Declarations – South Central

8 Inches, 13 Feet

“The storm stayed over the top of us. For Katrina, we got 8 inches of water. Now we have 13 feet.”

–Joshua Brockhaus, an electrician in Louisiana’s low-lying Plaquemines Parish, after rescuing neighbors stranded in Hurricane Isaac’s floodwaters.

A Coastal Mess

“It’s not too bad, but the whole coast is going to be a mess.”

–Pass Christian, Miss., Mayor Chipper McDermott. Pass Christian is a coastal community wiped out by Hurricanes Camille and Katrina. McDermott said he was optimistic that Hurricane Isaac would not deal such a heavy blow.

A Hurricane House

“I have a hurricane house this time.”

–Melba Leggett-Barnes, whose home in New Orleans’ Lower 9th Ward was leveled during Hurricane Katrina. Since 2008, Leggett-Barnes has been living in a fortified home rebuilt through actor Brad Pitt’s Make It Right program.

Stay Hunkered Down

“To the city of New Orleans I just want to say now is not the time to let your guard down. You have to stay hunkered down.”

–New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu, in a press conference on Aug. 29 as Hurricane Isaac pounded the city with heavy rain and high winds seven years to the day after Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans.

No ‘Just’ About It

“There is no such thing as ‘just’ a tropical storm.”

–Craig Fugate, director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, said after Hurricane Isaac was downgraded to a tropical storm on Aug. 30.

More Power to the Punch

“This storm has delivered more of a punch than people thought.”

–Plaquemines Parish President Billy Nungesser. About 2,000 residents of the parish had been ordered to evacuate but only about half were confirmed to have gotten out before Isaac made landfall late on Aug. 28. Plaquemines Parish stretches southeast from New Orleans and is cut in two lengthwise by the Mississippi River as it flows to the Gulf of Mexico. Much of it lies outside the greater New Orleans levee system.