May 3, 1978

What makes me, me. May 3, 1978 there was a flood. In fact there was such a flood that the only thing talked about that was worse than that was Hurricane Betsy. (This was long before Katrina... of course) The cause was a stuck thunder storm.

"A squall line approaches the Greater New Orleans area from the west, intersecting a stationary front that was settled over the city. The result was a morning of torrential rains in excess of 10 inches, with rates of 2 inches per hour at times. Coffins were lifted from ground level tombs, along with empty gasoline tanks at service stations in the New Orleans area. The city's population was at a virtual standstill as nearly all main arteries were flooded or inaccessible well into the evening hours."

It was pretty bad to say the least. What was I doing? Well I was two and I was doing what 2-year-olds do. This freaked my mom out because we were in a 2 story apartment. Basically in those days it seemed rather easy and commonplace for toddlers to climb out of the crib, which I did, and for whatever reason there was no baby gate at the stairs so I went on down to see what the ruckus was about.

Now my mom was still sleeping, and I might have a case for neglect, I don't know. And this story would have been so much cooler if I would have become a marine biologist ...but it was not to be. So anyway I mosey on down the steps and play in the water. Which was rising with more and more water. It got to the point of climbing back up the steps, and the water was full of living things... mostly snakes. My mom did finally wake up and was of course mortified and proceeded to "freak out", but since we're all alive today, it's now become one of those funny stories.

I guess the May 3rd flood, will for the most part be forgotten in light of more traumatic events of Katrina. The flood only lasted one day, that's life in New Orleans. Eventually the pumps catch up to the flood and suck the water away.