In August 2005 hurricane Katrina ravaged the Gulf coast of America, completely wiping out whole communities in the states of Alabama, Florida, Mississippi and Louisiana with gale force winds, blinding rains and rising tides. Although several towns along the coast were devastated beyond belief, it was New Orleans, a city with a population of over 500,000, and a city built below sea level, which took the most visibly debilitating blow.

New Orleans is surrounded by water but is protected by a levee system meant to keep the streets and its citizens dry. All told, about 225,000 residents of the city found themselves homeless after news surfaced that the levees had broken. The city was flooded and brought to its knees, and in the days that followed brought a hell on earth with it. But the spirit of the city and its people would not be outdone; rebuilding began within hours of the sun breaking through the clouds, and though it has been a long road to recovery, and still much work remains, New Orleans is once again that classic city it always was.