9th district of New Orleans, Louisiana
I recently visited New Orleans, Lousiana and took a city bus tour. It included a visit to the 9th district of New Orleans that was devastated in 2005 by Hurricane Katrina. Although it has been almost 5 years, many homes are still abandoned & left uninhabitable. The rebuilding process is slow and costly. Many residents told me horror stories & talked about the red tape they are going through with insurance companies. One owner said he owned his house outright (no mortgage). Although the home was worth approximately $300,000 & his policy was for that amount, his insurance company paid him only $160,000. He doesn't have the means to fight them, so now he is back to work. He was previously retired. A swamp tour operator had a successful tour company with 15 boats. During the hurricane, many were damaged & the coast guard used some for rescues. Those were either damaged or stolen after the rescue. He is still fighting for reimbursement in court, and after having his own company for 25 years, he is now working for another tour company.
I fyou look very closely, in both of these pictures you can see the orange water mark lines. They are still visible in these empty homes. (The pictures are taken from inside a tour bus, sorry for their poor quality.)
I just wanted people to know that New Orleans still needs our help to rebuild! This was one of the reasons my husband & decided to visit this wonderful city. Tourism is still down. The French Quarter did not receive much damage at all and is an incredible place to visit!
The new Levee in the 9th district. Redesigned by engineers to withstand the likes of another Hurricane Katrina.
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