Dawnsinger

As Hurricane Katrina lumbered toward Greater New Orleans on Sunday, August 28, 2005, Julie Couret and her family were suffering the passing of her grandfather, who died in the wee hours.  Sitting beside the bed of the dying family patriarch had cost the family the chance to flee the storm.  So as the winds rose to tropical storm strength, Julie and her family spent the hours making funeral plans from the shelter of the intern dormitory attached to the Tulane University Hospital.

On the fifth day, Julie and her family were hustled onto a Chinook rescue chopper and airlifted to Louis Armstrong International Airport, where they were decontaminated and evacuated to a reunion with family members near Baton Rouge.

Julie, a longtime recruiter for Disney World with an affectation for all things Disney, is a well-spoken and passionate young woman, who is pleasant to be around. She is also a citizen journalist.  From the approach of the storm, to the horrific conditions at Tulane University Hospital, to the evacuation and aftermath, Julie felt the responsibility to be a witness . . . to record the ordeal and tell the story.  I spent several hours with Julie recently, and walked away with a package of compelling video interviews, photos and video from her ordeal.

Take a look at the video package here