We left New Orleans today and made it to Pensacola, where we will spend tomorrow working on a story that has nothing to do with Hurricane Katrina or the recovery in New Orleans.
It’s strange to drive a few hours and be a world away from the suffering and devastation in New Orleans. That’s something about covering hurricanes I’ll never get used to. One minute you’re navigating debris-filled roads in a community without power, water or street lights. About 100 miles away, life couldn’t be more normal.
In New Orleans, Katrina was always the topic of conversation, whether it was in a bar, restaurant or even in the lobby of a French Quarter hotel.
The reality is that two weeks in New Orleans barely gives anyone more than a cursory look at the devastation in the area. And as residents face the grueling reality of living for years among uncertainty and reconstruction, we always knew we could go home.