I think the part that caught me most off guard the most was the media presence.
Initially the primary affected area in Washington was secured and traffic was heavily restricted. 1 of the initial command centers was erected at a church across the street from my house.
There was one check point between my home and the outside world. That check point was established to eliminate the random traffic of casual observers. However, it was open to anyone requesting access to the church for disaster relief efforts. Paramedics and emergency service personnel had their hands full with the main urban area. The press was directed to the church to keep the impact down in town. My house was the first sign of the disaster many of the press experienced. Once they realized the true gravity of the situation, my story was eclipsed and they moved on. However, I was in no way prepared to deal with interview after interview. All of the requests for staged photos for “the audience”. “Can you dig through that pile? The lighting is better there…”
If they were kicked out of an area due to safety reasons, they would come kill time watching us dig through our remains.
On the up side, they helped me capture some really special moments in my life.
18 lives between the two of them on 11/16/2013, 3 lives between thew two of them on 11/18/2013…Bacchus pops his little head up. “Where have you guys been? I’m hungry!” must have been his first thoughts given the look. And I can just hear Naiya…”oh shit…oh shit…OH SHIT!!
For the most part, this link is in chronological order starting from the most recent. It is a great photo journal put together by the Chicago Tribune.
When you haven’t showered for days and have been digging through the junk you once treasured, an on camera interview is never that flattering!
Here’s the original article link for the previous video
We took the kids out to view the house on 11/18/2013 and they made it on the Washington Post!
This is another Chicago Tribune photo gallery. Some are repeated from earlier.
The video at the beginning of this photo gallery is the closest I have come across to catching the physical destruction of our house. Time line seems right and I think I know the location of the property the video was taken at.
Believe it or not, our local news even covered this!
ALL of the people that I know that have seen this have unanimously agreed, I need to avoid the cameras!!! Really, it was a stressful time. Give me a break! On the upside, a “not so southern” segment of this was aired on CNN on Thanksgiving morning. Unfortunately I cannot find a link for that. Trust me, though, I came off very respectable in that clip.
Loved this photo of my cars after they were pulled from the rubble. Found this on flicker.