NWR - My friend and her parents went to see their house in New Orleans

They came back to NYC on Monday night.

Nothing can be salvaged from the 1st floor of their house. A contractor friend had it gutted yesterday to prevent the mold from spreading to the second floor. The crew salvaged some of her mom's china

The water line was at about 5 ft high and the mold started to grow like 6 inches above the water line and along the bannister. It was all treated to prevent further growth.

They found the family dog A note was on the house that the dog was removed on 9/27/05 but I guess it was not their dog or their dog came back There was a tray of untouched food in the driveway so he had been fed by someone

They were able to salvage many of the family photos off the walls but the piano was ruined and the photos on their piano. The second floor was fine except the dog used the home office as the bathroom.

The slate roof was damaged and it appears to have been hit by a tornado. It is only slightly buckled though - not ruined.

The house was looted but they found all the heirloom jewelry pieces and expensive pieces that her husband (a jeweler) had made for her mom.

It appears that someone was and still is sleeping in their house. Her mom made the beds on Sunday afternoon and they took the dog away to be treated. When they came back on Sunday night the beds were slept in. Mom made the beds again saying she may not have really made them and Monday night the beds were slept in again The search teams searched their house 4 times and her parents were NEVER there (her mom & dad were at the hospital where her mom works) so people have been living in their house. Can goods were clearly opened and eaten but they were courteous enough to keep the place clean.

They are kind of happy that people were staying there since it may have kept other looters away My friend says the bathrooms were spotless - cleaner than her mom keeps them. The contractor blocked off the second floor to close it off from mold spores but the new tenants may just pull down the boards

The claims adjuster said that the house is not a 'knock down' and it can be salvaged. The mold growth was prevented due to the windows NOT being boarded up. The windows were broken and the curtains blew down so the sunlight prevented the mold from spreading as much as in other homes that were boarded up all this time

The contractor friend lost 8 of his 9 properties The one salvaged is a bed & breakfast near the French Quarter.

All in all, they are pleased

There are only 5 restaurants open in the entire area and the hotels that are operable are price gouging - Marriott & Sheraton. A Marriott employee has family staying there and they are paying $250 a night!!!!

Some people are paying $25 sq/ft to gut their houses when the price should be more like $4-$6 sq/ft.

Her dad's car was totalled out since the area got over 3 feet of water. Insurance paid them out already for the car. Her mom's car was at the hospital where she works on the 5th floor so it was not damaged at all - although the hospital is being torn down

*** Lots of people are not paying their mortgage and many homeowners insurance policies are tied to the mortgage therfore, if these unemployed people are not making mortgage payments then they are getting screwed since the policies have been or will be cancelled for non-payment after 60 days.

Some carriers are also refusing to make payment since they cannot tell if it was hurricane Katrina or hurricane Rita.

Mold is excluded from every insurance policy so many people that are saying mold is what ruined their house are being denied payment.

Many people don't have flood insurance and even if they do have flood insurance, the mold is not covered. Flood insurance only covers up to the water line This is such a horrible situation

There is an alligator in a friend's pool and the city said they have to leave it there since this gator is a 'baby'!!!!

I am soo lost for words. Sometimes I guess you really don't know how fortunate you are. I'm glad to see that your friends family is okay though. Things llike this just makes me so upset. My family as well as myself has donated so much, but sometimes I wonder if the people will really benefit from it. This is such a sad situation. My heart, and prayers go out to them!

I'm so glad you're keeping us updated. I was thinking about your original post not too long ago then the one where the Grandma was found. This family comes to mind every once in a while and I find myself saying a prayer for them.
I work in insurance and it makes me sick the fine lines that are drawn in a policy. It's a ashame what all these people are going through.

Katrina,

I am happy to hear that all in all your friend and her family are doing well.

Omg, thank you for keeping us updated! All in all, I'm glad that the outcome wasn't as bad as it could've been and that the most important things (including their own lives) were saved. I'm sorry to hear about their insurance policy, that's a real shame.

Thank you everyone I am so thrilled that they are okay and that their home was not totally ruined. I spent Mardi Gras 2004 with her family and at that house

Thank God my friend took an insurance continuing education class for hurricane victims - offered here in NY recently. Otherwise, I do not think they would be as well off as they are with the insurance paying for so much.

It's so sad that this situation is being taken advantage of by all sorts of businesses.

I am sooo sorry about your friends' parents house. I hope they are able to move forward and it sounds like they are. My MOH's brother lived in New Orleans when Katrina hit and he too lost everything. He's still uprooted and trying to figure out where he wants to live. It's just so sad.