(This blog is a repost from an old Travel Blog)

In August of 2006, I changed career fields and had to go to Biloxi, Mississippi for my Tech School. We were stationed in Utah at the time. It was a 4 week school, so I decided to drive. I crossed 7 states each way, and a lot of them were new to me, so I was pretty excited. It had only been a year since Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast. I don’t know what I was expecting…I guess I figured that after a year, most of the clean up would be done. I was dead wrong! It looked like Katrina had just happened the week before. If the destruction was still that bad a year later, I can’t imagine what it was like the day after. New Orleans got a lot of attention and damage because of the levees being breached, but the Biloxi/Gulfport area suffered the bulk of the wind damage. Highway 90, which runs along the coast from New Orleans to Mobile, was a mess. The bridge that connects Biloxi to Ocean Springs was washed away, and there was sand everywhere. I’ve since been back to Biloxi…in August again, but this time in 2007…and it’s a world of difference! Casino’s are open again, the water and beaches are cleaned up and usable, the highway is repaired and the bridges are built back, and most of the debris has been cleared. It’s taken a long time go get back on their feet, but they are standing now!

Update: in 2016 we got stationed in Biloxi and moved to Ocean Springs. We spent three years here and totally fell in love with the Mississippi Coast! It will always have a special place in my heart!