From: fekr@mips.com (Fekr Nevisandeh)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.iranian
Subject: I am alive and well
Date: 27 Aug 92 20:25:01 GMT
Organization: (SGI) MIPS Computer Systems, Sunnyvale, California
NNTP-Posting-Host: gorgan.mti.sgi.com
Originator: fekr@gorgan.mips.com



posted for Soheila (samiri@encore.com) who is having posting 
problems.

********************************************************************

Hi friends,

Today is the first day I've been able to get back to work and since
I've received a number of messages from concerned friends asking
about us, I thought I post a few lines and let everyone know we
fared well during the storm.

In all honesty we didn't take it seriously at first because we've
been through this a number of years.  On Sunday after realizing the
serverity of the storm and the panic that was setting in we decided
to pack up and leave.  Long lines of food in the stores made it
impossible to get anything down in Miami.  We put away all outside
lawn furniture and flower pots and frantically put some clothing in
a suite case, stock piled as much water as we could, took one last
look and then left for up North.

We went to my sister's house which has very strong storm shutters
and double glass doors.  We then sat around and waited.  It was an
experience of a life time.  I mean you are pretty much powerless to
change the course of the events that are about to take place.  You
sit around and hope real hard that it doesn't effect you, yet in the
back of your mind you know it will effect so many others.

We started to follow the TV newscast on the progress of the storm.  The
coordinates of the storm indicated a direct hit (eye of the storm) was
headed toward the home we had left behind and severly effect where we
were staying.  I stayed up and watched the progress of the storm all
night long.  I remembered when David was about to hit in late seventies
I was so oblivious to the impact of this disaster that I went to a
family friend's house in Miami Beach (of all places), and went to
sleep at usual time.  The next day I opened my eyes and noticed there
was a roof over my head and all was calm.  We all sat around the break
fast table and chat about it.  That one changed course some 30 degrees
during the night but it sure didn't look like this one was about to.

I kept watch over my entire family sleeping on the floor in the safest
room of the house and wondered if we were going to come through alive.
As the night progressed though, I started to notice a steady shift in
the direction of the storm towards South and I began to take a sigh of
relief.  I also started to record the events on my video camera.  In the
mid-afternoon it looked like a nice sunny August day.  There was such
calm and serenity all over.  Not even a breeze and surely no sign of
any storm activity.  I started to think that if it wasn't for the
advanced tracking mechanisms they have and the early warnings, we would
have gone about our business and had taken a server hit.

At about 12:00 PM I took my camera and went outside again to take a
look.  It felt like there was a monster about to be awakened.  There
was just a slight breeze but you could hear the clouds moving in and
the sound of the thunder at a distance.  The sky had lid up with
lightening through which you could see the dark clouds slowly moving
in.

At 3:00 PM I went out again.  This time it felt like I was stucked in a
wind tunnel.  This must have been about 30-40 M/h winds.  The crowns of
the palm trees outside had been shifted to one side in a steady motion.
At 5:00 AM, when the storm was about to touch land I went out again.
This must have been 60-80 M/h winds.  I saw a huge tree just outside
the house come crashing down and its debris flying in the direction of
the wind like a bunch of tooth picks.  I just jumped back in.  After that
I didn't dare go back out again.  In the next hour or so, there was a
constant pounding sound of the rain on the storm shutters and hoping
that the power wouldn't go out so that we could continue to watch the
newscast.  the power never did go out.

The next few hours were the most anxious moments of our lives.  We knew
our lives had been spared but what about our life long memories?  We were
advised not to venture out until mid afternoon because of live wires roaming
around the streets.  About 2:00 PM the next day my husband and I went
down to Miami to access the damage to our home.  I let the camera roll
and the sight of all the rare trees uprooted along the way was very
saddening.  The damage to Ft. Lauderdale area seemed minimal.  There
was chaos at all intersections which had lost power. 

As we got closer to Miami, the true picture of the devastation started
to take form.  It looked like someone took a recking ball and just rampaged
through the city.  When we drove up our drive way I noticed a huge tree
had been uprooted in the front yard and had barely missed the house.  The
awnings had all come down, roof tiles had flown all over but all the
sliding glass doors were still intact.  When we got to the back yard and
looked over the golf course we live on, we could not believe the damage it
had done to all those beautiful trees that once sat on it.  Live Oaks,
Orchid trees, rare sausage trees, some with root systems as wide as 10-15
feet had been uprooted and were just laying there and dying.  As if a huge
bawling bawl and had run through it and had knocked down every single
one of those trees.  Oh and my collection of 10-20 dwarf banana trees,
with three full bunches of bananas were all gone :-). 

I guess since the loss of life has been minimal there is a bright side
to this whole affair for one to look at.  Aside from the damage to the
homes and businesses I'm sure you've all seen on TV a number of historical
buildings, gardens, etc have been severly damaged and I find that a
shame.  Some will never be able to get back to what they once were.  They
all were just an essential part of Miami that will never be again.  With
some clean up we are back to normal.

In spite it all, we are one of the lucky ones.  People further South from
us are desperate.  No running water, food, electricity and they have to
live outside their leveled homes and bear the hot weather and mosquitos
all night long.  It is a sad picture.  Babies with no food for a number
of days.  Relief efforts appear to be ill-organized and are not reaching
those in need who have no means of getting to relief sights.  All along
we thought our state was well prepared for this kind of disaster.  It
seems we have not been.  Looters and scavengers are busily trying to
loot and rip the already devastated folks up.  According to some accounts
professional criminals with guns of all sorts are actually looting the few
standing houses and those which still have some valuables left in them.
I guess that is a sad commentary on the human nature.  As a result we have
been observing police curfews from 7:00 PM to 7:00 AM every night.

Please if you can in anyway help these folks out, by all means do so. 
A number of them came to our aid when we were struck with the recent
earth quake.  We all are going to be in need of help some time in our
lives no matter how self assured and secure we might feel.  Just imagine
in a matter of a few seconds loosing your life long belongings, home,
car, job, and worst of all family members.  After an experience of this
nature, you sure get a new outlook on life!

As for the extent of damage to the Iranian community, we have not been
able to contact any friends down South because of down phone lines and
no access to the limited areas in which a number of them live.  We know
of some other friends and co-workers in the same area who have been
completely wiped out.  I'm afraid if and when we get the news about our
Iranian friends down in that area, it won't be a nice picture.  Our
hands are tied for now as to offering them shelter until the areas are
opened to public or they somehow manage to contact their relatives by
phone.

Thanks for all the concerns,
Soheila and family.

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Newsgroups: soc.culture.iranian,soc.culture.arabic