As a child, my family and I planned annual trips to the state of Jalisco in Mexico to visit our family members. Each year we took a different method of getting to our destination. Some years we would enjoy a two day road trip while other times we would enjoy the view from a three hour flight. In 2006, we decided that we would drive so that we could load the truck with gifts for our family. This particular year I was excited because we were going to be traveling in September rather than during summer.
One September morning my parents loaded up the truck and we headed out to our destination. My grandmother was sharing stories with me and my younger brothers as we drove through the different states. We arrived in Sinaloa, midway to Jalisco,
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It was around 9a.m. when drops of rain starting falling and just five minutes later we found ourselves in a horribly strong storm. The radio went out and the only station we were able to listen to was the news station. My mother was listening to the news as my father was cautiously driving through the storm. I was terrified in the back seat as the wind pushed our loaded truck around and knocked down trees, making them land directly in front of us. I watched my father struggle to keep the truck on the road but it seemed as if Mother Nature didn’t want us to advance much further so my father parked us safely under a freeway overpass. It was exactly 11a.m. when we came to a complete stop and heard the news station announce that our location was getting hit by a hurricane. At that moment we all turned to one another with a blank expression on our faces. We sat in the shaking truck watching as trailer trucks, travel buses, and families pulled up next to us, everyone of them trying to get safely under the freeway overpass. We watched in horror as strong trees and trailer trucks were pushed over by the wind. The passengers from the travel buses screamed each time the force of the wind would shatter one of their windows. Once all the windows were broken, the passengers began to use their blankets and unused shirts to cover the broken windows to avoid things from flying …show more content…
From that, we learned the hurricane was only getting stronger. We sat watching as trees kept falling and the sides of the road starting turning into rivers. Soon, the road started to disappear under all the water. Some time in the afternoon the storm had calmed down enough for us to try to move forward. My father along with other drivers started driving forward assuming where the road would be since it was not visible. We drove on the ocean-like ground for about five minutes when suddenly the water started pushing our truck off the road. We made it on top of a hill where we found other people soaking wet. They explained that the freeway overpass they were under had collapsed because of the powerful winds of the hurricane and there was no way around it. Since the road was blocked off with the fallen bridge and the road was a river all we could do was go back before the hurricane picked up
Thunder rolled intensely outside, my aunt, mother, sister and I were sat calmly in the basement. We had been through this many times before; I mean afterall, Kansas was part of Tornado Alley. 2. My sister and I were young when this happened, her probably four or five, me about eight. 3. Before we had even started driving to my aunt’s house; since she’s the only one with a basement; my sister and I were complaining about being hungry. 4. Mom said she would get us something to eat soon, but then the sirens started blaring. 5. She called my aunt and told her we would be over in about ten minutes. 6. Me and my sister continued to complain about being hungry because, we always had to get what we wanted. 7. So my mom stopped at McDonald’s and got us some food. 8. After we were almost five minutes later than we said we would be my aunt panicked. 9. Jenny, my aunt, was calling like crazy. 10. When we finally got to her house she lectured my mom about how it wasn’t safe to have us out there like that with a tornado in the area. 11.Afterwards, we all sat on the porch and watched the storm. 12. That’s my favorite memory with my family, and it’s one I’ll never forget.
middle of paper ... ... The. “Hurricane Andrew: The Human Side of Recovery.” Disaster Recovery Journal, System Support Inc. 1 Sept. 2001. Web.
Hurricane Katrina left a devastating scar on the citizens of the southern coast of the U.S., especially New Orleans, Louisiana. The category 5 hurricane was the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the most deadly. Katrina hit New Orleans on August 29th, 2005 and after that day, 66,000 people were displaced from their homes. Of those who decided to ride out the storm with hopes of success and survival as they had experienced with other storms, they were found on their rooftops, in their attics, hoping for boat or helicopter rescue, relying on others for help to survive. The storm had reached 28,000 square feet inward to Louisiana, which was 60 percent of the state. 1,100 Louisianans lost their lives, and 200,000 were displaced and/or lost their homes (Davis 8). It was a devastating time of despair and suffering. People were put through experiences that would scar them for a long time. While preparing for evacuation, people left most of their belongings at home to flee to a safer city or to find shelter in the Superdome and Convention Center. Some even decided to remain in their boarded up homes. After the hurricane had past, a few hours went by and a levee located near the Mississippi River canal broke leaving New Orleans flooded (Delisi). After the disaster, the state and federal governments were pointing fingers at each other as to who was to blame for the poorly planned evacuation and rescue efforts for the victims. The state government promised to help evacuate those who could not transport themselves. Citizens were told to go to the Superdome and convention center for evacuation, but the supplies needed for survi...
From the first nigh the storm took over the city of Houston many people waited out for the storm to just pass by from their homes. Thousands of people refused to evacuate after the warnings of heavy rains and high rise of waters. Unfortunately, many regret not leaving their homes when they were told to do so. “Now they're having to be rescued,” Alston said. “If we had known it would be like this, I think we would've left.” (Malewitz). The situation became difficult once the rescue team
On September 8, 1900, the United States experienced the most devastating natural disaster in history, the 1900 storm. Originating as a tropical storm off the coast of Cuba, the 1900 storm didn’t reach hurricane status until passing Key West, Florida. While in the eastern part of the Gulf of Mexico, the storm took an unexpected turn heading towards the Texas coast. Because of the lack of technology during this era, the people were warned that a storm of moderate intensity was headed toward them. Unaware that the storm was forcefully gaining speed, the Galvestonians were in no way prepared for the extraordinary weather which was quietly approaching. Suddenly, the ruthless hurricane struck the shores of Galveston, Texas, one of the wealthiest cities in the United States, famous for its shipping port. The brutal winds of the storm shocked the city, as they desperately sought shelter.
We started our travels down in Columbus Ohio. The week leading up to the big move we spent at Deer Creek State park, for a family reunion, where my dad and step mom, had the chance to see everyone again, before the journey began. Over all we had taken nine days to get to our destination. First stop, Saint Louis, Missouri, we stopped to see the Gateway Arch. It was a lot bigger than I thought it would be, so of course I was pretty amazed. The first few days were our longest driving days, but sense we broke up the days, our longest day was eight hours. The second day was the worst, Oklahoma is so boring to drive through, and nothing but flat crop farms, and wind turbines everywhere you look. We drove till we got about seventy five miles from the boarder of New Mexico, And Oklahoma. We got up early and began a shorter dive to Albuquerque, New Mexico, where we went to Petroglyph National Monument, yeah it was interesting, but after you see a few hundred, they all start to look the same. The next morning we took a beautiful hike and took many pictures to capture the moment. Other than getting there, my favorite part of the trip, was Arizona, where we stayed four days in Flagstaff, one day in Holbrook, and one day in Phoenix. I wouldn’t mind if I lived in Arizona, it’s a very beautiful state. My family and I stopped by the Petrified Forest National Park, and I
Hurricane Hugo was a tragic natural disaster that completely altered the lives of many people affected by it. In 1989, the year I was born, my parents and I lived on an oceanfront lot in Myrtle Beach. When Hugo struck, most of the city was flooded, with some areas under twenty five inches of water. A clear evacuation plan was presented, which most of the city’s residents followed, traveling north to Greenville. When we returned to our house, we found nothing but rubble and debris piled up in twelve inches of salt water. The President flew to the areas affected by Hugo to view the devastation, and immediately gr...
“After being examined at the ER, we continued on to the wedding reception. Where, less than 3 hour after this accident, Rachel, Jeff, Sarah, and Haley were able to dance and have a great time! If they had not been wearing their seat belts, they could have been dead. So Please Buckle Up your Seat Belts every time you get in the car!” (www.geocities.com/gargn6/seatbelts.html?200522).
In August 2005, at the tender age of 7, I received the most devastating news. I was told by my family that a hurricane was coming to my city, New Orleans, Louisiana. Because of this storm, Hurricane Katrina, I was told that I would most likely have to move away for a long time, meaning the rest of my life. My family and I lost everything, and the hurricane ended up destroying the entire city completely. This was heartbreaking to me for a plethora of reasons, including that I lost loved ones and was separated from the rest of my family at such an early age. This ravaging storm marked the most drastic change of my life.
A little over ten years ago, a catastrophic event struck the American shoreline and left devastating effects for years to come. It was very early in the morning on August 29, 2005; Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast of the United States. For days before, the hurricane could be charted by various meteorologists so there was no mystery that a very large storm was approaching a very vulnerable part of the United States coast line. The storm made landfall as a Category 3, meaning sustained winds of 100–140 miles per hour. The hurricane stretched some 400 miles across. While the storm hit relatively quickly and harshly, its aftermath was the most catastrophic. Levee breaches led to massive flooding.
In 2009, my parents and I decided to travel to San Antonio, Texas for vacation. My parents and I have traveled there before, but we enjoyed it so much that we decided to go back. With many places to see and do; my parents thought that we should go to Six Flags Fiesta Texas. It was at this theme park, where something happened that I would never forget.
rainstorm, and was positive one was coming. The wind started to howl, so strong that it
Picture this, you laying on top of you car as you are being violently slung down your street, which was once dry and calm and is now wet and foreign, at an extremely rapid pace. You can’t find your family and all you can do is hope that they haven’t drowned and are able to stay afloat against the violent waters that are angrily attempting to destroy everything in its path. You look around the weather is gray and it’s raining heavily. It is a struggle to breathe between the rapid rain and the violent waters which are attempting to pull you under, forever. Your house no longer exists it is broken down from the pounding waters and fast winds. That is exactly what it would be like if you were in the midst of a hurricane. After hurricanes are over the confusion is crazy, children who had loving families are now orphaned, people become homeless, and people miss certain joys such as walking due to becoming paralyzed.
...e roads and highways will be jammed with frantic people trying to reach safety. You should always listen and follow any given directions immediately. If you don’t have to leave, put all the outside things that might blow away in a safe place such as lawn furniture, bicycles, and toys. Water mains can also break, so filling containers with drinking water is a good idea. Put enough to last several days.
I can clearly remember being in the car on a humid day with a little overcast. We were driving in the car when all of a sudden the wind started to pick up and it started raining a bit. Within five minutes, the weather progressed and there was so much wind blowing around the car that we could no longer hear the radio. I can remember when I saw a stop sign spinning in circles like a “merry-go-round'; with electrical problems. I do not remember how my mother got us home so quickly and where we were because all around us was a thick gray fog. However, all I can recall from that point on was sitting with my head in my lap in the back seat of the car. I never witnessed the true power of nature until this incident.