Ike recovery question 2 - what has getting back to work been like for different occupations? How many days did it take?

[mrman78]

I work in the oil and gas industry in the galleria, and we return to work tomorrow (Thursday 9/18).

[lovesroses]

My husband's company downtown is closed till Monday-blown out windows.

[Timnwendy]

I work at a hospital in the medical center and because of its emergency generators, it never lost power. I went to work on Sunday as part of a relief team. My drive from Pearland to the med center (13 miles) was just fine. The Hwy 288/610 interchange had flooded on Saturday, but it was open on Sunday.

[cla]

I work at the corner of Westheimer and Walnut Bend, just west of the Beltway and was originally expecting to go back on Tuesday, then "probably Wednesday, Thursday for sure". Last night was told maybe Friday. The building had power, but the atrium took on water (some of our atrium facing offices have damp carpets) and the elevators and HVAC system were down. Supposedly those have been repaired, but the building management is waiting on air quality tests before allowing anyone in.

For Katrina, my office paid everyone for the first week, then gave everyone an additional 40 hours to use as needed (time off to go to N.O. etc). Additionally, they put everyone from N.O. up in apartments or hotels in Houston and paid for it. They bought furniture and household items for the apartment dwellers. They are currently looking for hotel rooms and apartments for any Houston employees who still don't have power. I assume they will give us some hours for this week. We got paid for time off last Friday. If not, I will use vacation time, but I already used a week when my mom evacuated here for Gustav. She is ill and I didn't want to leave her here alone.

[icon7]

I am out until next week, probably going back to work Tuesday. But I have been working from home since Wednesday. I am in Oil 7 Gas.
My wife was back in the med center Monday. She is a physician, and they were required to come in.

[chris_ut]

I'm in the oil industry. We are off for the week but still being paid.

[Topaz]

My husband and I are both consultants with different niches - our clients are all over the country. We kept working via cell phone and wireless Internet. I'm particularly proud of myself that a journalist from ABC called me last week and even though I was on the road in Austin while my home was without power, I managed to do the interview and get some publicity for my company.

My husband's office in Clear Lake is still closed. The electronic security system locked the building and without power, no one has been able to open it.