Tag Archives: Hurricane Katrina
Will $2.9 million in grants actually help Mississippi fishermen?
In 2023, it was declared that it was a federal fisheries disaster, making Mississippi fisheries eligible for assistance. “At this point, it’s more like a feel-good program,” said one fisherman. “Here, let me give you a little money, make you feel better.” It’s been five years since disaster struck the fishing industry in the gulf, and while fishermen have received some help since then, they say the response has been slow – too slow to actually be beneficial. Mark Kopszywa has found himself in a perpetual cycle of playing catch-up after taking such a big loss in 2019 and not being able to make up for it quickly. Video, more, >>click to read<< 06:29
Delcambre Shrimper Looses Boat, Livelihood and Dignity As Provider
For every hurricane during the past 40-years Preston Dore has rode out the storms at the Delcambre docks on his shrimp boat. After Katrina, Gustav, Isaac and a host of others, both he and the boat have walked away mostly unscathed. Hurricane Ida was different. The storm has cost him his boat, his livelihood and has stripped away his dignity as a provider for his family. Unlike previous hurricanes his current boat, the Demi Rae named after his 7-year-old daughter, was not in its Delcambre berth, but in a Chauvin dry-dock,,, The boat was an easy target for the storm’s 170-mph winds as it passed over bayou after bayou ripping the heart out of Louisiana’s seafood industry. >click to read< Donate to the Gulf Seafood Foundation’ “Helping Hands” for Hurricane Ida by clicking the “Donate” button. 11:47
Hurricane Katrina turned this guy into a seafood mogul
It’s a spring day on the Louisiana bayou, and Bozidar “Bo” Jakov Cibilic is hauling in a metal crate of oysters. Cibilic grew up on the water, and on a good day he brings in 15,000 pounds. Things haven’t always been this way. The industry took a beating after Hurricane Katrina, and while Cibilic’s boat survived, he had to put business on hold for six months because the oyster beds were damaged during the storm. During that time, he did odd jobs and some work for the state, which contracted fisherman to test the seabed for pollution. Still, Cibilic, 25, was lucky. His boat, which was built by his father 25 years ago, had been stored in a marina so it withstood the storm. Read the rest here 10:01
Shrimp business bounces back for some, not others
Ten years after Hurricane Katrina left him with nothing but his three medium-sized refrigerator vessels, shrimper Steve Bosarge has overcome major tribulation to expand his business. Years before the catastrophe, Bosarge diversified his business because of increased shrimping competition. In the 1990s, he began providing endangered species animal relocation and site clearance services for oil companies. He had no way of knowing that this side work would save his business. He continues that service today, along with his original career. Many captains of smaller boats were not as fortunate. Read the rest here 18:50
10 Years Forward: Fishermen ride out rough waters after Katrina, clear skies ahead
Long before Hurricane Katrina roared through, south Louisiana’s commercial industry already faced major challenges. Katrina just became the next hurdle fishermen had to endure to stay afloat. In the decade since, St. Bernard and Plaquemines parishes have faced more storms, the BP oil spill, and the continued disappearance of valuable wetlands. Still, they’ve managed to survive and thrive. “I’m going to be dancing at 100! That’s my goal,” said Tommy Gonzales. All his life, he’s trapped and fished the waters of Delacroix Island and the Gulf of Mexico. For hundreds of years, commercial fishing has been a way of life in Shell Beach. Video, Read the rest here 10:43
Fish, shellfish recovered from Katrina faster than fishermen
As Hurricane Katrina lashed everything above ground, it also caused problems for seafood in the waters of the Gulf of Mexico. With the exception of oysters, seafood does OK during hurricanes,” Caffey said. “The sediment can smother an oyster bed and cause short-term losses. Long term, fishermen don’t do well.” That’s because fishermen rely on boats, processing plants and docks that get walloped by the hurricanes, and that leaves livelihoods in danger. Read the rest here 17:06
Mississippi oysters make a comeback – for a price
The Mississippi oyster industry is bouncing back from a triple whammy — Hurricane Katrina, the BP oil disaster and the Mississippi River flood — and is still a long way from its peak 10 years ago. Just over 78,000 sacks of oysters were harvested in the reporting year that ended June 30, according to Department of Marine Resources. Read more here 08:44
