Live footage from the Ninth Ward
06/04/08 10:42
The Ninth
Ward was one of the neighbourhoods most severely
affected by Hurricane Katrina back in 2005. When the
levee broke, the area was flooded with about 20 feet
of water. Cars and houses literally floated down the
streets, stranding people and furniture on roofs and
in tree tops. Two and a half years later, most of the
houses have either been demolished or abandoned in
various states of disrepair. Rebuilding is only
coming on slowly, caught up in the complex power
struggles between local and government initiatives.
We will soon be posting more on our experiences in the Ninth Ward, but for now we just want to share some of our live footage from the place with you. All the recordings are taken from the window of our car as we drive through the neighbourhood. We are guided around by Andy who is a volunteer in the Common Ground Collective, an anarchistic organization founded by the former Black Panthers member Malik Rahim to provide relief aid for the victims of Hurricane Katrina. Andy has been with the organization ever since he gave up his home in Ohio and came to New Orleans to help out two years ago. If you turn up the volume, you can hear him giving out bits and pieces of information about the places we see.
The first recording is from our trip through the Upper Ninth Ward which was the least affected part of the neighbourhood. Look for the scrawlings on the side of the houses that still have not been repaired or rebuilt. An "X" indicates that a house has been searched by the National Guard, while the numerals disclose important information, such as the number of casualties found inside. However, Andy told us that more than half a year after the hurricane struck he would still find bodies inside houses that had been marked off as officially searched.
The second recording is from the Lower Ninth Ward which was almost completely wiped out by the hurricane. What appears to be overgrown plots of land is in fact the remains of a once crowded and lively neighbourhood. Look for the concrete foundations that indicate where the houses once stood. You will even see stone steps leading up to front doors that are no longer there.
The last recording is a view from the levee that separates the Lower Ninth Ward from a cedar plantation that was intentionally flooded by the government back in the 1960s. The salt water killed off the trees, leaving only deadened strumps behind. This is where the flood broke through in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. The old black guy is a New Orleansian known as Red. He was born and raised in the Lower Ninth Ward, and had lived there his entire life when the flooding occured. Today he looks back with wonder at the incompetence of the government in protecting the only home he ever had.
We will soon be posting more on our experiences in the Ninth Ward, but for now we just want to share some of our live footage from the place with you. All the recordings are taken from the window of our car as we drive through the neighbourhood. We are guided around by Andy who is a volunteer in the Common Ground Collective, an anarchistic organization founded by the former Black Panthers member Malik Rahim to provide relief aid for the victims of Hurricane Katrina. Andy has been with the organization ever since he gave up his home in Ohio and came to New Orleans to help out two years ago. If you turn up the volume, you can hear him giving out bits and pieces of information about the places we see.
The first recording is from our trip through the Upper Ninth Ward which was the least affected part of the neighbourhood. Look for the scrawlings on the side of the houses that still have not been repaired or rebuilt. An "X" indicates that a house has been searched by the National Guard, while the numerals disclose important information, such as the number of casualties found inside. However, Andy told us that more than half a year after the hurricane struck he would still find bodies inside houses that had been marked off as officially searched.
The second recording is from the Lower Ninth Ward which was almost completely wiped out by the hurricane. What appears to be overgrown plots of land is in fact the remains of a once crowded and lively neighbourhood. Look for the concrete foundations that indicate where the houses once stood. You will even see stone steps leading up to front doors that are no longer there.
The last recording is a view from the levee that separates the Lower Ninth Ward from a cedar plantation that was intentionally flooded by the government back in the 1960s. The salt water killed off the trees, leaving only deadened strumps behind. This is where the flood broke through in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. The old black guy is a New Orleansian known as Red. He was born and raised in the Lower Ninth Ward, and had lived there his entire life when the flooding occured. Today he looks back with wonder at the incompetence of the government in protecting the only home he ever had.
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