The Cajun Navy

When Gautreaux arrived at the Acadiana Mall in the early hours of Wednesday morning he was stunned by what he saw. The Mall parking lot was filled with boats and trucks of all shapes and sizes and hundreds of people willing to help rescue their fellow Louisiana citizens.

"The great thing about it was it was typical Louisiana," says Gautreaux. "We had doctors, lawyers, college students, nurses, working class people, and offshore oilfield workers who had the day off because of the hurricane. We even had a person who bought a brand new boat and motor that day so he could go with us. I thought that was great. It's part of our Cajun heritage to help our neighbor. When New Orleans needed help we were there to help them."

Participants in Gautreaux's citizen flotilla came from all around South Louisiana: Ville Platte, Lake Charles, Abbeville, Erath, New Iberia, Maurice, Carencro, Jennings, and Opelousas, just to name a few. Eyewitness estimates put the number of boats between 300 and 500, and the number of volunteers at 600 to 800. By all accounts, hundreds of volunteers showed up to help with hundreds of boats.

Although Gautreaux was quite pleased with the turn out, he had a stern warning to deliver to his enthusiastic volunteers who were eager to get going. Standing next to a Vermilion Parish sheriff department squad car with a bullhorn in hand Gautreaux had this to say to the volunteers, "This is the deal. If you're afraid to see death, don't come. If you're afraid to see a dead body floating in the water, don't come. If you're afraid to be shot at, don't come. If you're not used to the smell of death, don't come with us."

Recalling the scene Gautreaux says, "I warned them. And not one person turned around to leave."
(Jefferson Hennessy...Associated Content)

Nick Gautreaux

They've been called the "Cajun Navy"-- A group of Southwest Louisiana civilians who helped rescue people in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina.
Hurricane Katrina brought on the desperate situation-- the levies in New Orleans had failed and people everywhere were stranded. Governor Kathleen Blanco called on civilian volunteers she knew. Lake Charles business woman Sara Roberts was one of them. "The governor was very desperate and called upon people that she knew who had the resources. To those that much is given much is expected."

The term "Cajun Navy" was coined by Doug Brinkley doing research for his book the great deluge. In Lake Charles a group quickly mobilized and headed to the disaster area to help rescue people. "We had probably 23 vessels and we had I'd say probably close to 30 people." Roberts credits her friend, contractor Ronny Lovett with making it happen. "I called Ronny immediately and he said, 'Give me a couple of hours. I'm going to Sam's and I'm getting the supplies we need and we'll have our convoy. And we convoyed to New Orleans. He is really the hero."

They saw death and human suffering beyond their imaginations. The experience pushed everyone to the limit physically, mentally and emotionally. Yet Roberts says it was gratifying beyond words. "To me, going in and pulling people out of the water was just the right thing to do. It was our responsibility as citizens, Louisianans."

September 22, 2006
By Theresa Schmidt
KPLCtv.com


In the hours immediately following Hurricane Katrina's devastating assault on New Orleans with violent category three winds, unprecedented tidal surges, and lethal floodwaters, millions of Americans watched the alarming scene on television in dismay. This story is about the hundreds of first responder volunteers who could not watch the suffering of their fellow citizens without offering their assistance.
From the last day of the storm on Monday, August 28 to Sunday, September 4, 2005, these south Louisiana citizen volunteers worked tirelessly to save stranded New Orleans and St. Bernard Parish floodwater victims, and brought them safely to dry land. These first responders who brought their boats and risked their lives in the service of stranded flood victims have come to be known as the "Cajun Navy."