PHOTOS - Katrina's Surge at Ixolib's House

[Ixolib]

Just a few photos of the surge here in central Biloxi. It still amazes me how fast the water came up. It's about this time that my cell phone floated away, never to work again, along with plenty of other stuff!!

Also highlighted the satellite photo provided by Lori (Thanks Lori!!) at this location: http://www.storm2k.org/phpbb2/viewtopic.php?p=1064103#1064103

[wlfpack81]

Amazing pictures. First hand account of how fast waters can rise i storm surge.

[PTrackerLA]

That's unbelievable, sorry you had to watch your home, and vehicles get flooded . At least you're safe and material things get replaced .

[TexasStooge]

Wow!!

Sorry to see your home and cars get flooded.

[CharleySurvivor]

Wow! amazing pics! thanks for sharing

[CajunMama]

omygosh...unbelievable. No wonder we were so worried about you. You definately had guardian angels watching over you and your family that day.

[LAwxrgal]

Wow. Unbelievable.

On a side note, cute kid!

Glad to hear you and your family are safe, that's the important thing. Your lost property can be replaced. Y'all can't.

[Ixolib]

CajunMama: And quite a few S2K'ers with prayers and positive thoughts, I believe!!

LAwxrgal: Agree - Cute as heck! He's the grandson...

Yes, the cars and stuff went under - but it's amazing how quickly that issue takes a back seat. The future - both short and long term - is where the problem lies. State Farm is probably going to argue in their favor that this was a "flood". I on the other hand, am going to stick to my story that it was "strom driven water" that would not have been present if not for the hurricane. Hence, it should be covered under "hurricane damage". Of course, we had no flood insurance since we are so far above sea level - and of course there's the old standard of "no water with Camille!!"

And for my job - it's history for at least a year, probably longer. I worked for Harrah's Entertainment/Grand Casino Gulfport (10 years) and my wife worked for Harrah's Corporate Mid South Office - which now has no properties left to support!! Part of Grand Gulfport is now sitting on Highway 90 and the rest is completely gutted all the way to the third floor. It'll be a looooong time before any casino employees get back to work.

Interesting that I wrote an article for the February S2K Newsletter on the same subject. Here's the link for that story that has quickly and erriely come very true... http://www.storm2k.org/newsletter/Feb2005-pg6.htm

[Stephanie]

I can't believe the comparison of the two pictures, 5 minutes apart!!

Is Harrah's offering any of their employees work at their other casinos across the country? I know it would be difficult to pick up and leave, however.

Good luck with the insurance company - they're ALL a joke anymore! You're better off just putting money aside yourself to cover the cost of catastrophies like these.

BTW - grandson is a cutie!

[Agua]

CState Farm is probably going to argue in their favor that this was a "flood". I on the other hand, am going to stick to my story that it was "strom driven water" that would not have been present if not for the hurricane. Hence, it should be covered under "hurricane damage". Of course, we had no flood insurance since we are so far above sea level - and of course there's the old standard of "no water with Camille!!"

Ixolib,
First, God bless you and best of luck. I do want to help temper any expectations you may have regarding recovery for flood damage while at the same time tell you that I'm hearing good news regarding some adjusters' practices.

First off, I've seen the AG's Complaint, and understand the arguments, but I have to say that it has LONG been settled, uniformly, that "rising water" = flood damage, and I think the AG's lawsuit is, on the whole, simply a means to gain popularity for him from the voting public. In other words, the chances of that action being successful are slim to none and none just left et cetera. Now, I am not familiar with these policies which the AG stated had a "hurricane deductable" which was in a different amount from the regular deductable of a homeowner's policy. Now, in THOSE instances, there *might* be an argument that an ambiguity existed, that a reasonable person purchasing such insurance may have believed they had coverage for hurricane damage, and that it should be construed against the insurer. But I do not know which companies were using this "hurricane deductable" I have State Farm coverage, but my policy doesn't include such a distinction between "hurricane deductable" and the regular deductable.

Second, for some good news. I'm hearing that adjusters are being very generous and where they're finding policy owners who have damage that has been excluded from coverage, they are being purposely overly generous with claims for damage that is covered under the policies. One specific instance that is easily understandable is that a couple had flood damage, which was excluded, but the adjuster allowed for double the actual size of the couple's roof for recovery under the wind damage portion of the policy.

[Ixolib]

Stephanie - Yes, Harrah's is paying everyone for 90 days AND offering transfer to any of their other properties. But, I'm Biloxi born and bread and can't imagine living anywhere else. The few times I was away for any period of time, I went through withdrawls simply because I could not see the GOM everyday!! Living right on the coast, and absolutely knowing which way south is has apparently become something I've become quite used to!! And, not only is he a cutie, he's smart as heck with a wonderful sense of humor. He'll be three in December. Katrina was a blast for him!! Just one big adventure. In fact, he's the one who has helped the most in keeping our spirits up...

Agua - I do have the "hurricane deductable" with State Farm (2% of the home's value), but have not yet seen an adjustor. I will remain hopeful that when he or she does show up, they will be "generous minded"! Fortunately, I can do much (actually all) of the repair work myself - up to and including floating the sheetrock - so it's not really going to be a loss except for things like TVs, Stereos, Speakers, Carpets, Woodfloors, Computers, Treadmill, and the like. Fortunately, sheetrock and insulation are "relatively" cheap... There was considerable roof damage - both structural and cosmetic - so perhaps I can gain a bit there! All we can do is hope. Thanks for the encouraging words, though. No matter what, it'll all come out in the wash anyway!!!

[Stephanie]

I kind of figured that Harrah's would do something like that for their employees. I also thought that you probably wouldn't want to leave. I know I get homesick myself when I'm away!

[wayoutfront]

I can't believe the comparison of the two pictures, 5 minutes apart!!

Is Harrah's offering any of their employees work at their other casinos across the country? I know it would be difficult to pick up and leave, however.

Good luck with the insurance company - they're ALL a joke anymore! You're better off just putting money aside yourself to cover the cost of catastrophies like these.

BTW - grandson is a cutie!

A joke?

I am an adjuster... I have seen about all carriers go overboard and way past what is considered fair and reasonable to their insureds..

to the adjuster that allowed for flood coverage in his roof estimate.. he must not like his house, cars bank account etc. much less his license or has an E&O carrier that won't mind footing the bill.. and I also guess the rest of the policyholders in the country don't mind footingthe bill...

Its called fraud...

and the only reason he did it was to up his billing, since adjusters pay is based on the covered damages that they include in the estimates, which again is fraud, and again will be up to the rest of the policy holders to foot the bill.

[Ixolib]

I can't believe the comparison of the two pictures, 5 minutes apart!!

Is Harrah's offering any of their employees work at their other casinos across the country? I know it would be difficult to pick up and leave, however.

Good luck with the insurance company - they're ALL a joke anymore! You're better off just putting money aside yourself to cover the cost of catastrophies like these.

BTW - grandson is a cutie!

A joke?

I am an adjuster... I have seen about all carriers go overboard and way past what is considered fair and reasonable to their insureds..

to the adjuster that allowed for flood coverage in his roof estimate.. he must not like his house, cars bank account etc. much less his license or has an E&O carrier that won't mind footing the bill.. and I also guess the rest of the policyholders in the country don't mind footingthe bill...

Its called fraud...

and the only reason he did it was to up his billing, since adjusters pay is based on the covered damages that they include in the estimates, which again is fraud, and again will be up to the rest of the policy holders to foot the bill.

Kinda like us middle-class, working-type folks (aka policy holders) who "foot the bill" when all those condos and million dollar homes on Florida's tightly-packed beachfronts are damaged or destroyed. I haven't looked yet, but I wonder what the claims will be for Katrina's impact on the exclusive and ridiculously priced real estate in South Florida... For what it would take to cover ALL my damages is about what it would cost to replace one lousy pool enclosure in some of those areas... Fraud or not, I remain hopeful my carrier will go "overboard and way past" what is considered fair.

[wayoutfront]

I can't believe the comparison of the two pictures, 5 minutes apart!!

Is Harrah's offering any of their employees work at their other casinos across the country? I know it would be difficult to pick up and leave, however.

Good luck with the insurance company - they're ALL a joke anymore! You're better off just putting money aside yourself to cover the cost of catastrophies like these.

BTW - grandson is a cutie!

A joke?

I am an adjuster... I have seen about all carriers go overboard and way past what is considered fair and reasonable to their insureds..

to the adjuster that allowed for flood coverage in his roof estimate.. he must not like his house, cars bank account etc. much less his license or has an E&O carrier that won't mind footing the bill.. and I also guess the rest of the policyholders in the country don't mind footingthe bill...

Its called fraud...

and the only reason he did it was to up his billing, since adjusters pay is based on the covered damages that they include in the estimates, which again is fraud, and again will be up to the rest of the policy holders to foot the bill.

Kinda like us middle-class, working-type folks (aka policy holders) who "foot the bill" when all those condos and million dollar homes on Florida's tightly-packed beachfronts are damaged or destroyed. I haven't looked yet, but I wonder what the claims will be for Katrina's impact on the exclusive and ridiculously priced real estate in South Florida... For what it would take to cover ALL my damages is about what it would cost to replace one lousy pool enclosure in some of those areas... Fraud or not, I remain hopeful my carrier will go "overboard and way past" what is considered fair.

well obviously you have positioned yourself.. so i can't change how you feel

but
1) a condo owner generally only has 10,000 coverage on the interior of the unit ( look up a HO6 condo policy)

2) a million dollar home would have a 20,000 or 50,000 dollar deductible

and yes.... I think its ridiculous that a that citizens wind pool in florida is required to cover those properties that no other company will.

Insurance is a contract... you do your part , the insurance company does its part, and all policies are spelled out in black and white.

an adjusters job is to get you every penny you are entiltled to under your policy, and not a penny more.

I also think many many many people look at insurance as free money for the grabbing. well I don't think it , I know it.

and the ones that say that the carriers are ripping us off, don't have a clue.

I think people wanna pay for the nickel plan and recieve the benefits of the gold plan.


I do have one question... you say your in Biloxi.. I've been to Biloxi... Its no surprise that Biloxi flooded, Everyone down there has been worried this was gonna happen for years...why didn't you have flood insurance?

sorry for the rant... but everyday , all day i deal with liars and thieves , and conmen , and mixed in are about 10% who only want what they have paid for, for which i am grateful

heres what i had today... a homeowner who wanted a new AC unit..and claimed this as wind damage

he hammered this pipe through the unit...

i view the scenario above where the adjuster paid twice for a roof. the same as this FRAUD.



I would call fema, they have moneys for folks who live in flood prone areas who didn't bother to buy flood insurance

[mobilebay]

I can't believe the comparison of the two pictures, 5 minutes apart!!

Is Harrah's offering any of their employees work at their other casinos across the country? I know it would be difficult to pick up and leave, however.

Good luck with the insurance company - they're ALL a joke anymore! You're better off just putting money aside yourself to cover the cost of catastrophies like these.

BTW - grandson is a cutie!

A joke?

I am an adjuster... I have seen about all carriers go overboard and way past what is considered fair and reasonable to their insureds..

to the adjuster that allowed for flood coverage in his roof estimate.. he must not like his house, cars bank account etc. much less his license or has an E&O carrier that won't mind footing the bill.. and I also guess the rest of the policyholders in the country don't mind footingthe bill...

Its called fraud...

and the only reason he did it was to up his billing, since adjusters pay is based on the covered damages that they include in the estimates, which again is fraud, and again will be up to the rest of the policy holders to foot the bill.

Kinda like us middle-class, working-type folks (aka policy holders) who "foot the bill" when all those condos and million dollar homes on Florida's tightly-packed beachfronts are damaged or destroyed. I haven't looked yet, but I wonder what the claims will be for Katrina's impact on the exclusive and ridiculously priced real estate in South Florida... For what it would take to cover ALL my damages is about what it would cost to replace one lousy pool enclosure in some of those areas... Fraud or not, I remain hopeful my carrier will go "overboard and way past" what is considered fair.

well obviously you have positioned yourself.. so i can't change how you feel

but
1) a condo owner generally only has 10,000 coverage on the interior of the unit ( look up a HO6 condo policy)

2) a million dollar home would have a 20,000 or 50,000 dollar deductible

and yes.... I think its ridiculous that a that citizens wind pool in florida is required to cover those properties that no other company will.

Insurance is a contract... you do your part , the insurance company does its part, and all policies are spelled out in black and white.

an adjusters job is to get you every penny you are entiltled to under your policy, and not a penny more.

I also think many many many people look at insurance as free money for the grabbing. well I don't think it , I know it.

and the ones that say that the carriers are ripping us off, don't have a clue.

I think people wanna pay for the nickel plan and recieve the benefits of the gold plan.


I do have one question... you say your in Biloxi.. I've been to Biloxi... Its no surprise that Biloxi flooded, Everyone down there has been worried this was gonna happen for years...why didn't you have flood insurance?

sorry for the rant... but everyday , all day i deal with liars and thieves , and conmen , and mixed in are about 10% who only want what they have paid for, for which i am grateful

heres what i had today... a homeowner who wanted a new AC unit..and claimed this as wind damage

he hammered this pipe through the unit...

i view the scenario above where the adjuster paid twice for a roof. the same as this FRAUD.



I would call fema, they have moneys for folks who live in flood prone areas who didn't bother to buy flood insurance

This man has just gone through a disaster. Why don't you back off. If you don't like your job, then quit! I would hate to have you as my adjuster!

[MSRobi911]

I would call fema, they have moneys for folks who live in flood prone areas who didn't bother to buy flood insurance[/quote]


You know wayoutfront...you came to the wrong place to complain about being an insurance adjuster when people have lost everything they own in this world! Your comment that "fema has moneys for folks who live in flood prone areas who didn't bother to buy flood insurance" is so far off base you were out before you finished typing it.

Just for your information................if your house is not in a flood zone you can not buy flood insurance. They will not sell it to you. They tell you that you do not need it. So how is that "not bothering" I know too many in Pascagoula who tried to purchase flood insurance and they were all told the same thing, its not needed, we won't sell it to you.

I myself have flood insurance and home owners insurance....my flood insurance adjuster has already contacted us and has gone to the house and said it was a total loss...duh...its gone...as in a slab...well hardwood floor and brick floor is all that remain. There is actually a link to pictures of my "lot" on a thread titled Pics from Pascagoula beach if you want to go look. Also you can go to NOAA and look in the archives for the pics from Pascagoula and my "house/empty lot now" is the one int he middle of the pic with the circular drive way.

My question to you. I have paid for Flood insurance thru Nationwide to the National Flood Insurance Progam and I have paid for Homeowners insurance to Nationwide Insurance....so why is only the Flood Insurance going to pay????? From the satelite photos it looks like a path of a tornado took out my house. All the splintered wood on top of my lot is from the houses in front of me. The few things we have found from our house are 300 yards (900 feet) back in the marsh and in the bayou next to me. It took out my house and the one next door on the west side, the one on the east side is still standing and the one on the west side of my neighbors is still there....yes they are all blown out from water...but they have roofs and walls....I have nothing...

So you think its fair that I have paid approximately $30,000 in homeowners insurance in 15 years that I have lived there and even more than that in flood insurance that we should only be reimbursed by the flood insurance company????? Who can prove what happened to my house?? Certainly not an adjuster, you can look at the damage and the path of things and the surrounding houses and see something was different on my house and the one next to me.

Sorry for the long winded post, but just imagine yourself in our place, that you lost everything you own, even two of your personal cars and my husbands patrol car even went under water on the courthouse steps. Think how you would feel if a person you don't know walks up to your home and says, hmmm sorry...its flood damage...your policy doesn't cover that. Your faced with no home, no cars, no clothing, nothing and some stranger tells you that with little concern and no compassion. The attitudes of some the adjusters here are absolutely disgraceful to their companies and several have been "attacked" after their non-caring attitude of tough stuff. I know the adjusters job is tough and is long hours, but if they don't want to be here...then they should go the heck home!

PS: Still waiting to hear from my homeowners adjuster, not a peep and I reported the damage on Monday night of the storm at the same time I reported the flood insurance and my car insurance (all with Nationwide). The car adjuster called and said they would be in my neighborhood and would call. He called the next week and then came by last week and looked at the cars and said, well you will hear from Jackson............still waiting to hear from Jackson. We own our vehicles and owe no one...where is our money so we can buy new vehicles????????

[MSRobi911]

mobilebay.....I second that opinion!!!! I just took longer to type and used a lot more words!!

Mary

[wayoutfront]

I can't believe the comparison of the two pictures, 5 minutes apart!!

Is Harrah's offering any of their employees work at their other casinos across the country? I know it would be difficult to pick up and leave, however.

Good luck with the insurance company - they're ALL a joke anymore! You're better off just putting money aside yourself to cover the cost of catastrophies like these.

BTW - grandson is a cutie!

A joke?

I am an adjuster... I have seen about all carriers go overboard and way past what is considered fair and reasonable to their insureds..

to the adjuster that allowed for flood coverage in his roof estimate.. he must not like his house, cars bank account etc. much less his license or has an E&O carrier that won't mind footing the bill.. and I also guess the rest of the policyholders in the country don't mind footingthe bill...

Its called fraud...

and the only reason he did it was to up his billing, since adjusters pay is based on the covered damages that they include in the estimates, which again is fraud, and again will be up to the rest of the policy holders to foot the bill.

Kinda like us middle-class, working-type folks (aka policy holders) who "foot the bill" when all those condos and million dollar homes on Florida's tightly-packed beachfronts are damaged or destroyed. I haven't looked yet, but I wonder what the claims will be for Katrina's impact on the exclusive and ridiculously priced real estate in South Florida... For what it would take to cover ALL my damages is about what it would cost to replace one lousy pool enclosure in some of those areas... Fraud or not, I remain hopeful my carrier will go "overboard and way past" what is considered fair.

well obviously you have positioned yourself.. so i can't change how you feel

but
1) a condo owner generally only has 10,000 coverage on the interior of the unit ( look up a HO6 condo policy)

2) a million dollar home would have a 20,000 or 50,000 dollar deductible

and yes.... I think its ridiculous that a that citizens wind pool in florida is required to cover those properties that no other company will.

Insurance is a contract... you do your part , the insurance company does its part, and all policies are spelled out in black and white.

an adjusters job is to get you every penny you are entiltled to under your policy, and not a penny more.

I also think many many many people look at insurance as free money for the grabbing. well I don't think it , I know it.

and the ones that say that the carriers are ripping us off, don't have a clue.

I think people wanna pay for the nickel plan and recieve the benefits of the gold plan.


I do have one question... you say your in Biloxi.. I've been to Biloxi... Its no surprise that Biloxi flooded, Everyone down there has been worried this was gonna happen for years...why didn't you have flood insurance?

sorry for the rant... but everyday , all day i deal with liars and thieves , and conmen , and mixed in are about 10% who only want what they have paid for, for which i am grateful

heres what i had today... a homeowner who wanted a new AC unit..and claimed this as wind damage

he hammered this pipe through the unit...

i view the scenario above where the adjuster paid twice for a roof. the same as this FRAUD.



I would call fema, they have moneys for folks who live in flood prone areas who didn't bother to buy flood insurance

This man has just gone through a disaster. Why don't you back off. If you don't like your job, then quit! I would hate to have you as my adjuster!

I love my Job...very much.. why would hate to have me for an adjuster? becausese my goal would be to give you every penny you deserve under your policy.

[wayoutfront]

ust for your information................if your house is not in a flood zone you can not buy flood insurance. They will not sell it to you. They tell you that you do not need it. So how is that "not bothering" I know too many in Pascagoula who tried to purchase flood insurance and they were all told the same thing, its not needed, we won't sell it to you.

I sent you a PM on your other issues...

on this I must say

http://www.fema.gov/nfip/whonfip.shtm

lood Insurance is required by law

To get secured financing to buy, build, or improve structures in Special Flood Hazard Areas (SFHA's) you will be required to purchase flood insurance. Lending institutions that are federally regulated or federally insured must determine if the structure is located in a SFHA and must provide written notice requiring flood insurance.

Flood insurance is available to any property owner located in a community participating in the NFIP. All areas are susceptible to flooding, although to varying degrees, in fact, 25% of all flood claims occur in the low-to-moderate risk areas. Flooding can be caused by heavy rains, melting snow, by inadequate drainage systems, failed protective devices such as levees and dams, as well as by tropical storms and hurricanes.

There's a big difference between having to buy flood insurance because the law says you must and choosing to buy flood coverage because it's in your best interests to do so. We recommend that all property owners purchase and keep flood insurance because it is the best means of recovery from flood damaged.

Keep the peace of mind in knowing that your property will be protected from damages from the next storm and you're not left to cover the losses yourself?

and here is a site that is the most informative and has very good info to the consumer about the claims process, even a downloadable .pdf handbook

http://www.floodsmart.gov

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