First swine flu, and now fjording rivers -- Am I on the Oregon Trail? A massive storm system dumped tons of rain (nearly a foot, in some places) on Houston last night. I knew this would mean trouble, as the roads here flood after 5 minutes of heavy rain. But I was not prepared for what I saw on my morning commute -- or rather, what I couldn't see, as most of the city was underwater. It was more rain than we received during Hurricane Ike, and worse than anything I've seen in Florida.
A drive that normally takes me 15 minutes took about an hour and 45 minutes and had me zig-zagging across town, as every route I took was impassable. Where there was an underpass yesterday, there was a lake today. Once on the highway (the highest ground, I reasoned), I saw dozens of cars pulled to the side of the road with their flashers blinking. I didn't think that many cars could have stalled, but then realized what had happened when I tried to get off at my normal exit -- there was an ocean of water that was coming up the ramp onto the highway. People could not get off the highway!
I was able to find a dry route a few miles down the freeway. Armed with my coffee, my Houston map, and my U-turn skills, I navigated my way to school. The staff who had made it were turning away kids, as there were no teachers! After a "delayed opening," two students (out of 400) showed up. I left after a couple hours. I hope that because I got extra credit for going in today, I won't have to go in tomorrow.
No comments:
Post a Comment