disaster victims

A collection of stories that recalls the first year and a half of life in New Orleans after Katrina from those who lived through it.

Describes the characteristics of earthquakes, offers insight into the experiences of various children who have survived these natural disasters, and identifies areas of devastation on maps.

Portrays the people of northeastern Japan, where the Tohoku coast was devastated by the earthquake-and-tsunami and tells the story of rice farmers, monks, wanderers, and fishermen as they demonstrated spirit, humor, and buoyancy in a suddenly shattered world.

Barry's family prepares to evacuate before Hurricane Katrina hits, but when his little sister gets very sick, they are forced to stay home and face the floodwater that sweeps Barry away.

Details the experiences of Abdulrahman Zeitoun, a Syrian-American and New Orleans resident, and his family, in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and describes how he was arrested and falsely imprisoned because of his ethnicity.

The Cedar fire, the largest wildfire in California's recorded history, ravaged the San Diego area in late 2003, burning 280,000 acres, destroying more than 2,200 homes, and killing 15 people. Leaving her doomed home in Wildcat Canyon the night of the fire with her husband, Sandra Millers Younger drove through flames and was saved by a bobcat that showed her the road she could not find in the dense smoke.

In March 2011, a 9.0 earthquake struck off the northeastern coast of Japan, flooding the densely populated coastal area with a massive tsunami. The powerful wall of water traveled miles inland, engulfing whole communities and towns. More than 19,000 people were left dead or missing. The tsunami also triggered a meltdown at the Fukuskima Daiichi nuclear plant and the world's worst nuclear crisis since Chernobyl.

At 3:17 on March 18, 1937, a natural gas leak beneath the London Junior-Senior High School in the oil boomtown made up of London and New London, Texas, created a lethal mixture of gas and oxygen in the school's basement. The odorless, colorless gas went undetected until a flip of an electrical switch triggered a colossel blast that disintegrated one of the nation's most modern schools. More than three hundred students and teachers were killed and hundreds more injured. It remains the deadliest school disaster in U.S. history.