Jean Lafitte, LA

November 2009

Weathering Four Storms

FEMA helps the city of Jean Lafitte rebuild and recover from four hurricanes in four years: Katrina, Rita, Gustav and Ike.

We have about 2500, a little over 2500, in the town of Jean Lafitte.

Why people would want to live here, because you���re living on the water, like I said there���s a large shellfish producing area. I mean you can eat any kind of seafood you want at any time. Again, no crime, good schools, it���s just a beautiful area, good people.

During Katrina we had 37 homes that were lost, that they had knocked down after that couldn���t be repaired and just about every home. You know you couldn���t drive by and see a house without roof damage.

We had a baseball stadium that the town of Jean Lafitte owns, that Fischer High School plays their home games at that baseball stadium. That baseball stadium was destroyed. FEMA came in and rebuilt a new baseball stadium for the area.

Right after we weathered the storm with Katrina, and we lost about 37 homes and a lot of roof damage and we cleared off the roads, within 2 weeks later, we were devastated by Rita. The tide came up and flooded so many of the homes in the area.

The same thing with Gustav, we kind of weathered the storm, we had a lot of roof damage and trees and poles were blown down, but it wasn���t that bad. Then within 2 weeks, we were devastated again, where we lost another 700 homes. Due to Ike. Ike was the worst.

We could have never replaced the baseball stadium, we could have never replaced the auditorium, we could have never had the money to put it all back together like it was, like it needed to be. There was just so many things that FEMA came in and did for us.

FEMA���s always come in and done a good job helping us bring this area back each time. It���s four times in the last five years and you know, thank God for FEMA, that���s all I can tell you. Cause I don���t know what we���d do if we didn���t have them.

For more information visit www.FEMA.gov.