Rita Restoration


	Hurricane Rita hit the Gulf Coast of Western Louisiana and Southeastern Texas on Friday night, September 23, 2005 . The devastation to Lake Charles, Beaumont, Port Arthur, and other coastal towns has been well documented in the media. Just before Rita hit the Gulf Coast, Katrina destroyed much of New Orleans, Biloxi, and Gulfport, and the plight of those left behind were portrayed graphically in the media. As a result of these two media portrayals, the damage inflicted by Rita on Newton County (and Jasper County) has largely been a non-event for the media. Yet, a category 2 hurricane went up the Sabine River destroying many structures in the path in both counties. Under the direction of Margie Herrin, the Newton County Appraisal District took pictures throughout the county of residential buildings that were destroyed or damaged by Rita. We have a JPEG file containing 1333 pictures of damaged homes. A few of these have more than one picture of the same structure; there were approximately 1000 homes severely damaged in Newton County alone. The greatest devastation was in the southern part of the county in and around Deweyville. I start the pictures with the church parsonage. I was able to get pictures of one of the first trees removed from a house after Rita. It was early Sunday morning, September 25, when we were awakened to a strange sound from above us. The Lafitte family was already taking care of their pastor by removing a few tons of tree from the roof. The parsonage was not damaged as much as others; we were more fortunate than others, but it makes the experience real to have been a participant.

	David and Davin Lafitte on the parsonage roof removing huge pine tree

	Front view of the parsonage after tree removal The following pictures are a random sampling of damaged houses in Newton County











	These could go on literally for many, many pages. 1333 pictures. Some homes were worse than these, and some were not as bad. The point is that there was and is a lot of damage in Newton County. Newton, Deweyville, and Burkeville all incurred the wrath of a category 2 hurricane with extensive structural damage to homes, schools, businesses, churches, electrical service, water supplies, and infrastructure.

	Power lines down along Route 190 going towards Bon Wier There were power lines down everywhere. We returned to Newton on Saturday, September 24, and we had a difficult time getting through the mess. Many people, even those with resources, were unable to get in or out of their driveways or houses. Newton High School sustained significant damage. One of the priorities was to get the school repaired so it could be opened as soon as possible. Much of the interior, including books, was damaged. The roof over a large part of the building was ripped off.





	The Early Days of Recovery In the early days of Rita Restoration, the temperatures were above 100 degrees for at least a week and the humidity was stifling. The night time temperatures were high also, making sleep impossible. The Texas State Guard was on site in approximately 24 hours supplying unlimited ice, water, and food such as Meals Ready to Eat (MRE’s). They literally saved our lives.


	By early in the week the Salvation Army and the Texas Baptist Men were preparing hot meals at the Church of Christ; supplying 3500 plus meals per day to residents. They even carried hot meals out to people who could not make it into Newton. The First Baptist Church in Deweyville also supplied meals through an arrangement with the Red Cross in Orange. Mama’s Kitchen, a ministry of New Light Ministries, supplied food and supplies in Bleakwood.



	Trees obviously needed to be cleared from roofs and the right-of-ways. Trees also needed to be cleared from downed power lines. Workers cleared trees from the downed power lines and poles as others started the task of repairing the electrical infrastructure. The heroes of Rita to the people of the city of Newton were the linemen from CPS in San Antonio and other cities. 120 linemen were on the site working before people even knew they were here. The community fed them and other emergency workers in the elementary school cafeteria which was powered by an enormous, diesel generator. The cafeteria opened for breakfast at 6 AM and served dinner until 7 PM or later. The CPS workers were always first in the morning and the last in the evening to eat. They got Newton up and running in 15 days. Original estimates for power restoration were 6 months… at least! There were so many lines down that the job seemed impossible. They worked 7 days per week.
	The Trees have to be cleared out of the way before the lines can be repaired.


	Trucks are lined up in the town square preparing for debris removal. It's hard to even imagine the amount of debris that has to be removed as trees are trimmed and yards cleared of downed trees.

	CPS linemen created a strong presence within the community. Usually, they were working throughout the community. When eating breakfast or supper, they parked their trucks in the parking lot of the elementary school.







	DPS and other emergency workers were fed in the Elementary School Cafeteria

	Local folks operated the kitchen in the cafeteria, providing 3 meals per day for emergency workers.

	The Fomby family turned their Laundromat into a laundry for emergency workers Go to Page 2 of Rita Restoration There are projects in Newton Country waiting for some volunteer group that is willing to do the necessary work. Are you a member of a group that is willing to put your faith into action? Email us or call Pastor Joe at 409-379-3491. Also, monetary donations may be made for this work. 100% of money donated goes to help people in need. There are no administrative charges. Checks may be made out to First United Methodist Church (or simply FUMC) Rita Restoration Fund. Mailing address is FUMC, 308 High Street, Newton, TX. 75966