A long-planned anniversary trip by a Sequim couple in late March almost put them in the middle of a natural disaster.
Lex and Karla Morgan of Sequim said they were vacationing only a few miles away in New Orleans on March 22 when one of two tornadoes touched down near them, causing one reported death and massive damage.
Karla Morgan said she had experienced a few tornadoes throughout her life but never this close.
“Sadly, it was really significant with a lot of damage from where we were,” she said.
National and local news outlets reported one tornado with speeds at about 160 miles per hour touched down in Gretna and traveled more than 11 miles northeast, while a second tornado touched down north of the first tornado across Lake Pontchartrain in Lacombe.
Some residents were still recovering from hurricanes such as Ida from last summer, while these tornadoes were the first in the area since February 2017, reports the National Weather Service.
The Morgans had planned to visit Louisiana back in March 2020 for their 40th anniversary, but the COVID-19 pandemic delayed it.
Two years later and for their 42nd anniversary, Karla was able to visit for the first time and Lex for a second time, after seeing New Orleans in 1978.
Lex said an episode of the Netflix show “Somebody Feed Phil” was part of their inspiration to visit after it covered food in New Orleans.
“We watched that and thought, ‘We need to go down there sometime,’” he said.
Karla said the history, food and music were all factors in their desire to visit.
The couple arrived in New Orleans on Sunday, March 20, to stay at an Airbnb, walk the French Quarter on Monday and spend most of Tuesday inside The National WWII Museum before winds began to pick up.
Karla said staff were going home early before the storm hit.
“Walking home we were holding onto each other so we wouldn’t get blown away,” Karla said.
“At that point it was just wind. Karla and I were walking across the street … and a big gust almost blew me into a car,” Lex said.
They rode a trolley for about 25 minutes and went into a small market for dinner. With about six blocks to their Airbnb, Karla said they were drenched by the rain. Once inside, she said “the worst of it was over” for them.
Lex said they were advised to get to the lowest level they could, and they closed the curtains in case glass broke from winds.
“It was an interesting experience,” he said.
The Morgans and four other guests and the Airbnb owners gathered downstairs to watch the news about the thunderstorm. Basements typically aren’t built because the area is prone to flooding, Karla said.
“We didn’t even get an alarm on our phones [about the tornado],” she said. “It was a surprise to everyone.”
They saw the devastation on television but not in person as they didn’t have a car until they left for the remainder of the trip.
“It was just tragic,” Karla said of the tornadoes.
After New Orleans, the couple was able to travel to Baton Rouge and around southern Louisiana during their two-week trip. Some of their highlights included the World War II museum, Marjie’s Grill in New Orleans that Lex said meshed Cajun and Vietnamese food, Avery Island to tour the Tabasco factory, and the Whitney Plantation.
Karla said they learned a lot at the plantation, the only Louisiana museum focused on enslaved people, and that it was “very sobering and enlightening.”
Looking at their trip and experience with the tornado, Karla said “life is precious” and “that it can end in a moment.”
“I’d really like to see more compassion, gentleness and kindness come back into our culture, our society, and community,” she said.
“The last few years have been difficult. I hope that there are a lot of people who think carefully and deeply about how they’ve been behaving in all directions.”
