Heroes of Hurricane Katrina

Ten True Tales

by Allan Zullo

Donald Colletti and Jimmy Pitre are forced to flee their flooded houses as Hurricane Katrina devastates their beloved city of New Orleans. But rather than seek shelter, the two brave men put their lives on the line to rescue hundreds of their neighbors.
 
As Coast Guard helicopter 6514 is buffeted by severe winds, rescue swimmer Laurence Nettles is lowered into the dangerous waters with one goal in mind --  save the lives of a family with an infant who are stranded in a damaged boat.
 
Cut off from outside help for days, the valiant medical staff at Lindy Boggs Medical Center -- which is cut off by rising floodwaters and cripped by a power failure -- fight desperately to keep more than 100 patients alive .
 
These and other real-life heroes risked their lives to save others during Hurricane Katrina, the most catastrophic natural disaster in United States history. You will never forget their courageous true stories.


 

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Short Stories, Middle Grade, School

192 pages, Paperback

First published July 28, 2015

About the author

Allan Zullo is an American non-fiction writer. He is the author or co-author of more than eighty paperbacks for adults and children.

A native of Rockford, Illinois, Zullo graduated from Northern Illinois University in 1969 with a degree in journalism. His books include The Baseball Hall of Shame and Baseball Confidential (both co-written with Bruce Nash), A Boomer's Guide to Grandparenting (co-written with his wife Kathryn), and the Haunted Kids series. Zullo has also written articles for The National Enquirer, The Christian Science Monitor, Ladies Home Journal, and The Palm Beach Post. His syndicated comic strip "The Ghost Story Club" ran in American newspapers from 1995 to 1998.

Zullo currently lives in Fairview, North Carolina.

Reviews

[Ellie Reuschel Taylor's Version · Rating 4 out of 5]

What I love about these types of books is it shows the world that ordinary people can become hero's by helping or maybe donating money or clothing. It shows that the world is not full of bad people.

[Valerie McEnroe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! I am completely hooked on Zullo's nonfiction hero books. If you don't have this book in your library, get it there immediately. I promise you, once kids learn about this book, it will stay checked out. Kids love books about heroes, disasters, and survival. Katrina was the worst hurricane disaster in America's history. People who were glued to their TVs and watched the news from afar have no idea of what really went down in that disaster. This book brings it all to light. 10 stories about 10 people who put their own safety on the line to rescue others. You had ordinary people in boats transporting people to safety, the U.S. Coast Guard on the scene immediately proving they are "Always Ready," and doctors thinking of every option imaginable to save their patients.

You will learn so much from this book. For example, I had no idea the water was so toxic that being in it too long caused serious skin irritation. Some people still experience skin problems today as a result of Katrina's polluted water. Crazy stuff. Amazing stuff. Can't recommend enough.

[Brooke Campbell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hurrican Katrina was a horrible storm that effected the USA. Some people say it's the worst one to hit the US. "After Katrina slammed into the Gulf Coast, making landfall in Louisiana and Mississippi on August 29, 2005, it claimed more than 1,800 lives, ravaged entire beachside towns, drowned much or New Orleans, detroyed or made uninhabitable 300,00 homes, and left hundreds of thousands of victims homeless." These were ordinary families that are now homeless and what are they supposed to do. They can stay inside of a shelter but not for a long time. They would now have to go through hard times. Many famous people donated money which would help people that did not have their houses any more. From the help of many people they helps a lot. I hope that every one is doing better now.

[Dakota Smith · Rating 2 out of 5]

Amazing!

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Terrific!

[Noah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Outdated and occasionally offensive language/depictions but few and far between. Upsetting, but shows how out of touch people are. Ultimately, fine book.

[Jennifer Gallman · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's hard to believe that it's been ten years since Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans. Having visited there a few times in the last two years, it's even harder to believe. From an outsider's point of view, New Orleans is alive with culture and promise, but just ten years ago, some of the most horrific destruction to hit the United States threatened everything the Crescent city symbolized.

So a book like Zullo's is a reminder of what occurred when Katrina hit and the levees broke. Even after we saw the destruction and the rising death toll on national television, being there, going through with people did to survive, will never really mean as much to the onlookers as the survivors. While there are thousands of tales of bravery, these ten stand out because they represent people from all walks of life, all ages, and for all different reasons.

The first story is one of my favorites in the book because it doesn't just rely on courage and bravery to tell the story. Donald Colletti decided to stay behind and protect his business while he sent his family to Texas to escape the storm. While the immediate aftermath was deadly, the floods that resulted from the broken levees forced Donald out of his home. Luckily he planned to have his boat full of gas and ready in case the worst happened. Realizing his home was going to be completely underwater, Donald takes his dog and his treasured photographs and hops on his boat. Hearing his neighbor Jimmy and Jimmy's mother's cries for help, Donald immediately rescues them. Unfortunately, Jimmy's mother does not survive, as she was already in ill health, and the trauma of of the hurricane was too much. Despite her death, Donald and Jimmy spend countless hours rescuing people whose screams echoed into the night, keeping them from sleeping. Braving injury and infection, both men work tirelessly until other rescuers obtain boats. And this is only one of the ten tales.

Inside the book, you will find courage, bravery, compassion, and most importantly, the desire to do good. From a coast guard helicopter pilot to a woman in Charleston, S.C., these heroes need to be recognized, read about, and remembered. Not only did these heroes and heroines rescue people but the thousands of animals who were reluctantly left behind or tragically abandoned by their owners.

Each tale is equally mesmerizing, and for younger readers, the tales are short and to the point in near perfect storytelling. As an adult who remembers Katrina, it makes me wish I would have, or could have, done something to help, but I'm glad to know that there were so many others who did what most of couldn't do.

Zullo paints pictures that we didn't see on TV, and ones that will never be forgotten.www.reviewscomingatya.com

[American Mensa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hurricane Katrina was one of the top 5 deadliest hurricanes in the U.S. It killed approximately 1,833 people, and caused 81 billion dollars of damage. Many people died trapped in their homes, or drowned in the flood. Even though so many people died, even more lives would have been lost if it weren`t for these 10 heroes, who risked their own lives to save their town.
One story specifically caught my attention: Jane Garrison didn`t rescue people, but rescued pets. Many people left their pets in their homes with small containers of food and water. This was not nearly enough. Jane and her crew went door to door and looked for any sign of animals. If she found animals she brought them to Lamar Dixon, a special shelter for animals that had survived the storm. After some time, she was no longer allowed to bring animals to the shelter unless they were in critical condition. When she couldn`t rescue them she would leave food and water for them, and mark the house with an “X” so that if the shelter did allow more animal, she would know to come back.
I enjoyed reading this book because it was interesting to learn about the historic storm from each rescuer’s point of view. All of the men and woman in this book were very brave, and put there life on the line to help others. They all deserve the title of a hero.
Charlotte Z., age 11, Southern Connecticut Mensa

[Sassafras · Rating 3 out of 5]

This series is fairly pedantic for my taste, but they are high interest and geared to capture the imaginations of kids. Of the ten tales, only two were about women, and one of those had to share the spotlight with a spouse. Perhaps the intent of these books is to get boys to read books. If that is so, it explains their popularity. Girls won't see themselves reflected in these pages other than token mentions of bravery. Still, boys will read them, and girls interested in the depicted era will join the ride.

[Nyla · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was an overview of a few people who helped in Hurricane Katrina. It is a great book for those who love to learn about American History. It's a non-fiction book so it's based on true facts. However, I wasn't a fan. If teenage dramas are your cup of tea, you won't like this book. I lost interest extremely quick.
My favorite quote in this book is "It's time to save some lives". I liked how they were eager to get their fellow people out of such a bad situation. My favorite character was Pilot Craig O'Brien.

[Jay Harper · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is a non-ficton genre. It has what people really did in the face off adversity. It took guts what they did. Some helped people at their own expanse. Some helped animals cause people had to leave animals behind. But everyone in this book helped cause it was the right thing to do. Some off these people still are doing what they did. Everyone did it to help even if they got hurt. I loved the book. To me it was full of action.

[Shandrea Watson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought it would be another not interesting book but it is a book of true heroes doing all kind of crazy things just to help people live or survive. They went through water and swam in disinfectant water. They did do it because they have to but also because they wanted to. There was more people alive than deceased. These people are working day and night to help people. The people are getting food for the children and parents. They are also helping elderly people get help.

[Anna Soule · Rating 3 out of 5]

good stories, however I was disheartened by the negative attitudes about the government's response portrayed in several chapters.

[Dolly · Rating 4 out of 5]

"good people will prevail when times are bad." (p. 94)

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