On Wednesday, September 21st, 2005, Hurricane Rita was a Category five storm and predicted to hit the Gulf Coast dead-on. Like 2.3 million other Houstonians, we decided it would be safer to head for the Hills, just in case the predictions were right.

Flights sold out quickly; I managed to book one to Oklahoma city that night but couldn’t find a hotel there and then feared we wouldn’t even get to the airport in time so cancelled it. Friends in Atlanta offered us a roof - the plane tickets were too expensive though. We were going to have to drive, perhaps to Atlanta but preferably to a Hotel, somewhere closer.

We found the only hotel within 500 miles with a room available until the following week. American Express travel found it for me after an hour-long search. It was in Bartlesville, Oklahoma - 550 miles north of where we live! They offered us a 50% discount on the daily rate, if we could get there.

Well on Wednesday night we threw some stuff in our suitcases, chucked a couple of cans of gasoline I'd managed to procure in Wal-Mart earlier in the day (everywhere had sold out; I managed to get the last couple, as they were extortionate - $20 each for a 3 gallon can!!) plus the small 2 gallon one I use to fill the mower etc., a case (36 bottles) of water and hit the road Thursday morning, September 22nd, at 6am.

The radio told a very sorry story; they had no reporters and so people stuck in traffic were phoning in with tips and the state of traffic where they were (it was stationary everywhere). The entire city was out of gasoline - every single station was dry; no tankers could get through the traffic. People's car were conking out in the middle of the road, making it worse.

We knew we had very little fuel; we dropped the windows and went without A/C soon after leaving. It hit over 100°F during the day... We wouldn't have made it if we hadn't though so the dehydration and the sun-burn was perhaps worth it. Nobody appears to have got heat-stroke but it was a close-run thing. We didn't take enough water (only 36 bottles). I kicked myself for that one all day but we came through it all right so a lesson learned!

Anyway the city was gridlocked. Our only route to where we were going is the 45. We had to get on it.

We decided to join it as far north as possible, as we heard it was stationary so the less miles we spent on it the better. People reported they had taken all night to move eight miles.
We knew from what we heard on the radio that we had to avoid the major roads, and even the minor ones. We have Microsoft Streets and Trips 2006, which comes with a GPS unit you can plug into a computer. We took Daisy's notebook (as I have a car-charger for it) and Jade navigated using that; we deliberately went the tiniest, most pot-holed back-roads around some of the most out-back corners of the city and actually managed to avoid most of the traffic, actually getting north of Houston until there were no more small roads left to join.

So we started queuing to get on the 45 at about noon. A lady who said she lived locally, walked up to our car while we were lined up in a three-mile queue to join the 45 and started talking to us, noting the girls sweating in the back of the truck, offering us the use of her house for a rest, some A/C, some water... We thanked her for her kindness but pressed on in the stop, start of the line.

Suddenly a police officer blasted down the empty lane opposite, stating that the 45 was opened in both directions going north - starting from the point at which we were joining! That was very lucky for us; the queue started moving at nearly 10mph almost immediately as traffic started joining the south-bound lanes going north. The road was open on all lanes, going north, for almost 200 miles - right to Dallas. Our timing at arriving at the spot where they opened the road was very, very fortuitous.

And so began the saga of trundling north on the 45 to Dallas and then Oklahoma. We had 550 miles to go in all. I was glad of my truck; which I off-roaded on many occasions to avoid stalled vehicles or to change from the south-bound lanes to the north bound lanes; service roads etc.; going up and down verges to avoid accidents, stalled vehicles, etc. We saw a lot of stalled cars, a lot of people waiting around. Many had run out of gas. A lot of people had realized that no A/C saved gas; people called to one another’s vehicle in jocular fashion. There were so many convoys of people, who evidently (from talking to people) found it very hard to stay together - the cell phone networks were jammed. We would see them all waiting for each other on the verges (which caused slow-downs). We were glad we didn't try and take both our vehicles - we would still be on the road now (Friday evening) if we had. In fact we wouldn't have made it - not enough gas. And Jade's car wouldn’t go places my truck would.

People got out and we had friendly conversations with some people. The mood was generally positive; people were glad to be at least north of the city and out of harms way if nothing else.
The heat was very nearly unbearable; it was a hot, sunny day and without A/C or shade or much breeze from moving along so slowly, we baked. Jasmine and Daisy tolerated the discomfort admirably and we are very, very proud of them. They knew we were in a spot, and we all pulled together and coped as best we could.

I feared running out of fuel above all else. It was a close-run thing - without the extra cans of gas, we wouldn't have made it to Dallas; where in the southern area of the city we found a station that still had some premium left. It was at this point that we knew we would make it. It was 7pm; 11 hours after leaving. We felt secure enough to put the A/C back on - never had it felt so good! Even at 7pm, it was still in the 90's.

In Dallas we also finally got through on the cell-hone network and managed to call the hotel we had booked and assure them we were on the way and to keep our room - we knew there would be plenty of takers! They said they would (and were true to their word).

Here we finally stopped for something to eat, too - we had not stopped since we left, living on snacks we had taken with us. We grabbed the best-tasting burgers we have all ever had, at a Sonic drive-in by the 45 in Southern Dallas. Our mood at feeling safe, fed, cool and that we would now make it to safety is unforgettable.

We were half-way to our destination. The 45 returned to two-way, but traffic was reduced this far north so that we were able to move at a pretty rapid clip (we hit 50mph a few times).
We pressed on. The traffic got lighter and lighter, but everything moving north was from the Houston area - cars and trucks loaded with people, possessions and pets. We did not feel alone!

I was able to get faster until the roads were clear enough to make full use of the speed limit. We made it across the border to Oklahoma; I didn’t notice the time. Then, at about 1:30am, as I was blasting though yet another small town, police lights flashed and I pulled over. (Jade could see my speed on-screen thanks to the GPS so I was unable to pretend that I was "not going that fast"). I was busted.

The police officer shone his flashlight on our truck piled high with suitcases and immediately asked if we were escaping the storm? I said yes; we had been going since 6am. He asked our opinion of the danger to one town through which we had passed, on the north edge of Houston - we assured him they were far enough north to be safe. He nodded and explained I had been doing 77 in a 70 limit. I nodded - that was what I had set my cruise control to (always 10% over the stated limit, thinking that might be... ok). He said he would be right back, and returned to his patrol car. I sighed and waited.

A moment later the officer returned, with two soft-toy teddy bears, explaining they were for the girls; he wished us luck and safe passage to where we were going. He didn't mention anything about a ticket. We headed off, relieved and glad of another kind soul taking pity on us that day.
We headed off, and I was more law abiding, not wishing to chance my luck again after so much good luck.

We arrived at 2am; and were in bed by 3am. We slept late that day.

There were a number of other Texas plates there; we met two other families who had made the same trip as us and we overheard quite a number of others. The local Denny's' gave us 20% off our bill. An electronic sign by a bank said "Welcome Houston visitors". We received a very friendly welcome in Oklahoma! We spent our time trying to make the most of it, seeing all the local sites. We had a particularly nice day on Monday (September 26th) at Tulsa Zoo – we had the place to ourselves!

I got interviewed by our local paper at home while we were still there (on Sunday) – they published the story the next day, on the front page, no less, complete with a picture of me from our web site!! We were still in Oklahoma then of course but a school-friend of Jasmine’s brought in a copy for her later that week (as she was in it!)

We arrived back Tuesday evening (September 27th); a mere 12 hours as the run was clear the whole way. We came back on the 45, hoping that most people will have returned the previous day; this turned out to be the case for the most part as it didn’t get busy until just North of Conroe. We just dove East across side-roads to the 59, which was clear the whole way to Rosenberg.

We are glad we went, as it seems the only prudent thing to do in the circumstances. We would do it again, like a shot – with less time wasted procrastinating next time and with more water and fuel when we go!

We kept a Diary throughout; it can be seen below.

- The Hems Family, November 2005

Wed, Sep 21 2005 8:58 pm

Hurricane Rita is apparently coming our way; we hemmed and hawed and finally decided not to risk sticking around just in case. We are heading to a small hotel in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, until Sunday (or longer if need be). We leave tomorrow, at dawn!

Hope the house is still here when we get back!!!

Fri, Sep 23 2005 4:02 pm

Hello all,

We found the only hotel within 500 miles. American Express travel found it for me. It's in Bartlesville, Oklahoma - 550 miles north of us! They offered us a 50% discount on the daily rate, if we could get there.

Well we threw some stuff in our cases, chucked a couple of cans of gasoline I'd managed to procure in Wal-Mart earlier in the day (everywhere had sold out; I managed to get the last couple, as they were extortionate - $20 each for a 3 gallon can!!) plus the small 2 gallon one I use to fill the mower etc., a case of water and hit the road, at 6am.

The radio told a very sorry story; they had no reporters and so people stuck in traffic were phoning in with tips and the state of traffic where they were (it was stationary everywhere). The entire city was out of gasoline - every single station was dry; no tankers could get through the traffic. People's car were conking out in the middle of the road, making it worse.

We knew we had very little fuel; we dropped the windows and went without A/C soon after leaving. It hit over 100 degrees yesterday... We wouldn't have made it if we hadn't though so the dehydration and the sun-burn was perhaps worth it. Nobody appears to have got heat-stroke but it was a close-run thing. We didn't take enough water (only 36 bottles). I kicked myself for that one all day but we came through it all right so a lesson learned!

Anyway the city was gridlocked. Our only route to where we were going is the 45. We had to get on it.

We decided to join it as far north as possible, as we heard it was stationary so the less time we spent on it the better. People reported they had taken all night to move eight miles.

We knew from what we heard on the radio that we had to avoid the major roads, and even the minor ones. We have Microsoft Streets and Trips 2006, which comes with a GPS unit you can plug into a computer. We took Daisy's notebook (as I have a car-charger for it) and Jade navigated using that; we deliberately went the tiniest, most pot-holed back-roads around some of the most out-back corners of the city and actually managed to avoid most of the traffic, actually getting north of Houston until there were no more small roads left to join. It is open - there is nothing in between Dallas (our next stop) and Houston; the only road between the two cities is the 45.

So we started queuing to get on the 45 at about noon. A lady who said she lived locally, walked up to our car while we were lined up in a three-mile queue to join the 45 and started talking to us, noting the girls sweating in the back of the truck, offering us the use of her house for a rest, some A/C, some water... We thanked her for her kindness but pressed on in the stop, start of the line.

Suddenly a police officer blasted down the empty lane opposite, stating that the 45 was opened in both directions going north - starting from the point at which we were joining! That was very lucky for us; the queue started moving at nearly 10mph almost immediately as traffic started joining the south-bound lanes going north. The road was open on all lanes, going north, for almost 200 miles - right to Dallas. Our timing at arriving at the spot where they opened the road was very, very fortuitous.

And so began the saga of trundling north on the 45 to Dallas and then Oklahoma. We had 550 miles to go in all. I was glad of my truck; which I off-roaded on many occasions to avoid stalled vehicles or to change from the south-bound lanes to the north bound lanes; service roads etc.; going up and down verges to avoid accidents, stalled vehicles, etc. We saw a lot of stalled cars, a lot of people waiting around. Many had run out of gas. A lot of people had realized that no A/C saved gas; people called to one another’s vehicle in jocular fashion. There were so many convoys of people, who evidently (from talking to people) found it very hard to stay together - the cell phone networks were jammed. We would see them all waiting for each other on the verges (which caused slow-downs). We were glad we didn't try and take both our vehicles - we would still be on the road now (Friday evening) if we had. In fact we wouldn't have made it - not enough gas. And Jade's car wouldn’t go places my truck would.

People got out and we had friendly conversations with some people. The mood was generally positive; people were glad to be at least north of the city and out of harm’s way if nothing else.

The heat was very nearly unbearable; it was a hot, sunny day and without A/C or shade or much breeze from moving along so slowly, we baked. Jasmine and Daisy tolerated the discomfort admirably and we are very, very proud of them. They knew we were in a spot, and we all pulled together and coped as best we could.

I feared running out of fuel above all else. It was a close-run thing - without the extra cans of gas, we wouldn't have made it to Dallas; where in the southern area of the city we found a station that still had some premium left. It was at this point that we knew we would make it. It was 7pm; 11 hours after leaving. We felt secure enough to put the A/C back on - never had it felt so good! Even at 7pm, it was still in the 90's.

In Dallas we also finally got through on the cell-phone network and managed to call the hotel we had booked and assure them we were on the way and to keep our room - we knew there would be plenty of takers! They said they would (and were true to their word).

Here we finally stopped for something to eat, too - we had not stopped since we left, and living on snacks we had taken with us. We grabbed the best-tasting burgers we have all ever had, at a Sonic drive-in by the 45 in Southern Dallas. Our mood at feeling safe, fed, cool and that we would now make it is unforgettable.

We were half-way to our destination. The 45 returned to two-way, but traffic was reduced this far north so that we were able to move at a pretty rapid clip (we hit 50mph a few times).

We pressed on. The traffic got lighter and lighter, but everything moving north was from the Houston area - cars and trucks loaded with people, possessions and pets. We did not feel alone!

I was able to get faster until the roads were clear enough to make full use of the speed limit. We made it across the border to Oklahoma; I forget the time. Then, at about 1:30am, as I was blasting though yet another small town, police lights flashed and I pulled over. (Jade could see my speed on-screen thanks to the GPS so I was unable to pretend that I was "not going that fast"). I was busted.

The police officer shone his flashlight on our truck piled high with suitcases and immediately asked if we were escaping the storm. I said yes; we had been going since 6am. He asked our opinion of the danger to one town through which we had passed, on the north edge of Houston - we assured him they were far enough north to be safe. He nodded and explained I had been doing 77 in a 70 limit. I nodded - that was what I had set my cruise control to (always 10% over the stated limit, thinking that might be... ok). He said he would be right back, and returned to his patrol car. I sighed and gave a wry look to Jade, who didn't look impressed but was too tired to even give me A Look.

A moment later the officer returned, with two soft-toy teddy bears, explaining they were for the girls; he wished us luck and safe passage to where we were going. He didn't mention anything about a ticket. We headed off, relieved and glad of another kind soul taking pity on us that day.

We headed off, and I was more law abiding, not wishing to chance my luck again after so much good luck.

We arrived at 2am; and were in bed by 3am. We slept late today, and are resting and watching what happens. The return journey is what is worrying us now.

Meanwhile we are sitting it out, glad we escaped (unlike so many others).

Sun, Sep 25 2005 10:04 am

Hello all,

Still no net access - the coffee shop I sent the last message from is shut but left their access point open so I am typing this from outside their door!

Looks like Hurricane Rita missed our house in Rosenberg - neighbor who had to stay (husband part of emergency team) says all is well with house etc and power even on! No fuel in city, almost no shops open though; those that are empty to we are quite happy to stay here for the moment.

Keeping girls amused with touring local sights; weather beautiful here - hurricane didn't even get this far north; seems to have gone to east.

Getting back is next problem. We're watching the news etc. to see; in the next few days maybe. In the meantime we continue to see the sights and make the best of it...

Post more again later...

Tues, Sep 27 2005 9:11 pm

Hello all,

Well we arrived home about 6pm today; it took us 12 hours. That included a stop for lunch and a number of rest-area breaks though so a really good run, all around. It was clear all the way to just North of Houston, when it started getting slow - so we dived off to tiny side roads again and cut across to another freeway into town, which was not crowded at all. It appears most people returned yesterday and last night; we were glad we delayed a day in the hope that this was the case.

The first fuel station we stopped at near Houston was empty; they had refilled only yesterday so the city's gasoline problems are clearly not over. Not an issue for us; I took 28 gallons of fuel in the back of my truck just to be sure! Also 68 bottles of water (plus another six liters emergency reserve) so we were all set. It was 100 degrees F again so were very glad to be able to have the A/C on the whole way!

Once again the girls did us proud and were perfect angels the whole way.

We were accompanied on our trip down by lots of other fully loaded cars; fellow returning evacuees were easy to spot as everybody was carrying extra fuel, like us! I counted six cans on the top of one mini-van! Nobody was taking chances after the nightmare trip out.

We passed a lot of abandoned cars, too; pity their hapless owners (none of whom were in evidence).

The house is exactly as we left it; we were greeting by all our neighbors as we were the last ones to arrive back (as we had traveled the furthest, not surprisingly!) We learned that some who had tried to leave had given up in the traffic and turned back so the neighborhood wasn't entirely deserted in our absence.

Yesterday we spent the day at Tulsa Zoo, probably one of the nicest zoos we've been to. Best of all, we had the place to ourselves as most peoples' kids (except for other evacuees, and those too young of course) were in school. We had a great time!!

Sunday we visited the site of one of the first places that Laura Ingalls Wilder, of Little House on the Prairie fame, lived, near Independence, Kansas. It was great!

So in all we had a lovely trip and thoroughly enjoyed our time in Oklahoma. School for the girls tomorrow (it was open today so Jade wrote them a lengthy note to take tomorrow as to why they couldn't be there!) and work for me; ho-hum! The best we could hope for after such a fun adventure - a return to normality :-)

Mon, Oct 3 2005 11:41 am

Hello again,

Our "Escape from Rita" story made our local newspaper last week (among a couple of others) and I just found the article in their on-line archives so thought I would share it:

http://tinyurl.com/9q542

They phoned me up Sunday when we were still in Bartlesville and I had forgotten about it until one of Jasmines' school friends brought the paper in to school last week to show her; it was the front page story apparently! It even had a colour mug-shot of Yours Truly (the one from our web site) so we've heard. Must try and secure a copy for the Hems archives; we have one when Jade was Volunteer of the Year and on another occasion when Jasmine and Daisy were pictured showing off some of their art-work (a school project about their lives, in pictures).

Last week I also took the opportunity to thank all the people within Microsoft responsible for writing the program "Streets & Trips" (http://tinyurl.com/7ymsn) as without that we wouldn't have escaped Houston at all. They are all in Redmond, WA and I got lots of replies thanking me for sharing the story and making all their effort feel worthwhile; pretty cool. :-)