LACK OF UTILITIES
still lacked the municipal services necessary for trailer placement. . . . Without these basic utilities [electricity, sewage, and water], homeowners in the Lower Ninth Ward were unable to place FEMA trailers on their properties or reoccupy their homes.”45 Figure 30 is a table of services by Entergy, one of the primary providers for electricity and gas in New Orleans.46 This table shows that utilities in many parts of the Lower Ninth Ward had not been fully restored for almost a year after the storm. This greatly compromised the recovery of this neighbourhood and inhibited residents from rehabilitating their homes, resulting in further property damage that could have been prevented.
As of May 2006, electricity and gas were restored to all neighbourhoods in New Orleans except the Lower Ninth Ward. These utilities were only partially restored in this neighbourhood and the schedule for full restoration had not been determined. The slow return of utilities prolonged the recovery of the Lower Ninth Ward after Hurricane Katrina. In fact, without utilities, residents could not access the FEMA trailer program nor were they permitted to return to their homes. According to the New Orleans Mayor’s Office, in a press release issued in June of 2006, “more than one year after Katrina, many Lower Ninth Ward residents
fig. 30: Hurricane Katrina Entergy Restoration Assessment Summary 41