GO PRESIDENT US: Agustus 2015

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Katrina: Ten Years Later

by April Trice

Ten years ago I sat all swollen and pregnant and watched with disbelief while an angry woman named Katrina completely obliterated one of the most sui generis cities in our nation. Part of my disbelief was that the night before Katrina made landfall, I had a dream. In that dream there was a flooded city with dead bodies floating in the water. I woke up and immediately shared the whole disturbing thing with my husband who replied with:

"Hun, you're pregnant. You eat dirt and ham."

Let me first say that this dream was in no way a psychic vision. I've always been a bit of a human barometer, so I think I was subconsciously aware of what the current weather situation was capable of. Besides, this was America. We don't let people die in a storm and float around in diseased infested water.

Days before Katrina made landfall, various weather-casters tried to explain the severity of the impending storm. Perhaps the most memorable news cast was when Chad Myers (CNN) flipped out on Carol Costello. Even before Katrina, I sensed Chad was a bit high-strung. This was pretty much confirmed when he threw down his papers and started yelling at Carol, "Well if you would let me talk!"

I think his frustration was due to people not taking the weather predictions seriously. But this is the south. During hurricane season, there are always warnings and advisories. We've been hearing about the "Big One" for years. So when evacuation orders were given in New Orleans, not everyone heeded the warnings. But communities are different in coastal Louisiana. More close-knit. They depend more on each other and less on strangers. I somewhat understood this.

But when I started seeing people frantically trying to seek shelter in the Louisiana Superdome, I knew this was no ordinary storm. I watched in disbelief as mothers held babies stripped down to diapers because of the heat, pleading to the news cameras to help them. I remember saying over and over, "Why aren't we helping them?!"

Mayor Ray Nagin appeared on television, strongly urging residents to find a way out of the city. And if you stayed behind, Nagin assured, "We will take care of you." He also encouraged them to bring their own supplies due to the Superdome being "a refuge of last resort". Over 20, 000 trusting people made their was to the Superdome, completely unaware that there wasn't nearly enough water for everyone. There was no designated medical staff, no sick-bay. Very few cots were available. There was no air conditioning and minimal lighting. Toilets began to over-flow. Babies and children were seen lying on cardboard, their eyes wide with terror. Eventually, people became exhausted and hungry. Fights broke out. Violence escalated.

A couple of weeks later, I laid on a hospital bed in the hallway of an overflowing maternity ward due to pregnant and laboring women who had been flown in from New Orleans after they were forced to evacuate the hospitals. My daughter was born alongside children who had no home to return to. I watched new mothers who were unable to savor the moment because their minds were too occupied with questions of survival. I remember thinking to myself, "I will tell my daughter about this. I will tell her about how sobering it was to see tiny miracles in the midst of tragedy."

So I kept newspapers and put clippings in her baby book. All of the pictures in this post were actual screen shots that I took while everything was going on because I knew one day this would be something I would explain to my unborn child. Today I will pull out those clippings. I will show her these pictures.

And I will remind her of the fragility of life and the indomitable strength of the human soul.