Found a site that has live cameras of the highways here. The above picture is just outside the airport in Houston and shows that at least that area seems to be quiet.

Of course, the absolutely HORRID story of the 24 elderly people on the evacuation bus is heartbreaking. According to the article, "The explosions happened at 4 a.m. today after the bus' brakes caught on fire, reached passengers' oxygen tanks and set off an explosion". I don't even want to imagine the sheer panic that they would have had to endure knowing they were trapped.

There are some 'citizen journalist' blogs here, through the Houston Chronicle.

It is like one long nightmare for the people in the storm zones. The dead have still not been completely retreived in New Orleans and now it's happening again. I can only hope that this one, when it hits tonight (what was Mambo No 5 - a little bit of Rita all night long?) will be less violent than predicted.

On a Katrina note, I heard on the radio about a group of veterinary volunteers from BC that are currently in Lousiana helping get the rescued animals off their feet. The vet they spoke to sounded totally overwhelmed but inspired by the work they were doing. Their website, The Canadian Animal Assistance is here.

My friends were on their way to Belize tomorrow, through a 24 hour layover in Houston. This trip had been planned for ages, and obviously will now be dramatically changed. However, as luck would have it, they can't even get hold of Continental Airlines to make any arrangements. Continental's hub is Houston, and of course no one is there. Their not-so-helpful travel agent said they could buy 2 full-fare tickets again, and hope that it would be covered by insurance but no guarantees. Sure, shell out another $3500 on a maybe? So at this point, they have no idea whether they're going or not.