After Katrina, TV stations in New Orleans invested in infrastructure and communications to prepare for the next hurricane. As Gustav blew through, the investment paid off. “We’ve been rehearsing ever since Katrina,” said WWL GM Bud Brown. “We covered the story. We did remarkably well.” WWLtv.com’s Tom Planchet reminds us that all the journalists working in New Orleans had to help their families evacuate then race back to cover the story. “One staffer drove his family from New Orleans to Little Rock and returned himself within 24 hours,” Planchet says (which is a 880 mile round trip). Fortunately this time around, it was no Katrina repeat.
Advertisement