LAFAYETTE, La. (KLFY) – This year will mark 20 years since Hurricane Katrina, which is one of the worst natural disasters in Louisiana history.

News 10 sat down with Lt. Gen. Honore who was put in charge of Joint Task Force Katrina, which handled response and recovery after the storm. Lt. Gen. Honore was on the ground through the worst of the recovery, including the rising body count, as upwards of 1500-1800 people perished in the storm.

“Ninety-percent of those that died were elderly, disabled, poor–or sometimes all three categories,” Lt. Gen. Honore said.

He said many of these people died, simply because there was no one to help them. Most died due to flooding in the city as the infrastructure and flood mitigation in place at the time failed.

“They were home alone, they died at home alone,” Honore said.

Lt. Gen. Honore shared how much of New Orleans infrastructure at the time was outdated.

“We were working with pumps in New Orleans built in the 1930s,” added Lt. Gen. Honore.

He said the infrastructure and flood mitigation has improved since Hurricane Katrina.

“The federal government gave the state a lot of money, and the Corps of Engineers to build the storm protection system so that was a big lesson.” Lt. Gen. Honore said.

He also commended the state for the steps they are taking to get prepared for hurricane season.

“GOSHEP has had multiple training events for the parishes to bring people together to get a game plan,” Lt. Gen. Honore said.

Recovery efforts, he said, could be complicated by the potential decrease of help and aid from FEMA and the federal government.

“Are they still going to send generators, ambulances, helicopters, to evacuate people,” Lt. Gen. Honore questioned.

Honore shared how he fears this could slow response and recovery time. He argues many of the local first responders also become victims during the storm. He said this was a lesson learned in Katrina.

“Many of the police department and fire department trucks were underwater,” Lt. Gen. Honore said.

Despite any potential changes to response and recovery, Lt. Gen. Honore is preaching two things to help us get better prepared for the upcoming hurricane season.

“We are still vulnerable,” Lt. Gen. Honore said. “Don’t leave an empty seat (when evacuating), whether its neighbors, friends, the elderly, we have to get them out.”

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