Most of us remember Hurricane Katrina, which destroyed large sections of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast in 2005, based on statistics. More than 1800 people died, and millions were made homeless. The cyclone caused approximately $108 billion in damage, making it the most costly storm in U.S. history.
However, the hurricane was only the beginning for those affected. In documenting the aftermath of the storm weeks after it occurred, I sought to move beyond the statistics to tell the very human story of lives uprooted and forever changed by a force of nature almost beyond comprehension.
It is now widely understood that Hurricane Katrina’s devastation was one of the first extremely visible indicators of the climate crisis. Unfortunately, it was only a preview of what is to come, unless we act to prevent the worst climate predictions from becoming true.
