Louisiana Sandusky, a native of Louisiana, shares her feelings about the one-year anniversary of the devastating hurricane known as Katrina.
One year ago, one of the worst natural disasters hit the United States of America. The southern Gulf Coast states was decimated by one of the most powerful hurricanes ever, Hurricane Katrina, which will be long remembered for generations to come.
Because of Hurricane Katrina, millions of people were left homeless, and over 1,000 people died. A year later, there are people still unaccounted for, and parts of that region still lay in ruins and will take years to repair. Thousands of people from the Gulf Coast states are scattered across the continental United States with little hope of ever returning home, and their futures are uncertain.
I wasn't there when this particular storm took place (thank goodness!), but I remember following her progress on the Weather Channel--and online. I was worried for family and friends in Louisiana, and I was worried about the coastal cities of Mobile, Alabama, Biloxi/Gulfport, Mississippi, and New Orleans, Louisiana. How would they fare once Katrina came calling? How many lives would be lost? What would the repercussions be if catastrophic damage occurred? Would there be long-lasting, far-reaching implications as a direct result of the hurricane?
Well, in the early morning of Monday, August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina, once a Catagory 5 on the Safford-Simpson Hurricane Scale, but weakened somewhat to a powerful Catagory 3 storm, crashed onto the shores of Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana, and her fury was felt by people hundreds of miles from the storm. Rains of biblical proportions inundated the land, waves from the storm rose to unbelievable heights, and the 100+ mile-an-hour winds knocked out power and nearly obliberated the southern coast. People who were unlucky enough to be caught in Katrina's wrath were swept away, and people were killed or injured by flying debris, the rushing waters, or the collapsing of their residences.
In only a matter of a few short hours, the American south was changed forever. The once-thriving hubs of New Orleans, Louisiana, Biloxi/Gulfport, Mississippi, and Mobile, Alabama, lay shattered and broken, and the impact was immediate. It was one of the worst possible scenarios to hit our shores since the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, and soon, America was left reeling.
Being a nurse, I felt compelled to go down to the Gulf Coast region and help out in any way I could. What I saw and experienced will stay with me forever. It was as though a nuclear holocaust had taken place: there was very little evidence of what had once been a bustling, vibrant city, and there were people trapped or dying in what was left of their homes or businesses.
The sights, the smells, the sounds of what I experienced down in Mississippi will linger far after I grow old. I saw much in the way of tragedy and heartbreak, and even now, I am reminded of the horror in my dreams at night. I think back to that fateful, history-making day only one year ago, and I can't help but to grieve once again for my beloved Louisiana and the Gulf Coast regions of Mississippi, Florida, and Alabama.
~Written by Louisiana M. Sandusky, R.N., on Wednesday, August 30, 2006, at 10:25 a.m. in the morning, DST.
Unforgettable, regretable, and with time healing can take place...though much courage,perserverance and longsuffering must prevail still.
A wonderful story to illustrate the depth of despair that happened on that fateful day, well written Ty Hugs Ch'erie
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