ONE DAY AT A TIME

Abstract

HAVING LIVED ALONG THE GULF Coast for nearly 30 years, N. Dale Ledford is no stranger to hurricanes. So on Saturday, Aug. 27—as Hurricane Katrina gathered strength in the Gulf of Mexico, and Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour declared a state of emergency—he was already securing his office for the coming storm. I did the normal things that people would do to prepare for a normal hurricane, recalls Ledford, a chemistry professor and director of the College of Science & Technology at the University of Southern Mississippi's Gulf Coast campus. He covered his office cabinets with plastic bags. He placed important, lightweight items on top of the 7-foot bookshelves in his office. He secured the windows and doors. Now, with hindsight, Ledford sees those preparations as so much folly. Situated in Long Beach, Miss., with a picturesque view of the Gulf of Mexico, USM's Gulf Coast campus was at the heart of the hurricane's path. Many ...