SURVIVAL BLOG By Jack Metir
New Orleanians who fled their homes ahead of Hurricane Ida’s terrifying wrath and later tried to return to salvage keepsakes and mementoes met unwelcome visitors along the treacherous stretch of road, highway 610, just south of Lake Pontchartrain.
At an intersection due east of Metairie, sat four amphibious vehicles with FEMA logos stenciled on either side of the carriage. Beside the vehicles, armed FEMA agents peered through binoculars, watching for persons braving the deluge. Next to them, two CDC personnel handled a cooler brimming with Covid-19 vaccinations.
Dennis Farrell, a New Orleans native, and his son Chris had been traversing the perilous stretch of road when he spotted the curious roadblock ahead of his GMC Yukon. He knew that Louisiana’s Governor, John Bell Edwards, had ordered evacuees to avoid the city at all costs, citing flooding, downed power lines, scorching heat, lack of potable water, and potential death as his gravest concerns….
