“I emigrated from Guyana in 1998 and have lived in Queens ever since. I live with my husband and my daughter. We are a small family but have many relations in New York and New Jersey.
The community here is very diverse, from Guyanese, Trinidadians and Bengalis, to Indians, Chinese, and Filipinos. We are a very happy bunch of hard-working people. We plant gardens, we send our kids to colleges, and do all kinds of things to give back to the community.
American Red Cross/Scott Dalton
Destruction left in the wake of Hurricane Ida in New Sarpy, Louisiana, August 2021.
It’s time to leave
On 1 September, when Ida hit, I was working from home. I switched on the television to get the alerts; it was clear a storm was brewing. I focused on the radar and followed the storm on the map. It looked like it was going to come through the northeast. When I saw how much red there was, I knew it was definitely going to affect us.
Some improvements had been made on the storm sewers on our block in the previous year, so I was hopeful that we would not feel the impacts too hard. But as the afternoon approached, I saw how many hours of rain they were forecasting. I became very worried, and I started to warn the neighbours to be very careful that night.
Usually, if there is a sign of flooding, I leave the house because I get panic attacks from the situation. So, I packed a bag and I said to them, let’s leave. My husband…
