On August 25th, 2005, Hurricane Katrina crossed over South Florida and into the Gulf, where it quickly strengthened into a massive category 5 storm. Gulf Coast residents watched with increasing alarm as it became obvious that Mississippi was in the crosshairs of this once-in-a-generation weather event.
As President George W. Bush declared a state of emergency and evacuations were ordered for New Orleans and the Mississippi Gulf Coast, emergency crews, equipment, and supplies, were prepositioned for the rescue and recovery efforts that would follow.
Key to those efforts would be the Mississippi National Guard. Already stretched thin due to deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan, Adjutant General Harrold "Hac" Cross knew we would need assistance from other states to meet the moment.
When the storm made landfall near the Louisiana-Mississippi state line early on the morning of August 29, those who were unable or unwilling to evacuate experienced sustained winds of 120 miles per hour and a 27 foot wall of water. Many clung to trees or floating debris, desperate to survive.
By the time Hurricane Katrina left Mississippi, no part of the state was left untouched. All 82 counties were declared disaster areas. On the Gulf Coast, some 90% of the buildings within a half mile of the shoreline were wiped away, leaving 238 people dead, 67 missing, and billions of dollars in damages.
As massive as the storm itself was the rescue and recovery efforts. Relief agencies and philanthropic groups from around the world descended on Mississippi with truckloads of food, water, and other desperately need supplies. Rescue and relief would take weeks, recovery efforts would take years.
Even before the power was fully restored, the Center for Oral History and Cultural Heritage at the University of Southern Mississippi began planning for an oral history project to preserve for future generations, the shared impact of what our people had just experienced. Over the next five years, the Center would collect some 400-plus interviews to be used for museum exhibits, presentations, books, radio programs, and even a stage play.
In this four-episode podcast series, produced by the Center for Oral History and Cultural Heritage, and the Center for the Study of the National Guard at USM, with support from the Mississippi Humanities Council, we will mine that collection for stories of survival and resilience. To those stories we will add new interviews with key decision-makers and scholars to gain some new perspectives on the lasting legacy of Hurricane Katrina.
I'm your host Bill Ellison, inviting you to take this journey with me as we witness the ferocity of nature and the resilience of our citizens.
Mississippi Moments Presents: Voices of Our People - Hurricane Katrina: Twenty Years Later.
Hosted by Bill Ellison
Produced by Ross Walton
Executive Producer Dr. Kevin Greene.
Written by Ross Walton, Isabel Loya, Jerra Runnels, Andrew Leib, and Holli Parker.
Additional interviews were conducted by Isabel Loya, Jerra Runnels and Andrew Leib.
Graphic Design and Social Media: Isabel Loya.
Special thanks to the Center for the Study of the National Guard and the Mississippi Humanities Council.