MOBILE, Ala. -- Rain and wind pounded the Gulf Coast today as Hurricane Katrina moved ashore, spawning tornadoes and flash flooding in Mississippi and Alabama.
In Mobile, what officials feared would happen, did happen: Part of the downtown area was under water. The Mobile Convention Center looked like it was sitting in the middle of a lake as winds pushed water from the bay into the streets.
About 10 a.m., operators of the Marriott Hotel near downtown rang up guests and invited them to a second-floor ballroom of the high-rise building, where they could watch a movie, "Robots," and eat sandwiches. About 200 people showed up, but many stayed in their rooms.
Hurricane-force winds pounded windows on the glass-front hotel, feeling at times like a minor earthquake, and two metal flagpoles nearby were thrashed about. At midday trees, were still swaying in the strong winds.
Hotel officials kept shooing the curious away from large glass windows. They also replaced plywood covers over the front door, placed there to keep the wind out.
Electricity went out at 11 a.m., shutting off lights and air conditioning. Hotel management brought in generator-driven industrial fans to provide some relief from 80-degree temperatures and 90-percent- plus humidity.
In downtown Mobile, near the bay, water depths reached 10 to 12 feet. Hospitals along the coast report flooding on their first floors.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-050829katrina-gulfcoast,1,4054384.story?coll=chi-news-hed
Thanks for the Mobile article. I fear that all homes on Bay Front Road are toast, including my own.
Yeah, I tried to go to the Mobile paper but did not want to register so I went to the B'ham paper. It said that power was out as far north as Tuscaloosa. It looks like the worse part will be in the NW part of the state although we will get some rain and winds. I can see the top of the tree across the street and it is really blowing. If you learn anything else let me know.