My town of Slidell, LA was very hard hit by the hurricane (though, as a side note, the aftermath is not nearly as apocolyptic as what N.O. is experiencing). I managed to make it back there yesterday to survey damage, and our house fared better than many others (about 6 - 8 inches of water, no trees through the roof). But the whole town is a wreck, and they're saying it could be 8 - 12 weeks before power is restored. I'm back in Memphis now, but will be heading back home again in a couple of days for a longer-term stay, to being repair work (wife and kids will stay here in Memphis for the next several months).
Anyway, here's my problem. My 91 year old grandmother has a large sum of cash in a bank safety deposit box that only I have access to. I serve as her "banker", putting money in the box for her when she gets it, and getting money out when she needs it. I have no specifics now, but at this point it seems certain that the bank was flooded. I'm not sure how much water they got, but based on other reports, I'd estimate 5 or 6 feet, which would mean that our box (which was definitely not at the very bottom, but wasn't very high either... probably mid-chest height) was probably submerged (I'm assuming these vaults are not water-proof).
Yes, I know the "should haves" involved here... she should not have kept these funds in cash (she's old fashioned and stubborn in this way), and I should have removed the money before evacuating (honestly just didn't think of it, and was so busy with other preparations). But I have to deal with the situation as it exists.
I'm assuming I'll be able to get into the bank within a few weeks. Is this money ruined? Can bills survive being submerged for 3 - 4 weeks? Is there any particular procedure I should employ when trying to dry the money? My wife mentioned that a bank could "exchange" the money for me if it was substantially damaged... but will they want to know where it all came from (like when people try to make large cash deposits in bank accounts)?
Thanks in advance,
--Mike