Like many Hurricane Katrina survivors, former Louisiana State University research scientist and instructor Ivor van Heerden sometimes tears up at certain memories. He didn’t lose a house or a family member. He lost his career. That still hurts because it was taken from him by the people he was trying to help.
Work includes replacing bulbs and batteries, and reprogramming lights to match school hours.
"America failed the people of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast long before that failure showed up on our television sets," Barack Obama said while campaigning for president. "America failed them again during Katrina." He promised to do better. 10 years after the storm, we checked to see if he has delivered.
Louisiana will get almost $8 billion for restoration projects from BP.
Rents are rising faster than incomes in New Orleans, and federally-funded rebuilding resulted in fewer units than planned.
He said he'd direct it for hurricane protection, but he has since backtracked.
The feds funded a new streetcar line, but bus service is down 65 percent since the storm.
Obama revived a program that funds the hiring of cops. New Orleans has gotten about $7 million.
The levees wouldn't collapse in a powerful hurricane, but storm surge probably would push over the top.
It won't pay for everything, though, because construction costs have risen.
