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Businesses Battle Back in Terrebonne Parish

By Liane Hansen
Published December 11, 2005 at 12:00 AM EST
Pete Gerica, who once fished and caught shrimp and crabs, lost his home on Bayou Sauvage in East New Orleans.
Ned Wharton, NPR
Pete Gerica, who once fished and caught shrimp and crabs, lost his home on Bayou Sauvage in East New Orleans.
Work has resumed at Motivatit Seafoods in Houma, La., as Terrebone Parish recovers from the wrath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
Ned Wharton, NPR /
Work has resumed at Motivatit Seafoods in Houma, La., as Terrebone Parish recovers from the wrath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

As much as oil and natural gas dominate the economy of Louisiana's Terrebonne Parish, fishing remains its heart and soul. During an October visit, Motivatit Seafoods was silent in the wake of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. But now the clank and clatter of seafood processing has resumed.

But the employment situation in the storm-battered parish is far from rosy. Thousands of families lost their homes... and many fled inland. As Liane Hansen discovered, the mass evacuation has forced businesses to readjust and employ new kinds of workers... while some of those who lost jobs in the storm's wake can't find new ones.

The audio story of the visit to Terrebonne Parish was written by Stu Seidel and produced by Ned Wharton, with help from Jesse Baker. The sound engineer was Marty Kurcias.

Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Liane Hansen
Liane Hansen has been the host of NPR's award-winning Weekend Edition Sunday for 20 years. She brings to her position an extensive background in broadcast journalism, including work as a radio producer, reporter, and on-air host at both the local and national level. The program has covered such breaking news stories as the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the capture of Saddam Hussein, the deaths of Princess Diana and John F. Kennedy, Jr., and the Columbia shuttle tragedy. In 2004, Liane was granted an exclusive interview with former weapons inspector David Kay prior to his report on the search for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. The show also won the James Beard award for best radio program on food for a report on SPAM.

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SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.

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