After New Years we again set out on the road heading west. We took small roads along Florida’s panhandle coast and eventually made it to the Mississippi Gulf Coast. We had a wonderful visit with our friends, Sami and James and their almost six year old son, Jimmy. We also had the opportunity to meet all their animals; the eight dogs (three of which have a genetic defect that has left bald spots all over their body), the three turkeys (which have club feet and can hardly walk), the hords of chickens (some of which Jimmy entered into the fair and won blue ribbons and grand champion), the peacock who showed up soon after they moved in, and their donkey, Gus.
Baldy the Bald Dog
Gus the Donkey
The Gulf Coast is still a mess after Hurricane Katrina hit in August 2005. Most of the damaged seemed to have come from the high winds and storm surge associated with the hurricane. Almost everything two blocks in from the ocean was demolished. Sixteen months after the storm most of the debris had been removed. Yet there were For Sale signs on many of the lots and many people were still living in FEMA issued trailers on their property. The huge live oak trees seemed to have faired relatively well during the storm but it was still a sight to see nothing left of houses but their foundations. There were signs of life all over the place. There were contactors and homeowners hard at work rebuilding what was left of the area. There was a fair amount of rebuilding taking place but there is still a LONG way to go.
This was written on the side of a wall next to a nice house.
Slabs are all that is left where buildings once stood.
Large mats of marsh grass were moved into the woods from the storm surge. It covered anything in its path, like this house. In some areas the marsh debris was arranged in large wave-like formations and was very difficult to navigate.
These FEMA trailer cities were all over the place along the coast of Mississippi and Louisiana. Some people had a trailer in their yard while others were living in these make shift cities.
As we continued heading west into Louisiana we were nervous of what to expect from our old stomping grounds. Both dave and I lived on the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain for three years before we moved to Alaska. The Mississippi Gulf Coast looked pretty bad until we went into New Orleans. Rebuilding in New Orleans has been slow and many areas look the same as they did after the water finally went down. Here flooding was the main source of damage. When the levees began breaking the day after the storm, HUGE sections of the city found themselves underwater. In many areas the water came in so fast people didn’t have a chance to get out of their homes and sometimes the swift moving water completely moved or leveled houses. Compared to the Gulf Coast little if any rebuilding was taking place and large sections of the city were complete ghost towns. We estimate about 70% of the city seemed to be extremely hard hit by the storm. Yet there were sections of New Orleans that were almost untouched by Katrina. Ironically these untouched areas seemed to be the main tourist areas or wealthy neighborhoods. Walking around the French Quarter (Bourbon Street area) you could hardly tell the area had recently experienced a hurricane.
Jackson Square in the heart of the French Quarter
The Marigny on the eastern edge of the French Quarter sustained little damage. This is where we spent the night while staying downtown.
Side Note: dave used to put up flyers for punk shows around the French Quarter. In return he got free admission to the shows. Although the flyers on this board were from November we were happy to see the boards were still useable.
When we finally worked up the nerve to go into the Ninth Ward and Lakeview areas, where some of the most extensive damage was, we were in utter disbelief at the lack of progress since the storm. While some of the debris and houses had been cleaned up there were still large tracks that didn’t look any different then to media coverage the days after the water went down. In fact there were still National Guard troops stationed in some of the harder hit areas. Patrolling we assume.
The following photos can hardly give you a taste of what we saw. Picture each photo multiplied by miles in each direction. It was extremely hard to take in.
Notice the water line on this house. Many houses sat for a week or more in the water that flooded in after the levees broke. (Lakeview area – extreme southern edge of Lake Pontchartrain)
Most of the houses that were still standing looked in pretty bad shape. (Lakeview area – extreme southern edge of Lake Pontchartrain)
Many houses still had blue tarps covering their roofs. (Lakeview area – extreme southern edge of Lake Pontchartrain)
We saw many sites similar to this; the porch was still there but the house was not. (Ninth Ward – eastern side of New Orleans)
Imagine what the force from the water must have been to pick up heavy items and deposit them on top of people’s roofs. (Ninth Ward – eastern side of New Orleans)
Many houses were completely picked up off their foundations and moved.
This one on top of a car. (Ninth Ward – eastern side of New Orleans)
This one on top of the fence.
(Ninth Ward – eastern side of New Orleans)
Some levee repair work had taken place. This is the site of the main levee break which flooded the Ninth Ward. Notice the new concrete levee in the foreground and the devastation in the Ninth Ward neighborhood in the background.
New Orleans is in desperate need of a strong leader who can take control of rebuilding and make the tough decisions needed to lead New Orleans on its road to recovery. Please keep the people of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast in your thoughts. Their struggle is far from over even though the media is done covering this “story.”
Gus the Donkey
The 
Slabs are all that is left where buildings once stood.
Large mats of marsh grass were moved into the woods from the storm surge. It covered anything in its path, like this house. In some areas the marsh debris was arranged in large wave-like formations and was very difficult to navigate.
These FEMA trailer cities were all over the place along the coast of 
As we continued heading west into 
The Marigny on the eastern edge of the French Quarter sustained little damage. This is where we spent the night while staying downtown.
Side Note: dave used to put up flyers for punk shows around the French Quarter. In return he got free admission to the shows. Although the flyers on this board were from November we were happy to see the boards were still useable.
When we finally worked up the nerve to go into the Ninth Ward and Lakeview areas, where some of the most extensive damage was, we were in utter disbelief at the lack of progress since the storm. While some of the debris and houses had been cleaned up there were still large tracks that didn’t look any different then to media coverage the days after the water went down. In fact there were still National Guard troops stationed in some of the harder hit areas. Patrolling we assume.
Most of the houses that were still standing looked in pretty bad shape. (Lakeview area – extreme southern edge of 
Many houses still had blue tarps covering their roofs. (Lakeview area – extreme southern edge of 
We saw many sites similar to this; the porch was still there but the house was not. (Ninth Ward – eastern side of 
Imagine what the force from the water must have been to pick up heavy items and deposit them on top of people’s roofs. (Ninth Ward – eastern side of 
Many houses were completely picked up off their foundations and moved. 
This one on top of the fence. (Ninth Ward – eastern side of 
Some levee repair work had taken place. This is the site of the main levee break which flooded the Ninth Ward. Notice the new concrete levee in the foreground and the devastation in the Ninth Ward neighborhood in the background.
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