"
"Port's full. And with this hurricane, looks like we will be full for a while. A bunch of these ships were headed for New Orleans and have been diverted here to stay safe from that storm. Also got two today headed for Florida and the east coast and they aint going nowhere near there right now!"
"Gotcha. Well at least that gives me more time to take care of business." I started to drive off. "See ya!" I drove away ready to finish my ships for the day and get back home.
On that day, I saved the Courtney L for last on my list of ships to visit. As I approached and got out, I could see the gangway watchman and waved at him. He was a very young Filipino man who always greeted me with a smile. I think most of the guys knew that when they saw Ms. Erin, the next meal would have fresh produce and that all of the things the cook had been out of were about to be replenished. The stevedores were taking their lunch break and as I walked up the gangway, I could hear them talking. It seemed they were all buzzing about this new hurricane. Once on deck, I headed for the familiar staircase and went up to the second level. I looked out over the water and saw a dolphin moving gracefully through the waves bobbing in and out of the water. I had no idea that this would be the last peaceful memory of the Port of Gulfport that I would have for a long time.
Captain Petrovic was in his office with someone from the port discussing the hurricane. He looked up and greeted me as I walked in. "Erin, so good to see you!" His thick accent and deep voice couldn't hide his incredibly pleasant demeanor. Petrovic always had a smile on his face and was such a pleasure to work with.
"Hi Captain, how are you today?" I extended my hand which was rejected in favor of a hug. I reached in my backpack and handed Petrovic a styrofoam container and saw his eyes light up.
"And what good treat did you bring today?" He opened the lid and smiled even bigger. "Dolmades, wonderful. I will have steward prepare them with my dinner. Thank you so much Erin."
"My pleasure. I hope I am not interrupting a meeting here."
"No, no you are not. We were just talking about plans for halting cargo operations and leaving port earlier than usual."
"Because of the storm?" This concerned me a little.
The port official excused himself and left the office. Petrovic pulled out a chair and asked me to have a seat. This ship was owned by a big fruit company and came in to unload containers of fruit and then reload with other cargo.
"Yes, the hurricane. It seems it has made some turns in the last couple of hours and now the port is evacuating and having all ships pull out this evening. This will give us enough time to head around the storm and not get caught in it." Petrovic had a very concerned look on his face as he spoke.
"Are we in the possible path now?" I had not seen a news report since that morning.
"Actually I am hearing from my weather experts in the home office that it will more likely be Mississippi who gets the brunt of the storm Erin. Is your family in a good strong house?"
"Oh yeah. My house is a 2400 square foot brick house. It made it though Camille back in the sixties with no problem. I am not too worried. Plus it is only a category one. We never leave for those. Now Ivan we left for, and it was a false alarm."
"This one looks a lot bigger and the forecast is for it to be a lot stronger when it reaches land. My office tells me it stayed over land in Florida yesterday or several hours and the winds only decreased by three knots. That is pretty impressive. You be careful."
"I will. If it looks like we are in any kind of danger, I will pack up my mom and kids and we will be out of here. I won't ever stay for a category three or above."
"Good. I expect to see you in three weeks my friend. For now I have to cut our visit short in order to prepare for sailing. Tell your boys hello for me and be safe."
Petrovic finished signing all of the invoices for that day's delivery and I headed out. I couldn't help but wonder how this storm would affect our business for the next few days. It looked to be at least three or four days out, and with two of our offices, Mobile and New Orleans, in the possible strike zone, it looked as if our Houston and Corpus Christi branches could be seeing some extra action over the next few days. I had no clue at the time as to just how accurate my hunches were.
While driving home along the beach, it was hard to believe a storm could possibly be heading our way. The usual summer crowds were in full force and the jet-ski rentals and parasailing boats were going strong. I saw a group of kids flying kites and no one looked the least bit concerned about anything but playing in the sun and getting a good tan.
My ex called to ask me what I had heard about the hurricane. He worked at a naval installation so he was around some of the top weather experts in the country and he said he didn't have a very good feeling. He was asking me if I still had the boards we had put on the windows the year before when we left for Ivan. He also wanted to know if I could make a call and get us a reservation at a hotel that was at least four hours away for Sunday and Monday just in case. I informed him that my mother would never leave unless this thing started to head directly towards us. I did not want to deal with another Ivan scenario of being stranded in traffic for fifteen hours for a false alarm. I was also leery of my family evacuating with him, considering our "off again" status.
However, it was a little scary to think of going off into the unknown all alone. As I said before, this man had sapped every ounce of self confidence from me and for some reason I always let him convince me that I was a bumbling idiot who would never find anyone better. This is what I got for following my own will and not God's for my life. But God had plans that were bigger than me or the ex. I just didn't realize it.
I reluctantly made the call and got us rooms in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. This was the closest place I could find going north. We would head due north and as far away from water as possible. Although we were huge Alabama football fans, due to my grandfather being a native of the state, I was secretly hoping I would never need these reservations.
I headed to Wal-Mart to pick up a present for the little girl across the street that was having a birthday party on the beach Saturday night. When I pulled into the parking lot, it was a madhouse. Apparently folks were not taking any chances and the entire town of Bay St. Louis had come to Wal-Mart to stock up on storm supplies. I grabbed my gift as quickly as I could along with some batteries and bottled water just in case we did get a hit and lost power for a few days. After nearly an hour in the checkout, I headed home.
I woke up Saturday morning and turned on the news only to find that Katrina was now a Category 3 storm. This wasn't good. As the storm moved closer to land, the strike zone kept narrowing and the Mississippi-Louisiana border seemed to be directly in the path. The governor of Mississippi had declared a state of emergency late Friday evening and was advising everyone in the coastal areas to leave town. People were already leaving New Orleans and the traffic they were showing on television was bumper-to-bumper. I had talked to my mother Friday night and her attitude was still one of let's wait and see what happens.
"These things never hit where they say they will. They always turn and hit somewhere else. I have seen it too many times over my sixty-plus years on this earth." Mom was pretty adamant about not evacuating unless it was completely necessary. She also was worried about her 87 year old mother.
While I was glued to the television and the weather channel, the boys spent the day playing outside and riding their bikes down to the water to see if the surf looked different. There was almost a sense of excitement for them. I figured I had better check in with my dad and see what his plans were along with my brother. The two of them were next door neighbors right on the water about ten miles from my house.
"Hello?" My dad sounded pretty distracted.
"Hey dad. What do you think?" It wasn't necessary to tell him why I was calling and what I meant. It was pretty obvious.
"Well, we are probably going to pack up tomorrow and head up to Rigby's just to be safe. You guys need a plan and need to decide where you will go if this thing keeps heading this way. Have you thought about it at all?"
"I made a reservation for a hotel in Tuscaloosa just in case. Do you think Rigby's will be far enough away? This looks like a major storm."
"Oh yeah, Rigby's is plenty far enough and good high ground. Do you guys want to come with us?"
Rigby's was a place where we went camping and had been ever since I was a small child. It was actually property owned by an old family friend, Mr. Rigby, in Carpenter, Mississippi, which is approximately 150 miles from the coast. The entire Rigby family were some of the nicest and most gracious people you could ever meet. It was a beautiful place to go and ride motorcycles and my boys loved it there. But if I were going to have to leave for a storm, I wanted to be somewhere where I could monitor the weather on television etc., not be camping in a tent. My brother had a camper and they would all stay in that, but if we went, it would be tent city.
"No thanks dad, we have a hotel. But I will call you in the morning. Or if you guys decide you are definitely leaving, let me know."
"Right now it is too soon to really know what this thing will do. Let's touch base in the morning."
"Should I board up the house if we do leave?"
My dad laughed. "Erin, I can tell you that if it gets to the point where you need boards, forget them because there would be nothing left. I've gotta go. Love you guys." He hung up.
I relayed the conversation to my mom. If my dad left, then that would mean we should leave. Mom tended to agree. He was not one to panic. At this point I was starting to get a bit concerned that evacuating would mean going off with the ex. As I was watching the news that afternoon, I contemplated in my head just telling him we would go it alone. We could surely fend for ourselves? If I had known then what I know now, this is probably what we would have done. Of course hindsight is 20/20. It is amazing how when we are trying to control our own destiny and not listening to what God has planned; we sometimes make some crazy choices. However, I am becoming a big fan of the old phrase "everything happens for a reason."
Around 3:00 p.m., I decided it was time to get out of the house and get some fresh air. My neighbors were outside all standing around talking. The question of the day was what is the storm going to do and where is it going? We all discussed the fact that if it turned any more towards the Mississippi border, we would probably have to leave.
That afternoon, as we got ready to head down to the beach for the birthday party, something in the pit of my stomach told me this time was going to be different from Ivan, and different from Cindy and Dennis, both of which had come earlier that season and caused us some bad weather and branches down and loss of power for a bit. I had a nagging feeling that this storm was going to mean serious disaster for whoever was in its path.
When we got to the beach for the neighbor's birthday party, it was hard to believe on such a gorgeous evening that the next forty-eight hours could possibly bring a Category 3 hurricane our way. All of the kids in attendance seemed totally oblivious as they played on the beach. The sky was so clear that we could make out several constellations. It was a perfect night. We all sat around talking about storms, and with many of the residents of Bay St. Louis being transplants from New Orleans, every one of us realized either ourselves, or our loved ones in the Big Easy were going to be dreadfully affected by the approaching storm which looked to be on a course to make landfall sometime late Monday.
The last report I had seen on the Weather Channel right before we left for the party had Jim Cantore on location live from Biloxi, Mississippi, which was about fifteen miles down the beach from Bay St. Louis. We all joked that this was a pretty ominous sign, because in the past it seemed that wherever Jim went, that was where the eye of the hurricane made a direct hit. I was starting to feel a little nervous and all I could think of was the idea of being responsible for me, my kids, and my mother. Making the right choice was all I could think about.
Finally, about 10:30 p.m., we said goodnight to all of the other guests still hanging out and headed back home. Grant was asking me if we planned to leave, and I very honestly told him that I had made a hotel reservation and was definitely planning to leave if things kept looking bad throughout the night. I could tell my first born was more nervous about this storm than he had been in all of his 13 years. While I wasn't one for false alarms, looking at my son made me realize even more that no matter what I saw on the news and weather reports, I had to get my babies and my mother out of here. I was fully prepared for a big argument from my mother, but would put my foot down. In my mind, the decision to leave was made.
I stayed glued to the television for the rest of the night. At one point, the mayor of New Orleans was on television telling all residents to leave and if they had nowhere to go then to go to the Superdome. Meanwhile, here in Mississippi, the governor had declared a mandatory evacuation for my county which was Hancock. I had never in my life seen anything like this. My mother did not protest even once when I told her we were leaving the next morning. This was when I first realized just how bad things really were.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from After the Rainby Erin Akey Copyright © 2009 by Erin Akey. Excerpted by permission.
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