I created this presentation shortly after returning home from New Orleans. It documents my experiences...

1. Hurricane Katrina
Disaster Relief
October 19 – November 2, 2005

2. In October 2005, approximately 2 months after Hurricane Katrina and Rita hit the
Gulf Coast, I joined a team of relief workers in Louisiana.
As a function of my job at Banner Health (emergency management planning), I
received the initial call from HHS late on Thursday evening requesting that
Banner sponsor a team to deploy to the Gulf Coast on Monday morning.
Thankfully, over the weekend the deployment date was delayed until
Wednesday giving me a few extra days to prepare.
As a side note, it is much easier to explain to people what I do since Katrina –
essentially what FEMA does or doesn’t do for the country, I do for Banner Health.
Over the next 24 hours, a team of 16 nurses, doctors and social workers were
confirmed to deploy to Mississippi and Louisiana. I was on the phone so much
that I began to think that it was a tumor growing out of my ear.
HHS told me to plan to sleep on a cot, in a tent with no showers for two weeks.
Also, bring food and water just in case they were unable to bring in supplies.
Now I don’t mind camping for a few days here and there…but two weeks?
Combine that with the devastation I was about to witness and leading a team
into an area of uncertainly ---- I was scared to death!!
I learned very quickly, that what HHS told us and what truly happened were
totally different and changed by the minute!

3. Camp Allen

4. Camp Allen
Camp Allen in Baton Rouge was my first stop on this
adventure.
Camp Allen has about 10 large tents with cots for
sleeping, a dining tent and a recreational tent.
Many people stay at Camp Allen for their entire
mission but I only stayed one night.
While at Camp Allen, I received my mission, met up
with most of the Banner team, became federalized
and then left the camp.
Federalization is the process in which I became a
temporary federal employee (complete with FEMA badge)
and made it legal for me to practice nursing in Louisiana
with my Arizona license).

5. A sea of tents at Camp Allen

6. This is my cot!

7. These are the shower facilities at
Camp Allen --- I was so happy
to find out that I would not
have to be without a shower
for 2 weeks!

8. My Mission
I was assigned to work at West Jefferson Medical
Center (WJMC) in New Orleans in the ICU/CCU.
Initially, there were 15 nurses assigned to work at
WJMC, 7 of which were from Banner. We came
from all over, all different organizations.
I cannot say enough about the quality of nurses on my
team. In two weeks, we became lifelong friends. Actually,
in a matter of hours we became life long friends and then
the remaining time in New Orleans we fostered those
friendships. We shared a ton of laughs, frustrations, tears,
heartache, disbelief, feelings of inadequacy, feelings of
satisfaction, feelings of admiration and love.
About a week later, 15 more nurses joined the team
at WJMC.

9. The West Jefferson Team
This picture
was taken
right before
we got on
the bus to
New
Orleans.
Soon we
started to
call
ourselves
“The
Voodoo
Strike
Team”

10. So long camping…
Once the team
got to New
Orleans, we
were told we
would be staying
at the Sheraton
downtown!
Not only did I get
to shower, but I
had a bed! I
really lucked out
and felt so View from my room on the 27th floor
fortunate!

11. West Jefferson Medical Center

12. WJMC is a level 2, 462 bed not for profit
community hospital located about 10
minutes from downtown New Orleans.
Due to their location (above sea level),
the hospital was able to remain open
throughout the storm

13. There are 20 hospitals in New Orleans
–Katrina closed 17 of them!!!
Of the 3 that are open, by default
WJMC has become the major trauma
center for the area.
Since Katrina, WJMC is seeing
significantly more patients with less
than 60% of their regular staff!!! They
need some major help!!

14. West Jefferson Medical Center
From the WJMC website ( www.wjmc.org )
“As of September 20, over a third of our 1950
employees have yet to return from locations they
evacuated to. Over 200 employees are not
accounted for. We assume many have decided
not to return to New Orleans and have found
employment elsewhere. Of those that we know
about, 350 have lost everything. 100 of the 400
physicians on our Medical Staff have lost
everything. We estimate another 200 families who
are associated with the Medical Center have lost
everything. Many are unable to even get close to
their homes due to restrictions on movement in the
community. Each day, another group of employees
returns and the tears flow as stories are recounted.
This is truly a disaster which doesn't seem to have an
end. “

15. A DMAT (Disaster Medical Assistance Team) set up in the parking lot of WJMC.
DMAT was open from 8am – 10pm. When open, they helped to decompress the ER.
However, when they closed at night, the ER would fill back up again.
Beds throughout the hospital were in very short supply – the whole hospital was
backed up. One morning, there were 22 ICU patients waiting in the ER – plus all of
the admits to the medical floors and those in the waiting room!! (that is a lot for any
ER to handle!)
Supplies and medications were in short supply or not stocked on the unit.
Everything took longer than it normal – labs results, diagnostic tests to be
completed, meals to be delivered. Most of this was attributed to staffing
shortages.
This was very different to me as things were moving at such a slow pace…very
frustrating actually.

16. Any strange diseases?
One of the most common questions that I have been asked since I have
returned is “Did you see any weird diseases caused by the water?”
Fortunately, in terms of disease processes, I did not see anything out of the
ordinary. However, there was an increase in the incidence of
Rhabdomyolysis.
Rhabdomyolysis is caused by the breakdown of muscle tissue into components that
can be toxic to the system. The most common presentation that I have witnessed
Rhabdomyolysis is when an elderly person has had a traumatic fall and is unable to
move, stuck on the bathroom floor until their neighbors start to wonder why they
haven’t seen them in several days. The combination of trauma, immobility,
dehydration and lack of food lead to the breakdown of muscle fibers or
Rhabdomyolysis.
The cases of Rhabdomyolysis that I saw in New Orleans were caused by the
individual being stranded in a confined space (their attic) without water or food,
often traumatically injured, for a period of days.
Otherwise, the patients that I took care of were suffering from exacerbations
of common diseases such as diabetes, congestive heart failure, and
hypertension. Diseases that are typically controlled with prescription
medication….if the medication is available. There are very few pharmacies
open to fill medications, there are very few doctors in town to write
prescriptions, very few people have cars to get to a pharmacy 10 miles out of
town that is open…so they go without their medication. Add just a little bit of
stress and they end up in the hospital.

17. The Nurses at WJMC
This commentary is in NO way intended to be a criticism of the nurses at West Jefferson.
Instead, it is a description of a normal reaction to an abnormal environment. The reason
that I include it in this presentation is that I have never been in a situation where I saw
such a deep rooted, profound reaction. In addition, it is an example of how the citizens
of New Orleans are trying to cope.
The nurses at WJMC were an odd group to work with…their demeanor was so different
than any group of nurses I have ever worked with. Typically, nurses are very
compassionate when it comes to the hardships their patients face. This group was not
and I can totally, 100% understand why.
Typically, loosing a house and everything you own is not normal. When you hear a story
such as that, you feel sympathy and heartache. However in this situation, it was normal.
The entire societal baseline has changed. Loosing everything you own was now the
norm . It was almost like “don’t tell me about your problems, because I am dealing with
the same ones.” The background conversation was not about who won the game last
night, instead it was if they were able to find a good insurance adjuster, or if FEMA had
come to put a blue tarp on their roof, or had you seen the lady who used to work in the
cath lab?
They are tired, overworked, overwhelmed, stressed out, worried that their husbands will
not find work, depressed that their best friend is still missing, dealing with FEMA and
wondering about the future of their beloved city. They have very little left to give to their
patients. They were disconnected --- A very normal reaction to an abnormal
environment. (I know I am not crazy in this commentary because others on my team
noticed it too.)
Despite this, they gave me more than I can ever comprehend. They are an amazing
group with an enormous amount of strength and conviction.

18. The Voodoo Strike Team

19. Scenes of Devastation from
St. Bernard Parish and the
9 th Ward

20. The pictures and news programs do nothing for what you truly
see when you are in New Orleans. It is worse, much worse
than what is shown in TV.
Walking around the devastated areas, there is an ever-
present smell of mold, mildew and dirt. More than once, I
walked past an area and instantly knew that something dead
was in the area – whether it was a human or an animal.
During the time I was there, 2 months after the storm, there
were still areas of the 9th ward closed off because they were
still recovering bodies.
Entire counties were destroyed. They are going to have to
bulldoze huge areas of land (80% of the city was flooded) and
take off at least 2 feet of top soil to remove the contaminants.
Counties and neighborhoods were deserted – no cars, no
children, no signs of life. The silence was deafening.
Despite the devastation, I was amazed and happily surprised
to find elements of humor among all the rubble. Commonly
overheard...”that is life in the Big Easy!”

22. Date of
search
If the house was entered
Name of (NE or 0 =No Entry). Most
searcher homes were too unstable
to enter
Number
of dead
The X symbol on the house indicates that
the house has been searched. You will
notice it in many of the pictures.

27. In the gulf region, FEMA is the
new four letter word beginning
in “F”.
When I was federalized and got
my FEMA badge, they told us
not to wear it outside in case
someone asked us a question
we did not know the answer to
or if the media wanted to
interview us. Shortly, I found out
the real reason they did not
want us wearing the badges…it
is dangerous to wear a FEMA
badge!
The first day I worked at the
hospital, I wore my FEMA
badge. I introduced myself to
my patient and began my
assessment. As I was listening to
her lungs, my badge was
hanging down where she could
see it. She instantly became
frightened and angry. I quickly
explained to her that I am
actually here as a volunteer
and work through HHS.
Fortunately, she let me continue
to assess her but I do not think
she was ever really comfortable
with me as her nurse. I never
wore my FEMA badge again.
“Where is FEMA? Federal Employees Missing Again

31. A looted store on Canal Street

36. Sign in a French Quarter Restaurant

38. Notice the water line
well above my head!

40. This is one of the downtown
hotels with all the windows
blown out

42. These guards were posted at an entrance to the lower 9th ward, an area still
closed because they are still searching for and recovering bodies. Notice
the barge in the background. The barge came in through a broken levee.
The next few pictures are from the same location.

45. Water line about 3 feet high. The picture was taken on Canal Street
near the French Quarter.

48. While I was in New Orleans, they fixed the roof of the Superdome (those are men on the roof). This
caused a huge political upheaval. Many locals were asking “Why are the fixing the roof of the
Superdome when so many of use don’t have a roof, a school to send our kids to, or even clothes
for my kids?”
The flip side of that argument was that the Superdome is a symbol of everything that went wrong
in New Orleans. By fixing it, the message is that we are recovering.

53. Notice the location of the front door and the steps to the front door

55. This building used to be a car lot

63. Destroyed cars were piled up to use as road barricades

65. The following pictures are
looking into the front
doors of destroyed
homes. Everything was
destroyed, covered in
mold, mud and drywall.

70. Mud everywhere

72. The next few slides are of the same house…

73. The O symbol
was placed on
the house
when the
dead were
removed

76. Happier times….
Halloween in New Orleans
…and I had no costume

77. “Meal Ready to Eat
Hurricane Hash
Contains: Sheetrock,
Antifreeze, Steel belated
Radial Tires, Flossie the Cat.
Mix with 1 gal Lake
Ponchatrain, 2 gal gulf of
Mexico
Let stand for 5 days. Drain.
Add same water again.”

80. Pumpkin carving
contest in the hotel
lobby

83. Sarah and I in the French Quarter

84. Dinner at K Pauls….soooo good!

86. Beignets and coffee
and Café Du Monde

87. Somehow Brad found a florist to
deliver…what a welcome
surprise!

88. On the bus, leaving New Orleans

89. In closing….
Going to New Orleans was the hardest
thing I have ever done. I saw some
terrible things, heard some horrific
stories, made some amazing friends
and helped out as best as I could.
And yes, I would do it all over again ….