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Texas Trip USGS employees return from Rita-stricken TexasDecember 5, 2005
From the beginning of the trip, the three faced several challenges. The first was finding a hotel room within a 100-mile radius of where they were slated to work - Beaumont, Texas. The second major obstacle was convincing people they were there to help, and the third was dealing with the devastation they saw on a daily basis. The men described scenes of live wires on the ground, trees uprooted, trash piled stories high, debris in the streets, deplorable living conditions and demolished homes. "You have no idea the depth of destruction until you actually get there and see it," Hale said. "It literally looks like a war zone. It's much worse than anything you see on TV." Cox spoke of the high-speed traffic, debris in the road and dangerous intersections. "There's trash piled so high at the corners of intersections you can't see cars coming from any direction," Cox said. "There's debris everywhere and people drive really fast, which causes a lot of car accidents." The people and the area itself also made Beaumont an inherently dangerous place to work, according to Alexander. "It's a very poor area to begin with," Alexander said. "Plus, the people are already hostile toward government workers because they feel they're not getting enough assistance. We had to constantly reassure them that we were there to help. It was just a rough place to be." Despite how rough the area may have been, the three managed to do a lot of good for people during their 30-day stay in the Beaumont area. Hale worked mostly in temporary housing and helped set up more than 500 travel trailers for people whose homes were unlivable. The travel trailers will serve as temporary housing until people can move back into their homes. "I had a really good job," Hale said. "People were so appreciative it was amazing. It's really touching when people are crying and hugging you because you've helped them. It was the most rewarding experience I've ever had." The experience also proved rewarding for Cox and Alexander who were helping in the Blue Roof Quality Assurance program. The Blue Roof program, paid for by the government, was designed to temporarily fix roof damage for those who needed it. "No one got off free," Cox said. "Some people had it worse than others, but almost everyone had some kind of roof damage." It was Cox's job to assess how much roof damage there was, and give the final inspection following the contractor's repair job. Cox said the roof assessments and inspections were sometimes more like counseling sessions. "Everyone had a story to tell," he said. "Some were more tragic than others, but everyone was affected in some way." Alexander's job dealt with conflict resolution in the Blue Roof program, which meant he handled complaints and problems with the repair jobs. "I would talk to people and find out what problems they were having [with the roof] and figured out what needed to be done to fix them," Alexander said. "There was a lot of "venting" going on, but most people had legitimate complaints. I would go over what needed to be fixed and submit those requests to the contractors." No matter what their job responsibilities were, the guys were working 13 and 14 hour days, seven days a week. "It was a tremendous amount of hard work, but we helped a lot of people," Alexander said. "It was definitely worth volunteering for." Although they accomplished a lot of good, Alexander wishes they could have done more. "There was a little old black woman who couldn't have weighed 80 pounds," Alexander said. "She came up to me with a longing in her eyes and just said "I need something to eat." I gave her my lunch, but I wish I could have done more. The people down there are in really desperate situations." Emitt Witt, director of the U.S.Geological Survey Mid-Continent Geographic Science Center, presented Hale, Cox and Alexander with awards for their service in Beaumont. "USGS was looking for a way to support the hurricane recovery efforts and help other federal agencies," Witt said. "This group certainly did that." Although their experiences in Beaumont proved rewarding, none of the guys plan to go back - at least not right away. "I wouldn't mind volunteering again, but with the holidays coming up it's not going to be any time soon," Hale said. "I'm just glad I had the chance to help when I was there. The people we helped were very grateful and it was a very rewarding experience." From the Rolla Daily News Jaime Baranyai Staff Writer Used with permission |
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