During Katrina, St. Tammany Parish President Kevin Davis and his staff spent many harrowing days inside the parish’s Emergency Operations Center on Boston Street in Covington, at the site of the old parish courthouse. Here is his first-hand account of being on the front lines during that difficult time.

At what point did you and necessary personnel report to the EOC? What were conditions like there?

The Emergency Operations Center was fully activated on Saturday, August 27 at 6:15 p.m. Liaison officers from first responders, municipalities, law enforcement, utilities, call takers and my own department heads reported at that time. The Crisis Action Team, a smaller representative group, had been activated at the EOC since Thursday, August 25. The number of emergency personnel on site grew to almost 200 over the next week, as we raced to coordinate emergency response. Many slept on floors, in hallways, or wherever a flat space could be found.

The dedication of these workers, and the coordination achieved among all the responding agencies, was outstanding. The needs of citizens erased municipal and district lines. There was a united response to the greatest crisis St. Tammany has ever faced.

Were you able to witness anything outside during the height of the storm?

I left the EOC on Monday, the 29th, as soon as winds slowed below 50 miles per hour. Destruction was everywhere. Trees were tossed like matchsticks across roads and roofs, flood waters reached areas beyond my imagination, and our emergency response workers were rescuing citizens from rooftops and attics. St. Tammany was filled with horror and heroics in those first few days after the storm. I was sad, worried and driven to provide all the aid I could find to my community. I returned to the EOC and immediately began implementing our initial relief efforts.

Just after the storm passed, what did you consider to be the most important issues to tackle?

My first priority was providing medical aid to citizens, which meant that I had to assist the hospitals with their needs and open the roads to those hospitals for ambulances and other emergency vehicles. At the same time, getting water, food and ice to the community became critical. I reached out to every partner I could find to bring aid to us.

Now that a month has passed, what are the more current concerns for St. Tammany?

Every day we have to look at our citizens’ basic needs, such as housing, and at the same time strive to ensure that our rebuilding efforts support the reasons we live in St. Tammany: beauty, tranquility and safety, as well as our cultural and community life.

What has been your most poignant experience throughout this whole ordeal?

About a week before the storm, Maria gave birth to our son, John Clay. They both came with me to the EOC during the storm and stayed there for several weeks because of the flood damage to our home. During those never-ending days, I got a great deal of strength from the quiet moments spent with my wife and the few minutes with John Clay.

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