Making Connections: New Orleans Evacuees' Experiences in Obtaining Drugs (Report‪)‬

Between August 29 and September 7, 2005, almost all New Orleans residents were evacuated from the area in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, which made landfall in the New Orleans area on August 29. News reports indicate that almost 150,000 New Orleans Evacuees (NOEs) were evacuated to Houston, Texas, the destination for the largest segment of NOEs, and an additional 300,000 were evacuated to other cities and towns throughout the country. Evacuees with cars, modest financial resources, and/or families to rely on were typically able to find private settings and avoid the experiences of the poor. However, NOEs impoverished before Katrina were bussed to congregate shelters (such as the Astrodome in Houston) for some length of time. The most fortunate were able to obtain their own housing and employment so they could begin recreating somewhat normal living arrangements in their host community. As many as 30,000 NOEs were active participants in the illicit drug market in New Orleans prior to the hurricane (SAMHSA 2008). Their displacement to other host cities across the country, such as Houston or elsewhere, provided a unique opportunity to study what occurs when illicit drug markets are disrupted and consumers are dispersed to many different locations. The period between the flooding (August 30) and nearly complete evacuation (about September 7) of New Orleans afforded a unique opportunity to systematically learn about the disruption of illicit drug markets, since populations of illicit drug users and purchasers could no longer routinely obtain their drugs in predictable ways.