Q: Why did you decide to evacuate New Orleans? Where did you
go?
A: Once we heard that there was a mandatory evacuation for all
New Orleans residents we packed as many belongings as we could in the little
amount of time we had and left our home. We traveled to Georgia to stay with
family until it was safe to go back to whatever was left of our
home.
Q: When you were able to go back, what was
the condition of your house and the surrounding area?
A: We were shocked by the lack of clean up and progress of the
town, the stench was still unbearable. Our house was unlivable along with
everyone else’s on the block, it was overwhelming trying to imagine how much
longer and costly it was going to be until everything was back to normal.
Q: How were you able to rebuild your home? Were your neighbors
able to do the same?
A: With help from the road home program we received a grant to
help rebuild our home and be able to live our life again. We were one of the
fortunate ones on our road, over 50% of the residents did not return for many
reasons but mainly the cost of having to rebuild their home. The state was not
given enough resources to be able to help the amount of families they would have
liked to, according to Robin Keegan, director of Louisiana Recovery
Authority.
Q: What is your opinion of the condition of New Orleans now 5
years after Katrina?
A: It was definitely a disappointment to see how there were
still many parts of the city that looked like there was nothing done since
Katrina. While some areas are beginning to look back to normal it’s going to
take a lot longer than expected for everything to start looking how it did pre
Katrina. Who would have thought a hurricane could change an entire city enough
that 5 years later there are still people without homes and
jobs?
go?
A: Once we heard that there was a mandatory evacuation for all
New Orleans residents we packed as many belongings as we could in the little
amount of time we had and left our home. We traveled to Georgia to stay with
family until it was safe to go back to whatever was left of our
home.
Q: When you were able to go back, what was
the condition of your house and the surrounding area?
A: We were shocked by the lack of clean up and progress of the
town, the stench was still unbearable. Our house was unlivable along with
everyone else’s on the block, it was overwhelming trying to imagine how much
longer and costly it was going to be until everything was back to normal.
Q: How were you able to rebuild your home? Were your neighbors
able to do the same?
A: With help from the road home program we received a grant to
help rebuild our home and be able to live our life again. We were one of the
fortunate ones on our road, over 50% of the residents did not return for many
reasons but mainly the cost of having to rebuild their home. The state was not
given enough resources to be able to help the amount of families they would have
liked to, according to Robin Keegan, director of Louisiana Recovery
Authority.
Q: What is your opinion of the condition of New Orleans now 5
years after Katrina?
A: It was definitely a disappointment to see how there were
still many parts of the city that looked like there was nothing done since
Katrina. While some areas are beginning to look back to normal it’s going to
take a lot longer than expected for everything to start looking how it did pre
Katrina. Who would have thought a hurricane could change an entire city enough
that 5 years later there are still people without homes and
jobs?