It had been only a matter of months since a colleague and I published an article about the relationship between statistics and tsunami response. At the time, I did not know Hurricane Katrina was brewing in the Gulf or that I soon would be facing both one of the most devastating storms in U.S. history and one of the most devastating times in my personal life. The knowledge gained by experiencing a major disaster and its effects first-hand far exceeded any classroom or field training in which I had participated. Personal experience has revealed new ramifications and implications of certain analysis factors and their impact on the lives of individuals and communities. This first-hand experience has taught me, as a researcher and scientist, to ask the right questions and make distinctions that were previously unknown. I have been on both the academic and first responder sides of disaster, but never suffered loss directly until Katrina wrought her havoc. It was hard to believe everything I had worked for over the years was destroyed in four hours. It was even harder to believe the systems put in place to help one recover were inefficient at best.
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