CELIA

[leVieux]

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The 53rd anniversary of August 3, 1970, approaches.

Burned into my memory. . . . . .

Up until CELIA hit, our “media” were calling it “a minimal hurricane; highest winds about 75mph near center”.

Three hours later, the top of Spohn was gone; floors 10, 9, & 8 were completely blown-off, just orange-primed Iron I-beams remaining.

I recall a dark green four-door 1964 Chevy BelAir sedan traveling horizontally through the air, some 40’ above the ground.

leVieux
.

 

[Tnhawk]

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The 53rd anniversary of August 3, 1970, approaches.

Burned into my memory. . . . . .

Up until CELIA hit, our “media” were calling it “a minimal hurricane; highest winds about 75mph near center”.

Three hours later, the top of Spohn was gone; floors 10, 9, & 8 were completely blown-off, just orange-primed Iron I-beams remaining.

I recall a dark green four-door 1964 Chevy BelAir sedan traveling horizontally through the air, some 40’ above the ground.

leVieux
.

I don't recall this one, but remember Camille in august 1969 as I was at Fort Polk, LA

 

[Axxe55]

I don't recall this one, but remember Camille in august 1969 as I was at Fort Polk, LA

I STILL REMEMBER KATRINA AND RITA!

 

[oldag]

Celia was a bad one.

Carla was worse (hit farther east up the coast).

 

[leVieux]

I don't recall this one, but remember Camille in august 1969 as I was at Fort Polk, LA

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I had left N.O. on June 7, 1969, to move to Corpus; so I missed Camille by a month.

Then, driving through Biloxi on “Old US 90” in Summer 1971, I was amazed by the damages remaining from Camille. Camille was a much wider storm, and had much greater storm-surge flooding than Celia.

One of the biggest problems with Celia was that we had been repeatedly assured that it was a very weak storm.

Celia also spawned at least 9 tornados inside the hurricane. Key Allegro was a new development back then, & it was hit dead-on by one. One of our Emergency Physicians had a brand-new home on Key Allegro; all remaining were kitchen cabinets & commodes on the slab.

Another hit the civilian hospital in KIngsville and collapsed it onto their Head Nurse, severely injuring her spine.

We took an air tour some 10 days later, and from the air, it was easy to trace tornado paths through South CC neighborhoods.

MY office Nurse was evacuated from a large apartment building. I took her & Hubby over to see in a borrowed car; the entire large building was gone.

My Partner in practice had been Commander of the USNS Hospital on C C Bay. A former colleague told him that both of the military-grade anemometers on the NAS Airport had been broken-off with winds of 265mph+.

Later in 2016, one of my closest Friends b/t the Aransas (RKP) Airport & Copano Bay lost 60 of his 63 live oaks in that hurricane.

Most of the volunteer aid sent from elsewhere in 2016 was shortstopped by Houston, which had floods but not hurricane winds. Only HEB kept Rockport, Fulton, Arasas Pass, & Port A. supplied.


Memories. . . . .