A LOCAL man was caught in the path of Hurricane Gustav, it emerged yesterday.
Marine engineer Graham Perkins (pictured) was trapped in a hotel in Morgan City, Louisianna, while 115mph winds raged outside.
Mr Perkins, who emigrated from Guernsey to Tasmania with his family more than five years ago, was working in the United States when the storm struck.
He told friends in an email: ‘We have just been through Hurricane Gustav. It made landfall right where we are. Was very interesting as we didn’t evacuate…’
Mr Perkins, who travels extensively for Australian high-speed shipbuilder Incat, said the hotel lost power early on.
It also lost water and sewage facilities because a tornado hit the sewage plant at the same time.
‘Anyway, we are OK, but getting a bit hungry, fed up with stale bread rolls and salami washed down with warm beer.
‘It’s about 90 deg F [32C] here all day and most of the night, so without air-conditioning, it’s been a bit sticky.’
He described conditions as reminiscent of the storm that struck Guernsey in January 1984 which led to the loss of the Liberian-registered ship Radiant Med – driving rain and winds of more than 100mph.
n Morgan City is some 70 miles to the west of New Orleans and issued a ‘mandatory’ evacuation order which led to an exodus of about three-quarters of the population.
Article posted on 5th September, 2008 - 11.30am
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