Stilts, Part 1

By Jere Hough Meteorologist / Feature Reporter

M60o93H7pQ09L8X1t49cHY01Z5j4TT91fGfr Stilts, Part 1

Published: Tue, May 20, 2008 - 3:17 pm

Jere Hough

The hurricanes of 2004 and 2005 changed us all, but not completely. Many of us have wanted to rebuild, as closely as possible, the lives we led before...including where we called home. Some neighborhoods on the Mississippi Coast now look much like they did before. They've reclaimed their gorgeous views of the Gulf of Mexico and the Mississippi Sound. These Pass Christian homes are actually on a bit of a bluff, just beyond the beach.
Away from those precious islands of height, neighborhoods are creating their own kind of elevation...with stilts.
FEMA, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, believes that elevation lowers damage potential from rising water, and financial aid can be contingent on construction adhering to their guidelines.
So what's it like to live on a tower? Here is what some Pass Christian residents said.
Thuc Hoang says,"The house sways in the wind. We can feel it at night when we're in bed."
Jerry Carrie says the same thing. "When we get a really good wind, it moves pretty good. I call it my 'tree house.'"
"The house sways and shakes when the trains go by," comments John Dubuisson.
But it turns out there's a lot to like, too.
"The underhouse is great," says Jerry Carrie. "You get a good breeze. It's nice and cool under there. You can work. I store my boat under there, my cars. whatever."
Kris Oustalet stands near the top of his front door staircase and looks around. "You know, the beach is right there. You have downtown Pass Christian, wonderful neighbors. you have beautiful scenery around you."
But climbing all those stairs with groceries? Not necessarily a problem. See why in "Stilts," Part Two.

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I was a teenager in ‘69. Me and some buddies went to Biloxi for one last blow out before returning to school. We were staying in a little motel right next to the Vapors. Luckily I crashed kind of early Saturday night and woke up early Sunday. Turned on the TV and the reporter was saying get the hell out of there and this was no joke!

Long story, but we got out of there on a bus because the car we came in broke down and we were stranded. Nothing but the gray concrete slab was left of that motel.

Katrina was huge and had a double-eye wall. That is why the damage was so widespread. But, New Orleans looked like it had been spared the brunt of the storm until the levees gave way to the pounding surge.

Posted by BamaBob on 05/20/08 - 6:53 pm • Report Abuse

Now if Katrina had the winds of Camile it would have been 10 times worse,New Orleans would be no more. Me and the family were staying at a motel right on the beach a little to the west of Biloxi that week but got a little afraid of the storm coming in so we packed up and came home. We went back after the storm and the motel was completely gone. I’ll never forget those large ships laying on their sides on dry ground. Katrina seemed to be a different kind of animal,It pushed a lot more water in a larger area while camile had stronger winds. I remember one person on one of the ships saying their wind gauge broke at 200 mph. That’s like getting hit by a F5 tornado. May neither happen again.

Posted by carl on 05/20/08 - 6:32 pm • Report Abuse

That’s good to know, but I remember standing in the aisle of a Trailways bus leaving Biloxi late one Sunday afternoon in August 17, 1969 as waves slapped against the seawall and spilled across Highway 90.

Never thought I would live long enough to see that kind of destruction ever again and then along came Katrina.

Posted by BamaBob on 05/20/08 - 3:56 pm • Report Abuse