Ranger Mike

This morning I drove out to Montgomery Bell State Park to look at the resort hotel we are going to restore. I went there yesterday for an initial assessment as well. As I drove out there today, things looked a lot different than they did 24 hours ago. First, the road was open. It had been closed in 4 places due to high water. There was a lot of dirt, dust, tree limbs, and even debris all over the place. Even saw 2 areas where the water had washed the asphalt away, piling it up like leaves in nearby fields and yards. I also saw an area that had been covered by water yesterday that has now receded. To my shock, where the creek had been almost to bridge level Tuesday, it was back in its banks today - at least 15 feet under the bridge. And just a few hundred feet away, the foundation of a home that had been washed away in the flood. Again I cannot stress enough how ravaged this area is and how it seems to be being ignored by the national media.
Lots of Belfor personnel flew in today. More are on the way, and we still will not have enough people to do what needs to be done. There are 100 companies in town like ours to do what we do, and the cleanup is still going to take months.
After the first park, I was called to another one about 50 miles away. They do not have a resort, just an office with a maintenance building. The water was so deep in turned their park vehicles on their sides inside the garage. Apparently these and any other State or Local parks that come in are going to be on my plate. A good assignment to draw, when I look at what others are dealing with. A flooded mall that had a perstore with sharks and pirhanas in aquariums. Those fish are now swimming about the mall. The Grand Ole Opry Hotel - Talk about a high pressure, high profile job. Yeah, I am lucky. But just like the Monte Carlo in Las Vegas, Columbus Convention Center, Santiago Chile and 1000 other projects, it's nothing we cannot handle.
Hope everyone at home and on facebook is well. Pics will be on fb shortly. Until yomorrow, Adios and Vaya Con Dios

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

My son, the Bully

Last Friday, before I got home from work, there was a knock on my front door. My wife, Tiffany, answered the door and was confronted by an upset father. This man, clearly frustrated and at his wits end, informed her that our son Ben had taken part in the verbal bullying of his son Jordan. And while Ben was not the primary offender, nor had he been involved since the beginning, he was still a part of a group of kids who had been picking on Jordan for 2 years. When Tiffany called me I was floored. For those who do not know Ben, he is a great kid, the last person I had ever imagined would be involved with something like this. Sweet and always caring, Ben often will give up something he wants if someone else wants it more. He asks to help around the house and is a very even keeled kid. Still he is a little awkward, not feeling like he fits in. He is an artist while his older brother is the athlete, so Ben has always felt like his identity needed to be separate from John Michael's. Th
Read more

A Roller Coaster of a Christmas Miracle

Image
Well, I woke up Sunday Morning............... Hey that sounds like a great first line of a song But Tiffany and I got up extra early because she wanted to hit the grocery store before it was packed. So we did, then went to breakfast at Frisch's, all before 8 am. When we got home we woke Tanner up, and we all got ready for church. Right around 9, my phone rang. Ugh, work. Need to dispatch a team to Buckeye Lake. Took a few minutes and got them dispatched, hung up, and it rang again. Another job, in West Virginia. I wound up being on the phone until 9:30, and we needed to get out the door as Little Red was scheduled to work the Guest Services desk at Centerpoint for both Christmas Eve services. We headed to the car. And my phone rang again. Yet another, much bigger emergency job. I had to go. No church for me. I put Tiffany and Tanner in her car and sent them off, then I headed towards the flooded day care center. I decided to take Broad street to get there. As I was in front
Read more

The Finger of God

Image
Have you ever seen the movie Twister? Released in 1996 and starring Helen Hunt and Bill Paxton, the movie followed a group of storm chasers as they got caught up in a harrowing day of following and escaping tornadoes. It was considered cutting edge for the way it depicted the funnel clouds and the scientists who do this everyday. Little did I know how, 24 years later, my work would bring me to a place in Middle Tennessee where real life imitated art, and my latest clients would be grateful to have escaped with their lives. Their story in just a moment. First, I would be remiss if I did not mention the passing of an old friend recently. Kent "WiFi Guy " Pingel worked with me at Belfor, a job he affectionately called "The Dirty Gig". We crossed paths many times at various disaster zones all over the country, and his blog  Ping WiFi  chronicled his journeys, always looking for a good story and a WiFi connection. He was a brilliant writer and better friend, who
Read more