Rapid Relief

An up-close look at the program to house victims of Hurricane Katrina.

Photographs by Steve Hebert/Polaris

Immediately after Hurricane Katrina’s landfall on August 29, 2005, Bechtel responded to a federal government request to help assess the damage and to support relief efforts in Mississippi. The first emergency housing units were installed by September 8, and soon Bechtel was providing shelter to hundreds of new people every day. By mid-November, some 2,600 Bechtel workers—most from Mississippi and other Gulf states—had “hauled and installed” more than 20,000 temporary housing units, providing safe, code-compliant shelter for more than 50,000 Mississippians displaced by Katrina.

Rapid mobilization for both emergencies and our daily work is a Bechtel calling card. But along with boots on the ground, we offer a helping hand. Thousands of Bechtel employees joined the company in giving $1.35 million to the American Red Cross in response to Katrina, and the company is contributing profits from its initial relief work to help Katrina victims in Mississippi.

 

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