Movies

‘Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time’ focuses on disaster victims, who reflect 20 years later

BBG News

It’s been 20 years since Hurricane Katrina reshaped the City of New Orleans.

Spike Lee has explored the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina through multiple HBO documentaries – “When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts” (2006), a year post-disaster, and its sequel “If God Is Willing and Da Creek Don’t Rise” (2010). He is also working on a new Netflix project titled “Katrina: Come Hell and High Water,” due in late August. Over the years, various nonfiction films about Katrina have been made, such as “Trouble the Water” (winner of the grand jury prize at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival), “Hurricane Katrina: The Storm That Drowned a City” (NOVA), “Hurricane Katrina: Through the Eyes of the Children,” and “Dark Water Rising: Survival Stories of Hurricane Katrina Animal Rescues.” The hospital-set docudrama “Five Days at Memorial” (2022) also used the storm as a backdrop. To this day, the disaster is often remembered for its devastating impact.

In the gripping five-part mini-series titled “Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time,” airing over two consecutive nights starting Sunday at 8 p.m. on National Geographic (with all episodes available for streaming on Hulu and Disney+ the following day), director Traci A. Curry (known for her work on “Attica”) follows in the footsteps of Lee’s events and ideas. However, she carves out a unique perspective through an abundance of material within this series that is both hard to look away from and emotionally taxing – I would recommend giving it a watch.

Climate & Environment

Specialists predict that the ongoing chaos at FEMA may render millions of individuals susceptible, as climate change intensifies natural calamities over the coming months and years.

Regardless of the various routes you might follow within this narrative, they all culminate in similar findings. In her exploration, Curry converses with survivors, activists, scientists, officials, and journalists, some of whom are shown in historical records. However, her focus primarily lies on the victims – those who lost their homes, their loved ones, or were unable to evacuate due to financial constraints, transportation issues, or family care obligations. If the storm can be likened to an attack on the city, then everything else – the damaged levees, flooded streets, delayed government response, misinformation, and distortions that were accepted as truth – could be seen as a siege on the impoverished, which in New Orleans predominantly meant African Americans. As one survivor expresses about the media portrayal of post-disaster events, where soldiers with automatic weapons patrolled like a war zone, “It was as if they didn’t view us as ordinary people, law-abiding, churchgoing, hardworking individuals.

In a compelling blend of factual account and personal drama, “Race Against Time” immerses you in the narrative, unfolding much like a week would. Initially, there’s an eerie calm, described by an 8th Ward resident as “one of the most peaceful scary things a person can experience.” This is when Hurricane Katrina was amassing power over the Gulf of Mexico. Then came the storm, tearing apart part of the Superdome roof, a place where citizens had been told to seek shelter. The city was plunged into darkness following the storm, but for a moment, it seemed as though the apocalypse had narrowly avoided them.

Subsequently, the levees, not built for optimal resistance, succumbed to breaches at various points. As a result, approximately 80% of the city, nestled within a basin formed by the Mississippi River and Lake Pontchartrain, was submerged. Homes were submerged: “You see your life, the life your parents built for you, your possessions destroyed, your mother’s cherished items smashed against a wall.” Stranded residents sought refuge on rooftops, pleading for rescue, while corpses drifted in the water. Incredibly, this chaos also showcased acts of compassion, as neighbors assisted one another and emergency responders, including firefighters and police, worked tirelessly to rescue as many people as possible, navigating boats through houses powered by gasoline siphoned from vehicles. A coast guard member was moved to tears when recalling the moment he cradled a baby in his bare arms, lifting her into a helicopter.

In the year 2005, Hurricane Katrina struck, and Malik Rahim, who is a community organizer, lived in Algiers Point, New Orleans at that time (as reported by National Geographic).

Lieutenant General Russell Honor held command over Joint Task Force Katrina and is often recognized for restoring order and facilitating the evacuation of the Superdome. (Translated by National Geographic)

Later, we delve into a litany of institutional shortcomings — in leadership, communication, dedication, courage, rational thinking, service, media, reporting. With the French Quarter spared from flooding or distant spectators watching, they often spread unverified information as truth, fueling fear. Bill O’Reilly, who was a prominent figure at Fox News at that time, advocated for looters to be fatally shot. As more flood victims arrived, the Superdome became their refuge, but it lacked functioning bathrooms and air conditioning, offered no sustenance or water, and left people enduring sweltering August heat for days before evacuation. Instead, the National Guard and federal troops showed up in the city, an experience residents of New Orleans were wary of, as they weren’t always a positive presence.

In this gathering, several individuals leave a lasting impact, among them community organizer Malik Rahim, with his long white hair and beard, seems almost like a spiritual leader as he speaks candidly to the camera from his porch. However, it’s retired Lt. Gen. Russel L. Honoré who truly steals the spotlight. As a native Louisianan Creole, he was eventually called in to oversee cooperation between FEMA and the military. Footage shows him walking through the streets, instructing soldiers to carry their weapons with care, not pointing them at anyone.

Open and forthright, Honoré had sympathy for the suffering population — “In America, when you’re poor, you’re not truly free, and the poor learn to be patient” — but held no regard for inept bureaucracy, particularly targeting FEMA director Michael Brown, who was mishandling operations from Baton Rouge. Brown would soon resign following the hurricane.

When buses eventually showed up, passengers disembarked, some even being transported by air later on, without any clear indication of their destination; family members could be scattered all over the country. Many would never set foot in New Orleans again, and some who did, found it unrecognizable not just due to the damage, but also because of the new constructions.

The upcoming Lee documentary and this event are both scheduled according to the calendar, but they coincide quite favorably given our current circumstances. We’re experiencing an increase in natural disasters like floods, fires, storms, and cyclones, which are becoming more frequent and severe. At the same time, funds are being cut from agencies tasked with predicting, mitigating, or aiding recovery after these events. Last week, Ken Pagurek, head of FEMA’s urban search and rescue unit, resigned due to concerns over FEMA’s response to the Texas flood under Trump’s administration, following Jeremy Greenberg, who led FEMA’s disaster command center. Trump himself has expressed a desire to eliminate FEMA altogether.

Despite the challenges, Curry concludes her series on a hopeful tone. The residents of Lower 9th Ward have revitalized once lifeless wetlands into a community park, serving as a buffer against future storm surges. The Black Masking Indians, also known as Mardi Gras Indians, continue to craft their elaborate, feathered costumes and celebrate in the streets.

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2025-07-27 13:31

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