(SQUAK) — As Hurricane Francine ravages New Orleans, the storm’s catastrophic floods have done more than cause damage to homes and infrastructure—they’ve unearthed a grim reminder of the city’s deep-rooted relationship with death. The floodwaters have breached cemeteries across the region, dislodging crypts, mausoleums, and graves, sending coffins and bodies floating into the streets in a grotesque soup of debris and decay. This gruesome phenomenon has left locals horrified as they confront the surreal aftermath of the disaster, with some describing the scene as straight out of a nightmare.
Reed Timmer, a renowned storm chaser, tweeted horrifying footage of waterlogged crypts and graves being unearthed by the deluge. The devastation is strikingly reminiscent of the havoc wrought by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Still, Francine’s unearthing of New Orleans’ cemeteries marks a particularly chilling chapter in the city’s long history of facing catastrophic storms.
Many of the city’s cemeteries are famous for their above-ground tombs, a practice rooted in the area’s swampy landscape, which makes underground burial impossible in many locations. However, these architectural feats are no match for the torrential floodwaters brought by Francine, which have swept away entire structures, exposing once-sacred resting places to the elements. City officials are scrambling to assess the extent of the damage. Still, the process is expected to be long and arduous, with health and safety concerns looming large as workers begin the gruesome task of recovering and identifying the bodies that were dislodged by the floods.
The storm’s impact has also unearthed deeper fears among New Orleanians—an anxiety that the city, so often battered by storms, is once again vulnerable in ways no one could have anticipated. Many residents are frustrated at the lack of preparation and the seemingly never-ending cycle of destruction. “It’s like we’re living in some kind of horror movie,” one local lamented. “The storms just keep coming, and now even the dead can’t stay buried.”
With the floodwaters still receding, there’s no telling just how much damage has been done or how many crypts and graves have been affected. What is clear, however, is that the people of New Orleans are once again left to pick up the pieces after yet another harrowing storm, one that has not only torn apart their city but dredged up the literal skeletons of its past.
