15 things the Mississippi Coast may have forgotten about Hurricane Katrina
People on the Mississippi Gulf Coast would like to forget most things about Hurricane Katrina and its fury 15 years ago this Saturday.
Beyond the terrible destruction, the sheets hanging in trees and boats tossed like toys, were vivid reminders of resilience and the determination to build back better.
After digging in the Sun Herald archives, here are 15 things Coast residents may have forgotten about Katrina and the days following Aug. 29, 2005:
1. No more mosquitoes — for a while
The winds of Hurricane Katrina blew away mosquitoes from the Coast. It’s something experts say is typical with a strong storm. The dry weather after Katrina helped keep the mosquito populations low, even two weeks after the storm.
2. Sunflowers sprout across the Coast
Sunflowers bloomed where houses once stood. Katrina’s winds blew sunflower seeds from bird feeders into neighborhood yards, producing a bouquet of color amid the rubble.
3. ‘I survived Katrina’ T-shirts
Residents and volunteers purchased souvenir Katrina T-shirts at parking lot stands. A stand near the State Farm claim tent in Pascagoula sold shirts that said, “I survived the Big One.” Another shirt had “Disaster Relief Worker” on the back and a representation of a swirling hurricane cloud forming a skull and crossbones.
4. Katrina killed over 200 Mississippians
The count reached 238 dead in Mississippi from Katrina. Forensic experts implanted computer chips in the bodies of victims to help identify the dead in South Mississippi and Louisiana. Harrison County Coroner Gary Hargrove, who died early this year, worked relentlessly for years to identify every victim.
5. A vow kept
Bay St. Louis Mayor Edward Favre lost everything but a pair of shorts, flip-flops and a T-shirt, and he vowed to wear shorts every day until his city was restored, even to the White House. He wore shorts for more than five years and five months.
6. Trial by fire for new mayors
More than half of the 11 Coast mayors were newly elected to the job just six weeks before Katrina hit. The new mayors of Gautier, Gulfport, Long Beach, Moss Point, Ocean Springs and Pascagoula were soon joined by Pass Christian Alderman Chipper McDermott, who took on the job after the previous mayor moved away.
7. Over a million volunteers respond
More than a million volunteers left their comfortable, air conditioned homes and lived in tents, church halls and their own campers to help rebuild. There were stories of some who worked for a week or longer, then turned around and came back before they even reached home.
8. Celebrity voices
“Good Morning America” host and former Coast resident Robin Roberts brought the nation’s focus on South Mississippi during Hurricane Katrina. She and many other celebrities like Jimmy Buffett, Bill and Melinda Gates, Oprah Winfrey and Garth Brooks made appearances and provided help over the next year.
9. Katrina’s Ground Zero
Hancock County and Pass Christian were ground zero for Katrina. In Waveland, the Post Office and city hall were concrete slabs. Every city vehicle, police car and firetruck were gone.
“Out of everything Waveland owned, we were able to save one backhoe,” said Mayor Tommy Longo, “and who knows how long it will keep running?” The Walmart had to wait for approval from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency before reopening.
10. Rebuilding and a free ferry
The infrastructure returned surprisingly quickly. About 12,000 power company workers from throughout the country helped restore electricity to all Mississippi Power customers whose properties could receive it within 12 days.
A free ferry operated from Oct. 2006 until the Bay of St. Louis bridge reopened in May 2007, saving a 27-mile trip by car. Then Gov. Haley Barbour recalls in his book, “America’s Great Storm: Leading Through Hurricane Katrina,” that I-10 was fully open 20 days after Katrina, and all schools in Mississippi reopened before any did in New Orleans.
11. No more floating casinos
To keep thousands of jobs and millions in revenue in Mississippi, the state Legislature allowed casinos to rebuild on land. IP Casino, then known as Imperial Palace, was the first to reopen in December.
Beau Rivage opened a year to the day after Katrina and Hard Rock Casino, which was within days of opening when Katrina hit, had to be rebuilt and reopened in summer 2007.
12. ‘I’m OK’ blog
Cellphone service was mostly text and the blog “Eyes on Katrina” established an “I’m OK” line with the Sun Herald to help people notify their relatives they were safe in a time before social media was readily used.
13. Rotten chickens
A month after Katrina, rotten chicken and other contents from the giant shipping containers still sat and stunk in Gulfport neighborhoods near the State Port of Mississippi. While the disagreement continued about who should clean up the mess, restaurant owner Bill Vrazel paid a contractor to remove the 14 containers in his parking lot so he could reopen. Katrina left enough storm debris to fill 400 football fields 50 feet high.
14. A second hurricane
Just 25 days after Katrina, Hurricane Rita neared the Coast, but most of the effects of the powerful storm were in Louisiana. The 2005 hurricane season ended with 26 named storms and 13 hurricanes. The Weather Channel’s Jim Cantore broadcast Nov. 30 from South Mississippi, where he was one of those who had survived Hurricane Katrina.
15. Not just the Coast
While New Orleans received most of the national attention, the coastline of South Mississippi was nearly flattened. Katrina also did a lot of damage to Laurel, Hattiesburg, Petal, Meridian and cities north of the Coast, where blue tarps stretched across roofs for months. Winds reached 100 mph in Hattiesburg for hours.
This story was originally published August 28, 2020 at 5:50 AM.
