Strength to Survive a Storm

It’s been five years since Hurricane Rita hit Vermilion Parish and changed the lives of its residents. The storm educated us on the erosion of our coastline and just how powerful and dangerous the weather can be.

Most of you were strong enough to rebuild the bricks and mortar of your lives. But what if you were in the middle of the floodwaters while death and destruction surrounded you? How do you survive the storm within your memories? Where do you find the strength?

Vermilion Parish resident, Cindy Greene decided to stay in Forked Island as Hurricane Rita made its way towards Louisiana’s coastline. She’d grown up in the area and seen big storms before, and thought she would be safe. But when barking dogs woke her in the middle of the night, she became alarmed.

“When I put my feet on the floor, it was wet,” says Greene. “I looked outside and all I saw were waves of water every where.”

Greene was with Brenda Hebert and Chip Duhon in a house on Highway 82 between Forked Island and Esther. The three of them woke early in the morning to find themselves amidst a sea of drowning animals and floating trees.

“The wind and water were so strong we couldn’t even open the door to get out of the house,” says Greene. “But Brenda broke the door knob off with the butt of a rifle. When she did, the door flew open and the wind from the storm pushed me down on the ground.”

Greene, Hebert and Duhon walked through the waist deep water to a nearby tractor. They had hoped to drive away to higher ground, but unfortunately the water had already destroyed the battery.

“The rain and the waves hit my body so hard that they bruised me,” says Greene. “I couldn’t believe that we were in the middle of the hurricane.”

Greene was able to contact her family and the sheriff’s department with her cell phone. While waiting to be rescued, she used a flashlight to see what was happening around the tractor. The water was above the road, and animals were fighting to survive.

“I could see the fear in our horses’ eyes,” says Greene. “I knew we were in trouble. I didn’t want to die.”

Duhon swam back to the house and got some cowboy ropes. He tied them together and then tied one end to the house and brought the other back to the tractor. Greene and Hebert were able to use the rope to pull themselves through the water’s strong current to get back to the house.

“If we wouldn’t have had Chip with us, we probably wouldn’t have survived,” says Greene. “I’m so glad I was with friends to help me through it.”

Greene, Hebert and Duhon found refuge in the attic of the house. They waited with several pet dogs until a helicopter came to their rescue.

“A sheriff’s deputy had asked me not to stay during the storm but I didn’t listen,” says Greene. “I’m so thankful to the sheriff’s department. They stayed in constant contact with us and sent the helicopter to save us.”

For the next few days, Greene and several other local residents worked at an outpost in Forked Island that provided food and clothing to those who had lost everything during the storm. It was there that she met a man who survived Hurricane Audrey. His stories gave her the strength to survive the ordeal she’d been through.

“This is the first time I speak about it so much,” Greene said to me when I interviewed her. “It was a very difficult time for me. Two months after the storm, I lost my mom to cancer.”

According to Greene, she kept her silence for so long because she was ashamed of her mistake of not leaving Forked Island during the storm. But through prayer, friends and family, she found the strength to forgive herself.

“People have told me that they’re not going to leave their homes again during the next storm because it’s too hard to go back,” says Greene. “I tell them not to stay. They don’t want to see the horror of it all.”

It’s been five years since Hurricane Rita, and Greene has a different life now. In addition to moving from Forked Island to the North Vermilion area, she changed her career from raising horses to driving a dump truck. She says that she’s going to take more trips, and is even planning to go on a cruise with her sisters.

“The hurricane made me see things clearer,” says Greene. “It’s brought my family closer together and made me want to be more generous towards others. Surviving the storm, gave me strength.”