WAVELAND, Miss.—By the time we drive into this hurricane-stricken area to take over reporting duties from Jim and Mike it’s after dark. It’s hard to get the lay of the land. The terrain is unfamiliar, and things are not where they are normally would be. We can make out refrigerators and piles of other refuse along the boulevards. There are the silhouettes of tent encampments, trailers, and work machinery -– alien things that take up parking lots and churchyards.
But the lights, few and far between in these connected towns, are blinking off one by one. Curfew is now 8 p.m. in some areas, which are by this time completely shrouded in darkness.
We narrowly miss the closing of Benigno’s -- the only watering hole that has reopened open in Bay St. Louis’ hard-hit historical district. When we arrive just after 9 p.m., smoke still hangs thickly in the air, but the stools are up on the bar, and "Bohemian Rhapsody" is playing at top volume while the staff cleans up. Curfew is 9 p.m. in this area.
We pull into the dark parking lot of a strip mall, where one cheerful neon sign on a Chinese restaurant announces “OPEN.” Insides, the owner is struggling with a large piece of lumber. He won’t really be open until the gas is back on — maybe in two days.
The only place left to go at this hour is the Sonic Drive-In, an island of bright light floating in the darkness. It's the last resort for the late-night crowd in this part of town, which has an 11 p.m. curfew.
“I’ve never been here in my life,” says Liz Maio, who just returned for the first time since Katrina hit. Today, she retrieved her dog from a kennel and set up a camper in the yard of her flood-damaged house, where she will live while cleaning up, with the help of her cousin Jerry Wagner. When they got hungry, this was about their only option.
But she’s had a very long day and at this point, it seems, has never appreciated a meal more. “It’s absolutely delicious,” she says.
Covering the story of their lives
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I spent last week in Waveland helping at the distribution center at the Waveland Market. The Rainbow brothers and sisters furnish three great meals a day for over 2,000 people. Tuesday I wanted something different, a hamburger. A group of volunteers from Northern Kentucky told me a Sonic was open and they brought me back a hamburger, fries and Coke. The ice had melted but that didn't matter, the combo was great! Just about every night for the rest of the week we were at Sonic for supper. The place was packed every evening. We had so much fun with the servers skating back and forth and even the manager cut up with us. There were time during the week that I actually lived here(there). Waveland has a lot of great people. Sometimes you forget about the conditions get caught up in the fellowship of new friends. I look forward to this weekend where once again I'll be in Waveland.
Praise God,
Mark
Mark Madison, Northport, Al (Sent Oct 26, 2005 6:22:23 PM)
The fast food industry gets a lot of ire from the people of this country over the heathiness of their food and ingredients, etc. Yet, anywhere you go in this country there is one thing you can ALWAYS rely upon and that is when you walk into a McDonalds or a Wendys you KNOW what is going to be on that menu and you KNOW what it's going to taste like and you KNOW that they are exactly the same EVERYWHERE.
There's another thing you can always rely upon here in America. When the going gets tough, we get tougher. It's been proven time and time again, hurt us and we'll come back twice as strong. I am consistently amazed at the goodness of our citizens and their capacity for compassion. There are too many good people in this country for this situation to defeat the spirit of America, but WE MUST NOT FAIL EACH OTHER. This is an unspoken promise we make as a society, ingrained so deep it is a part of our souls.
I have seen story after story of the only places availible to people for sustinance was the local Wendy's or Sonic or Burger King or McDonalds and how some of these establishments fed the locals for FREE for as long as they could afford or until the food ran out.
Isn't it comforting in a country where the government can't seem to get it's head out from where the sun don't shine that there is still SOMETHING so TOTALLY AMERICAN to rely upon in a time of great need??
It just makes me smile because the fast food industry has had a love/hate relationship with the people in this country (to eat or not to eat??) and in our time of most need they were there, with open arms and hot grills to help their fellow Americans. The best part is that these places didn't have to ask anybody, didn't have to wait for the RED TAPE to clear, they just did it.
We have a responsibility to support our government and do so by paying our taxes and voting and being good people. Is it so wrong to EXPECT the best that our country has to offer?? I think American society as a whole needs to take one giant step back from the goverment, take a look at it really well, and let the officials on The Hill know that we as a society are not going to stand for this kind of behavior. They are here for us, WE established this goverment and WE have the power...it's just a matter of how many Katrinas and Ritas we're willing to put up with until we decide its worth the trouble to fix the problems with our government...there is always hope, though. We're here for each other, even if Big Brother isn't, and that is ultimately the test of our society. I love this country, I TRULY LOVE the people of this country and I pray for you all daily, especially those in great need.
ALSO, If you feel like there's something you CAN DO for the people who need help then it is your obligation TO DO so, even if you thinks its small it could be HUGE in another person's life. I hope that everyone who is hurting finds comfort and everyone that has a true need will find fulfillment. God bless.
Mary, Seattle, WA (Sent Oct 28, 2005 8:38:11 PM)
The Waveland Sonic Burger was home for over 70 search and rescue personnel during the week after Katrina hit.
Massachusetts Task Force One (MA-TF1) and Maryland Task Force One (MD-TF1) shared the Sonic Burger parking lot as our base camp, while Virginia Task Force 2 (VA-TF2) was in the parking lot of the drug store next door.
Seeing the photo above sure is quite a contrast to how things were when we were there - to see the lights repaired and lit, and customers in the driveway instead of our trucks is reassuring.
I also imagine the food is a lot better than the MRE's we were living off of.
I've put some photos of our team at the Sonic Burger
online - pictures from during our stay there.
The album is at:
http://www.matf.org/gallery/Katrina/
but one of my favorites is:
http://www.matf.org/gallery/Katrina/P9050076
Personally, I was stunned by the spirit of the people of Waveland we encountered. As it says in the sign we left there, God Bless Mississippi.
Chad Council
(MA-TF1)
Chad Council, Londonderry, New Hampshire (Sent Dec 15, 2005 4:42:36 PM)
I have to agree with Chad Council about the spirit of the people of Waveland. I am with Maryland Task Force One(MD-TF1) and we were in Waveland in the AM of Tuesday to find a devistated community. It is great to see the community is coming back to some type of normal especially the Sonic that we called home for our time in MS.
Be Safe and Have a Happy Holiday
Douglas Hinkle
Douglas Hinkle, New Market MD (Sent Dec 25, 2005 9:19:09 AM)
I've lived through hurricane Katrina and myself and others have started a nonprofit group to help Hurricane Katrina victimes like myself and my family And my question is this, Is there any other companies out there that is helping because some people still have no where to live and have nonthing or anybody to turn to because FEMA says they have done their job and take it from someone that knows frist hand they did nonthing for some people and gave all the wrong people who did not deserve any thing?
Raven Ruth (Sent Jul 24, 2006 2:33:20 PM)
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