Ike Still Sucks

Emailed my brother this morning to see how he's doing. His response was pretty dismal. Now, he does have a Droopy Dog kind of outlook on life, but still.

"Houston won't be back to normal for ages. I've been doing some volunteering and there are neighborhoods that look like they were bombed out. Nearly a million people still don't have power. You can barely drive down residential streets because of the piles of tree limbs, fencing, and shingles on the curbs. I'm still waiting to be called back to work. About half of the schools in my district have either no power or enough damage that they can't be used yet."

Damn. He lives in the 'burbs about a half-hour south of downtown Houston and about a half-hour north of Galveston Island.

I'm writing articles on Ike aftermath relating to commercial real estate and construction and those outlooks are even sadder. Estimates on damages as a result are upwards of $10 billion according to a risk adjustment company based out of Boston. I know Galveston Island, alone, had more than $2.2 billion in projects either recently completed or still in the works. Luxury condos on the coast, etc. I'm really curious how it will all play out. I still can't get a phone call through to anyone in Galveston. I've been lucky to reach Houston folks and they've all said they were up to their eyeballs in repairs.