He's doing fine; staying at a friend's aunt's place in Baton Rouge, and already working again... seems he had already quit the outfit in New Orleans he'd been working for, and has a grip job on a movie shoot in the B.R. area. They shut down production for a week or so, but they're back up now.
He told me he'd been back in the city a couple of times to get his stuff (his apartment was unharmed, but no power or water yet), and help some friends do the same. He described going with a friend to see about his brand new bar/restaurant, down near the Superdome, that had been flooded with over 4 feet of water. They salvaged what they could and sort of cleaned up and secured the place, but had to scrub with bleach and antiseptic afterwards... I think he threw out the clothes he was wearing.
That guy had insurance, but may not reopen. Another friend of his had the roof of their house cave in; lost everything. A lot of folks and their businesses are moving out for good; they've had enough. An apartment or house can simply not be had right now in B.R.; with about 1/2 million new residents in the last month, he told me the traffic is worse than NY or LA...
He confirmed news that some people are returning to their homes, but agreed that even with power and running water, they're taking a chance, as the toxic residue left behind from the receding water is incredibly nasty- he smelled it first-hand.
But all in all, Mr. Z is doing fine. Been gaining weight staying at various people's houses in "the land of hospitality"; got all his stuff out of his apartment; working and saving money; new (used) car; meeting movie stars, etc.
And to think i was worried about him...
