ST. FRANCISVILLE, LA — The men and women of the 294th are stationed tonight 20 minutes outside of Baton Rouge. After three days of traveling, tomorrow they are expected to see their first action, helping to clear roads and restore basic services to one of the areas worst hit by Hurricane Gustav.

Tonight we sleep in the auditorium of a local elementary school. There is no power, but the running water (cold as it may be) makes this a Holiday Inn Express compared to last night’s accomidations, which was literally nothing more than a chicken coop with a tin roof over our heads and not much more.

There is no electricity in St. Francisville. Outside it is so dark that, speaking to someone just two feet away from me, all there is is a voice.

The upside of the darkness is what it unveils above my head: stars like you can never see in St. Louis. I haven’t seen a sky like this since my summers with my Alabama cousins. It is a welcomed consolation for a very long day.

A broken fan belt forced me to make an unplanned hike near the Mississippi border. But it also allowed me to experience another natural beauty native to these parts — southern hospitality.

In the morning, subject to a sudden change in plans, I’ll be heading out early on a recon mission with a small crew led by someone familiar to many PubDef readers, Lt. Jim Avery — as in former State Rep. Jim Avery (R-Crestwood).

Check back layer for video. In fact, I’ve actually shot quite a bit of video over the past couple of days and as soon as I stay put in the same place for a few hours, I plan to edit and upload them (AT&T Wireless permitting).