Watching Gustav, the hurricane

For the past week, the nation has been watching what would happen with a tropical storm named Gustav. It was a tropical storm until Friday the 29th when it was up graded to a hurricane.

Our 20th anniversary was the 27th, we did get to have that together.
Chuck is on the Stoddard County Emergency response strike team and they were activated to go to the gulf coast Thursday. He was working at the Bernie ambulance station Thursday when they were put on stand-by. They knew they would have to go, but they hoped it not be until Friday or Saturday. He got the call at 10 that they were activated. He got home at 11 and we threw his stuff in the car. He told the kids good by and I took him to Dexter where two ambulances where waiting. There he found out that they were headed for San Antonio, tx. There were four others who where leaving as well. He left a little after 12.
He called me Friday morning, they were in Texarkana. He said that they saw many ambulances heading in the other direction, don't know what is going on. They have not seen many ambulances on the way down there. Everyone was tired, running on little sleep. The further down they got, the more ambulances they saw leaving the area.
They got to San Antionio around 5 Friday afternoon. They took the trucks to the air force base and where bussed to a local middle school to spend the night. Friday, they left early to get their orders.
Saturday, they were told to go to Beaumont, TX to the hospitals there. They had to evacuate patients there and take them to Texarkana, a four hour drive from Port Aurthor, Tx. They made that trip twice last night. He called me this morning and they were on their way back from Texarkana to Beaumont.
When he called me at noon, they were staying at the Ford Park Center in Beaumont where they are to wait out the storm. They are getting some rest and food. He said that he had the best canned Coke there. They got a place there that was dark and quiet.
Everywhere they went, people were very appreciative and thankful. He took a few pictures, but David Cooper is taking the most and will share.
I keep watching the weather and they say it will hit land tomorrow west of New Orleans. Where he is at, will get some of it. As of now, it is a catagory 3, the same as what Katrinna and Rita was when they hit land in 05. Hopefully it will weakend at night when the waters are cooler.