Lafourche Parish shows signs of slow return to normalcy
September 16, 2008Southdown Plantation House/The Terrebonne Museum (Houma)
September 18, 2008A 16-year-old boy drowned when when Hurricane Ike shoved nearby Bayou Dularge into the house where he was trapped. A man from the same community fled to Houma for safety, but was apparently killed by Ike’s gusty winds.
They were among at least four people likely killed by the hurricane. A 19-year-old was swept out to sea in Texas and listed as missing, although he apparently was washed away, authorities said.
A Pinehurst, Texas, woman died in bed when a tree fell on her house and crushed her early Saturday – apparently the first reported death from the hurricane. Her name was not released.
The 16-year-old, from a community just north of Theriot, was trapped when his leg got stuck between two boards of a pallet used as flooring, Gary Alford, senior investigator for the Terrebonne Parish Coroner’s Office, said Saturday night.
“The water came in so fast he didn’t have a chance,” Alford said. The house was still filled with water when the boy’s brother returned Saturday to look for him.
“His brother dragged him out to get him to some high ground and tried to revive him, but there was nothing they could do for that child,” Alford said. He did not release the boy’s name.
He said the body of 57-year-old Donald Celestine was found about 7 a.m. Saturday on a Houma street, near the shelter where his family was staying.
His neck was broken, but there was none of the bruising and other trauma one might expect had he been hit by a car or attacked by another person – only a few little scratches, Alford said.
“He got thrown by some gusty wind, or maybe a twister picked him up,” Alford said. He said the National Weather Service reported winds gusting to 50 mph between 5 a.m. and 7 a.m., when the man probably died.
“The guy weighed 80, 90 pounds at the most. It wouldn’t have taken much wind to throw him,” Alford said. He said the scratches were “from when he was thrown down.”
He didn’t know why the man was out walking.
Texas authorities had few details about the Pinehurst woman.
The Coast Guard has been searching for 19-year-old Michael Moxly off the shores of Corpus Christi, Texas. Petty Officer Josh Morales said Moxly was swept from North Padre Island jetty.
