<Ernesto update and Remembering Katrina>

Ernesto failed to intensify as it approached the Keys and the southern tip of Florida Tuesday night. Residents of the state should be relieved to have no more than a stormy night this time. As the system churns north over land, forecasters are watching for possible strengthening late Wednesday as Ernesto is expected to head back into the Atlantic. A hurricane watch is up for an area from the Georgia coast north to Cape Fear, North Carolina.

We'll have another update on Ernesto soon. What a difference a year makes. Last year at this time, Jeff Flock and I were turning in for the night at our downtown New Orleans hotel. We were exhausted, having spent the previous 24 hours feeding live coverage of Katrina's force as it swept ashore (you can view some of our archived coverage in our video pages on this site).

We spent many hours watching the fierce wind and sheets of rain attack some of the buildings and streets from our vantage point in a parking garage, a few blocks from the Superdome and the French Quarter. We watched as the wind began to rip away the walls and facing of a nearby hotel where many took shelter the night before. Windows blew out and insulation was ripped away from the outer walls of the hotel. We saw several people sneaking a peek at the storm as it threatened to tear apart their shelter. Nearby, glass from shattered windows rained in the street, and we feared that it might come crashing down on us. Thankfully, it did not.

When the storm began to pass our location, Jeff and I decided to try to find a way out of town. We knew the bridge we crossed from Slidell the day before was gone, so we headed west. The highways were desolate, except for us and a few emergency vehicles, and they had the same problem we had: no where to go. We reached a point where the road was flooded, and there was a car submerged in the water. We had no choice but to turn around and head back to downtown New Orleans, where downed trees and bricks from damaged buildings littered the streets, making our travel hazardous.

We found refuge with friends in a downtown hotel, where the spirit hours after Katrina had passed was surprisingly upbeat. Staff at the hotel rallied the troops to serve a hot meal, encouraging guests and staff to stay put and ride out the crisis for a few days. A generator powered one elevator in the high rise hotel, and more power was anticipated soon. Water taps didn't run, toilets didn't flush, and there was no air conditioning in a hotel with windows sealed on a hot August night. Our cellphones didn't work either, but all of this seemed OK to me at this point. Tomorrow was another day, we were relieved to have a place to sleep at last.

The morning after Katrina...our story continues...in our next update.

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