Katrina 10 years later: Plaquemines Parish, La.
Hurricane Katrina made first landfall along the Gulf Coast as a Category 3 storm at 6:10 a.m. local time on August 29, 2005, in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, a few miles from the town of Empire, with maximum sustained winds of about 125 mph.
The communities of Empire, Venice and Buras were squarely in Katrina's path as the eye of the storm passed over -- impacting the oil and fishing industries, leaving the landscape dotted with smashed, grounded boats, homes torn apart and flooded. Fishing, shrimping and oyster fleets were destroyed. Around 990,000 gallons of oil were released and towns were flooded with contaminated water.
While the devastation in New Orleans dominated media attention, these smaller communities suffered enormous destruction as well.
Ten years later, like much of the Gulf Coast, there are signs of resilience and progress alongside visible reminders of the lasting impact of one of the most catastrophic storms in U.S. history.
Story: Voices of Katrina: 10 Years later
More photos: Katrina 10 years later: New Orleans
Katrina - Empire, Louisiana
Saint Ann Mission Church, near the center of Empire, Louisiana, was lifted off its foundations by Hurricane Katrina. The destroyed coastal community is seen here a day before the Gulf Coast braced for a second storm, Hurricane Rita, in September 2005.
Ten years later, Larry Hooper, a resident of Empire since 2003, said, "We expected some damage. We didn't expect the totality of the damage that we had."
Katrina - Empire, Louisiana
A statue of Jesus stands covered in mud in the destroyed Saint Ann Mission Church in Empire on September 28, 2005.
Hooper, who stayed on in Empire with his wife, told CBS News, "The utter demolition of the area was something that nobody could possibly fathom. I had a brick house. Never found the bricks to the house. It was wiped off the map."
Katrina - Empire, Louisiana
The ruined town of Empire on September 26, 2005.
In the 2000 census there were 2,211 people in Empire. The population was 993 after the 2010 census.
Katrina - Empire, Louisiana
Hooper, a charter fisherman, moved to Empire in 2003 from Connecticut, arriving just in time for Katrina to wipe him and his wife out.
Katrina "was the straw that broke the camel's back," for many of his neighbors. "The reason I came back is because I did love the area, I do love the area, and I'll be here till the day I die," said Hooper.
Katrina - Empire, Louisiana
A shrimp boat lies on its side in the center of Empire, where the post office and hardware store stood before Hurricane Katrina passed through. In this photo from September 28, 2005, the boat was marked, indicating that three dogs and a three pigs were found inside. Rescue workers used X-codes or resorted to plain language and to indicate sites had been searched and what was found, adding to the 'graffiti' that dotted the landscape.
Katrina wreaked havoc on the multi-billion-dollar commercial fishing industry. Boats, ports and processing plants across the area were destroyed. Waterways were clogged with debris and sea life suffered because of the huge storm. Oyster beds were particularly hard hit.
Katrina - Empire, Louisiana
Ten years later, the once commercial center of Empire where a post office and hardware store stood, remains empty, August 10, 2015.
"There's nothing left to pick up or throw away. This will never come back. ... We had some nice restaurants. They never returned. Grocery stores never returned," said Hooper.
Town residents now drive to a post office and stores miles away.
Katrina - Empire, Louisiana
This photo shows the destroyed gas station in Empire on September 28, 2005, one month after Katrina tore through town.
Businesses haven't been rebuilt in the town center. The smaller population now living in the town doesn't support the basic services that existed before Katrina.
Said Hooper: "We were hopin' for a lot of our friends to come back. A lot of our friends did not. There's not enough people here to bring any major stores down here."
Katrina - Plaquemines Parish
The waterlogged remains of the inside of a home in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, September 2005.
"People ask me, 'Why didn't you go somewhere else?' I have an aunt in California. She's got [wildfires] she's runnin' away from now, all right? I've got family in Kentucky. They're runnin' from tornadoes. You don't - I can run from a storm. You can't run from a tornado," explained Hooper.
Katrina - Plaquemines Parish
A house lies on top of a car after Katrina passed through Plaquemines Parish, September 2005.
In describing what many victims of Katrina experienced, Larry Hooper said, "I had roofs of houses, parts of houses in my back property. My boat that was on my property, I found three-quarters of a mile away."
Katrina - Empire, Louisiana
A trailer home sits near the abandoned town center in Empire, Aug. 10, 2015. Brick homes in many cases were replaced with less sturdy, cheaper construction in the years since Katrina. Many of those who stayed didn't have the resources to fully replace what was lost.
Katrina - Empire, Louisiana
Boats lie on top of a roadway in Plaquemines Parish near Empire on Aug. 30, 2005, after Hurricane Katrina. The area around Empire was completely flooded. Boats sank in place or lost their moorings, settling in many cases on land.
Pre-Katrina, the region was home to 15 major fishing ports, 117 seafood-processing facilities and over 14,000 fishing boats, according to FoodandWaterWatch.org. Empire was the home port to some 2,000 boats at the time of Katrina.
Katrina - Burus, Louisiana
Sunken, damaged boats lie in the water after Hurricane Katrina, September 26, 2005.
$2 billion of economic losses in seafood production have been attributed to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in Louisiana.
Katrina - Burus, Louisiana
A new fleet of shrimp boats sit in Joshua's Marina in Burus, August 15, 2015.
In 2004, 83 percent of the shrimp caught in the U.S. came from the Gulf of Mexico. Losses for the shrimp industry were estimated at $81 million after Katrina in Louisiana.
Vietnamese refugees make up about one-quarter of the state's commercial shrimpers, according to the Louisiana Shrimping Association. Many of the Vietnamese shrimpers didn't have insurance, making recovery a slow process. Subsequent storms and the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010 hindered the recovery further.
While the market for crabs and oysters is strong today, shrimpers have had to face the challenge of low prices and steep competition from overseas.
Katrina - Venice, Louisiana
Just-caught red snapper and yellowfin tuna hang on a rail at the Venice Marina, rebuilt since Katrina, on August 10, 2015.
Bill Butler, who co-owns the marina with his brother Mike, said, "There's a different group of people now. Lots of locals didn't come back. Out-of-state fisherman bought up property."
Katrina - Venice, Louisiana
The Venice Marina is once again thriving and a parade of recreational fishing charters bring their catch in every evening. Here, a man cuts up a red snapper on the dock, August 10, 2015.
The Butlers fought their insurance company for a settlement to rebuild the marina that had been in operation since 1931. Bill Butler described the marina as "annihilated ... everything gone," but they rebuilt.
Katrina - Venice, Louisiana
Deep sea and inshore fishing are both popular in Venice. A fisherman shows a red snapper on the dock, August 10, 2015.
Sport fishing charters draw people from across the country. Known as "Tuna Town," Venice is one of the top yellowfin tuna destinations in the world.
Katrina - Venice, Louisiana
Hooper, a charter fisherman, heads back to the Venice Marina, August 15, 2015. He's rebuilt his business in the last 10 years.
Katrina - Empire, Louisiana
Boats dot the marina with Saint Ann Mission Church seen in the distance in Empire on August 15, 2015.
Story: Voices of Katrina: 10 Years later
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