[Nightcrawler]

I'm back! I'm sure you were all terribly worried about me. :rolleyes: LOL

In a nutshell, I was on a bus in Gary, Indiana, on my way home to Michigan, when I got a call about a great job. I got on another bus, and now here I am in Southern Mississippi, doing security work for FEMA. Pretty austere, but it pays well.

This place is flattened, but that's a story for another day.

We met up with local law enforcement. Most seemed like pretty good guys, though a suprising number of the County Sherrif's deputies are related. One guy had a penchant for running around in urban camouflage BDU pants, but whatever.

I will, in a much later thread (whenever I can download my camera), show you all pictures of guns recovered by the Sherrif's office. These were washed away in the flood and are mostly rusted beyond repair.

The most heartbreaking? A .45ACP Colt New Service, which was loaded, so they had to pound out the cylinder with a hammer, and a 1917 World War One vintage German Luger.

The Luger might be restorable, actually. Any value it might have had is gone, but it might not be a total loss.

Also met my first ATF agents. They came by to collect serial numbers of the guns the deputies had recoverd. Didn't really talk to them any. They were all packing. Forest service guys are packing. Fish and game guys are packing. Hell, I saw a Public Health Service guy in BDUs! (Unarmed, but I didn't know they made U.S.P.H.S. nametapes.) EVERYbody is strapped down here.

Anyway, I'm going to be down here until mid October at least, possibly into January, depending on how the contract goes. I'll get the pictures up as soon as I can. Though my internet access is spottier here than it was in the middle east!

The moral of this story, if there's one to be had, is that you should probably invest in a waterproof gun safe and get some FLOOD COVERAGE, GUN COVERAGE insurance if you have a very valuable or cherished gun collection. We're pretty far inland here, but the storm surge rode up the river and people had eight feet of water in their homes. Most of the cops we've talked to have lost their homes, and their Sherrif's Office, as well.

Until next time...

[El Tejon]

Wow, you were in two disaster areas--Hurricane-ravaged Mississippi and Gary-ravaged Gary, Indiana! :what:

Glad you are O.K.

[Preacherman]

If you need a break now and then, PM me and we'll make contact. I'm in Alexandria, LA, which would be four or five hours drive at most from where you are - perhaps less. I can always spare a beer and a friendly cat for a fellow THR member! :D

[Lennyjoe]

Interesting. Please keep us posted. We seem to be getting the same crap from the news networks. Nice to have first hand accounts from true Americans.

[Travis McGee]

Ditto on keep us posted!

[Gifted]

I didn't know they made U.S.P.H.S. nametapes. Making nametapes is fairly easy if you have the machine; you type in what you want it to say, and make sure there's tape and thread in the machine. I'm not sure that they regularly make them though.

[tanksoldier]

The 5 Armed Forces aren't the only Uniformed Services of the United States. USPHS wears a uniform exactly like the US Navy uniform, except for the buttons and some other details. Remember seeing the Surgeon General on TV in uniform? USPHS has only commissioned officers, and they often serve with the US armed forces... Coast Guard doctors are actualy commissioned USPHS officers.

There used to also be National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) & US Geodesic Survey (USGS) commissioned officers... many of the survery vessels that surveyed for landings in WWII had combined NOAA & USGS crews. This commissioned officer corps has recently been merged into one.

Lastly there is also the US Merchant Marine, which is a separate service from the US Navy, but they wear Navy style uniforms and use naval ranks. The President of the California Maritime Academy is a Rear Admiral in the USMM.

Uniformed officers from these services rate a salute from enlisted servicemembers and lower ranking officers, but are almost never in the chain of command... they are treated as special staff officers.

The USPHS officer you saw could have been with the Coast Guard, or he could have been with a USPHS mission of some sort.

[Justin]

Nightcrawler, stay safe and keep us posted.

El Tejon, that was too freakin' funny. :D

[Borachon]

They were all packing. Forest service guys are packing. Fish and game guys are packing. Hell, I saw a Public Health Service guy in BDUs! (Unarmed, but I didn't know they made U.S.P.H.S. nametapes.) EVERYbody is strapped down here.

That's normal. Our Fish and Game guys are always armed. In fact, most of the population of our state is armed. Carrying guns in your car is considered the same as carrying a gun around your home here.

Deer season starts soon also. Stand outside and I promise you'll think you've landed in Iraq come opening day. ;)

If you don't mind my asking, what county are you stationed in currently and what sort of security does FEMA need? I wouldn't have thought FEMA would need it very much.

[corruptone]

That's normal. Our Fish and Game guys are always armed. In fact, most of the population of our state is armed. Carrying guns in your car is considered the same as carrying a gun around your home here.

Deer season starts soon also. Stand outside and I promise you'll think you've landed in Iraq come opening day.

You got that one right. As a man who has lived 28 years of his life in one county of South Mississippi, I can say that a large percentage of the population is armed, but not necessarily for self defense purposes. If Mississippi could figure a way to make a Whitetail Deer the official state bird and flower it would. Not that there is anything wrong with that. I've been in TN now for 4 years, but I still miss deer and dove season in South MS.

[Desertdog]

My son is a building inspector for FEMA and right now he is in Gretna LA, a surburb of NO. They do pay good.