Katrina: “I Thought I Was Going To A Hurricane, Not A War Zone”

Steve Harrigan blogs from Baton Rouge:

“We found gas in Baton Rouge, an ATM and a Wal-Mart. I bought clothes, bug spray, foil packs of tuna and water. I also bought an ace in the hole: an anti-lice shampoo.”

When Harrigan deployed to the Gulf Coast, he wasn’t prepared for the story he is now covering. (No one was prepared.) “There is so much stuff I did not bring — an irridium phone, water purification tablets — because I thought I was going to a hurricane, not a war zone. The last time I needed water purification tablets was Afghanistan. I didn’t think I’d need them in Louisiana.”