My parents and their families are from small towns about 60 river miles south of New Orleans: Buras, Empire and Port Sulphur. Click here for a Mapquest Map of Empire, LA. (If you have trouble viewing the map use the zoom feature on the left side of screen. The map will eventually appear.)
As many of you are aware, before making landfall on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, the eye of Hurricane Katrina made landfall between Port Sulphur and Buras Louisiana. If you look at the map above, the center passed right over Empire Louisiana. The maximum sustained winds were in the neighborhood of 125 mph. However, Hurricane Katrina was possibly the largest (area wise) hurricane of its strength ever recorded with its eye being estimated at 35 miles across. Hurricane Camille, which passed over Venice LA (just south of Buras) with winds near 200 miles per hour, had a much, much smaller eye.
http://www.angelfire.com/ms3/n5ycn/camille.html
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/HAW2/english/history.shtml#camille
The reason I’ve included this boring information is an attempt to explain to you the pictures that will follow. Even after surviving Camille and Betsy, no one, no one, could have imagined the destruction brought by Katrina. These people had returned to their homes after these storms and for the old timers they had survived other smaller, less known hurricanes.
These pictures were taken on Sunday October 9, 2005. I do not have the date written down anywhere, but I can remember driving back from Empire listening to the Saints game. They got their butts handed to them by the Green Bay Packers 52-3.
Empire 1 and 2 are pictures taken along LA Highway 23 on the way down to Empire.
Empire 3 (and Empire 5) is a picture of where my Great Aunt’s (my maternal grandmother’s sister) house once stood. As you look at Empire 3 you are facing east. You can kinda see the river levee behind the trees. Most houses in the area were built on concrete blocks, 2 to 3 feet off the ground. Before there were levees, people’s properties needed to be protected from high tides. Today, the new houses that are built are at least 15 feet above sea level. I’m sure after Katrina the code may change to 20 or 25 feet above sea level! Anyway back to the picture, you can see the concrete blocks, her front steps and the walkway that went around her home. The rusty metal box to the middle of the picture is an old gas floor furnace. These furnaces sat under the house and were used to heat the entire house. The 2 poles to the right of the picture supported a covered parking area. The white wooden board sticking out of the ground near the poles is what’s left of a hand rail leading into the home. The large cinder block brick structure behind the house was once a support for a cistern. I remember as a kid drinking fresh rain water from the cisterns. The cisterns in this area had to be built above the ground because if they were empty or half full, they would pop out of the ground. The cistern that sat here looked like a giant wooden barrel at least 12 feet high.
As you will see in many of the pictures, most of the vegetation is dead. This occurred because saltwater remained on the land for weeks. In addition, there was a hole in an oil pipeline about 2 miles north of here. The combination of the salt water and oil killed almost everything. However, there is still some green. Life will find a way.
Empire 4 was taken from the same spot as Empire 3 except I am now looking south. There were a number of houses, including one the sat up very high on large white brick pillars. You should also be able to see a bakery and an old grocery story. Both are gone. You can see the river levee to the left of this picture. What is amazing about the landscape is that no one seems to know where the buildings ended up. The concrete and brick supports are still there, but where are the wooden structures themselves? Not even a 2 by 4! The tidal surge is believed to have been close to 25 feet in this area. The levees are in the neighborhood of 20 feet high. If you folks in Destin see a light blue house on your beach, please place it on a barge and send it back to Empire.
Empire 7. When I took my aunt down to see her property, all we could do is look and stare in disbelief. We were numb. Not only that, but we kept getting lost in the place where she has lived for 75 years and I had visited for 40 years! You could not tell where you were because there were no more landmarks. Being the Stoics that we were raised to be as good Catholics, we did not show any emotion until we looked across the street. We where looking for pieces of her home. We both wanted to pick something up and throw it in the back of my truck. We found nothing. Well we did find something, her commode (French term for chamber pot a.k.a. a toilet). She knew it was hers because of the green fuzzy seat cover. What we believe happened is that her house floated across the street and broke up there. Her toilet then sank to the ground next to the road. Remember the tide was 25 feet above normal and her house was riding the waves on top of this surge. The picture is taken looking across the highway toward where her house used to be. You can really see the oil on the ground in this picture.
I believe that our Stoicism can explain some of the resiliency and determination you see in so many of the people returning to the New Orleans area. However, we have learned and will continue to learn how to cry…
Empire 15 and 17. These pictures are of St. Ann’s Catholic Church. It has been turned 90 degrees. The bush that is in the middle of the door (Empire 15) was on side of the church. The wooden structure you see under the tree was a wheel chair ramp into the back of the church. By the way, the only intact structure we could find was the church.
Empire 19. O.K. before it gets too religious on you, look behind my truck. You can see the main highway through town. Well on the other side of the road, you should be able to see about 5 homes. Look at the telephone poles. Where are the leaves on the trees?
---Alright, what’s up with the ass?!---
From what we have learned, this donkey came from across the river where he lived before Katrina. Many farm animals were found miles from their properties after the storm. Also many head of cattle were lost and many were found tangled in the top of trees. http://photos.plaqueminesparish.com/displayimage.php?album=16&pos=29
Somehow this donkey survived Katrina and Rita. It is very skinny in this picture, but we’ve heard that it has been fattened up since. The folks who had been going down there were feeding it. On the day we were there, there was a pile of what looked like dog food on the ground. It was happily eating that meal.
While I am “rigidly agnostic” (Sarcasm and Oxymoron intended) at this time in my life, I believe that some sort of message was left behind here. I believe there is something to the fact that an ass was living in the shadow of St. Ann’s church and somehow had survived the utter destruction and devastation. I believe this now more than ever as I write this section on Christmas Eve.
Empire 18. The inside of St. Ann’s Church. I guess it was the 80’s when the Charismatic Movement took hold in many Catholic Churches. Well it happened in Empire. The priest at the time took down the crucifix you see in this picture. There was a focus on the life and resurrection of Christ as opposed to his death and suffering. No problem with me. Well it really upset some of the old-timers including my grandfather and a number of his friends. I am not sure where they stored this crucifix, but when the priest took it down my grandfather along with the other “old-timers” vowed that they would hang it up again. They did... It’s still there paw paw!
Empire 16. Across the street from St. Ann’s church. You should be able to see 4 or 5 houses here. See more oil at the bottom of picture. Did I mention the smell? A combination of petroleum and swamp juice.
Empire 9, 11, 12. Well this is what’s left of Paw Paw (South LA term for Grandfather) and Maw Maw’s house (South LA term for Grandmother). My mom grew up in this home with her older brother. The red bricks are the front steps to the house. I have a sneaking suspicion that my grandfather did not pay for these bricks. Since he lived through the great depression, I’m sure he took them from a junk pile somewhere and made sure they did not go to waste. Actually I don’t think he ever purchased anything in his life. I spent almost every Christmas until I was 18 at this house. Santa (Uncle Joe Scott) left me and my sister many gifts here.
Empire 12. Back steps to house. Can you find the kitchen sink? The big tree in the middle of the picture is a Live Oak that was planted by my grandfather about 60 years ago when my uncle was a little boy. He said it was about 3 feet tall when he planted it. Hopefully it survives.
Empire 9. Driveway to Grandparent’s house.
Empire 10. My Grandmother who died almost 6 years ago had a little garden out front of her house. She had one of those fiberglass Sears water falls and pretty flowers and a hibiscus bush. The van is from down the street. The reason I took the picture is that my paw paw was a shrimper. I spent a few summers on my grandfather’s trawl boat making CASH! We do not know where this trawl (net) came from, but it ended up in the garden. Another “weird” sign.
Empire 13. Looking North from grandparent’s house. There are 3 homes missing here.
Empire 14. Looking South from my grandparents home. You should be able to see 4 homes in this picture.
The next door neighbor to my grandparent’s home is an oyster fisherman. Empire 21 is what a typical oyster boat looks like. However, they are usually in the water. Some of these boats could hold up to 100 sacks of Oyster on the front. When they would come home in the evenings it would look like they were about to sink. In case you are wondering, the shrimp, oyster and fish are still there. Actually, more so than in years. Although there are no boats to catch them and no wholesalers to sell them too, the fishery has survived.
Over the years this neighbor began to transport his oysters and other seafood to New Orleans using his own refrigerated truck. Well, refrigerated trucks are fairly air tight. Empire 8. This truck floated across the street and ended up in a tree. Notice the tire swing hanging from the tree under the truck. You should be able to see 3 houses in this picture. Can you find the stove and riding lawnmower?
This neighbor is from Croatia. http://travel.yahoo.com/p-travelguide-578016-map_of_yugoslavia-i Many of the oyster fishermen in Plaquemines Parish are from Yugoslavian descent. They fled communism. Look at the names on this list. http://www.louisianaoysters.org/members.php All the names ending in “ich,” are from Plaquemines Parish.
Most of the people in Plaquemines Parish have some sort of French heritage; we also have a lot of Southern Italian, English, German’s and Native Americans. At this point, we mostly all mutts, like the ones you get at the pound. Basically if your country of origin included fisherman, hunters or trappers, Plaquemines Parish was the place for you.
Empire 20. One of many barges left on the Levees.
Empire 22. The Cougar and 2 shrimp boats are sitting up on the levee. The mouth of the Mississippi River is only about 6 miles from 1,000 foot depth of water in the Gulf of Mexico. It is an easy ride for fantastic blue water fishing. With this range in the ecosystem, the wildlife in this area is amazing. It’s some of the best hunting and fishing in the world. The Cougar is a charter boat that works out of Empire. Louisiana’s nickname of the Sportsman’s Paradise comes from this and not from the successful nature of our profession sports franchises. A side note to Empire 21 and Empire 22. The number of boats that were left on land was phenomenal. Most were left sunny side up and dirty side down. If you make me ride out another storm, I think I’ll do it on a boat. They seem to end up safe and on dry land.
Empire 24. Petrovich’s Grocery Store, was Empire’s one and only Grocery store.
Empire 23. Tom’s Place. When I first took this picture I did not notice something that was staring me right in my face. It has always been in front of my face, but I have not always seen it. In fact I’ve all too often taken it for granted but will never take it for granted again. That is the resiliency and determination in these people… I knew this was where Mr. Tom’s restaurant once stood and you can see the lack of fading where the name Tom was once attached to the building. That’s what immediately drew my attention. Tom’s was known for some of the best raw oysters on the planet. People would make the 1 hour trip from New Orleans just to have a couple dozen raw oysters from Tom’s. They were hand picked and perfectly opened by Mr. Tom himself. It was only later that I noticed the table in the front, with oyster shells and a bottle of beer on top of the table that was recovered from the ruins of his restaurant. I don’t know who did this, but they were making a statement. It is a typical means by which these folks choose to express themselves. It will take a while, but these people will be back. You can bet on it.
I believe that I have made it though this storm relatively unscathed when compared to other people. It has been hard. I feel that the dirt has been shaken from my roots but I know things will be o.k. Personally Katrina has had very little impact on my faith in God. My belief in a traditional God, Higher Power, Christ, Yahweh, Muhammad or whatever you name your deity has remained about the same. However, I now have an abounding faith in the people from this region who all seem to have a remarkable faith in their God. If there is a God, he, she or it, most certainly resides in the souls of these people. If you want to meet God come and meet these people, talk to them and pray with them.