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Mass. Now 'Home' To Katrina Survivor

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People unload supplies from a Red Cross truck at Massachusetts' Camp Edwards on Sept. 6, 2005 for about 2,500 refugees of Hurricane Katrina. (AP)
People unload supplies from a Red Cross truck at Massachusetts' Camp Edwards on Sept. 6, 2005 for about 2,500 refugees of Hurricane Katrina. (AP)

It was five years ago this weekend that Hurricane Katrina lashed the Gulf Coast, causing flooding and damage in seven states and leaving some 1,800 people dead.

In the weeks after the storm, more than 200 survivors relocated to Massachusetts. Many of them have since returned home, but there are some who've stayed.

Among those who remain is Patrick Wooten — originally from the New Orleans neighborhood of Algiers. He's still here, living in Plymouth, working for the Salvation Army as a chef. He spoke with WBUR Thursday while he was busy cooking in his Salvation Army kitchen.


Recipe: Patrick Wooten's Dirty Rice

Wooten often makes this rice at his job as a Salvation Army cook. He will make it Sunday to mark the fifth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina.

Ingredients:

1 pound ground beef
1/2 pound Andouille sausage
1/2 pound ham steak, cubed
2 medium onions, coarsely chopped
1 bell pepper, diced
2 celery stalks, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
Worcestershire sauce
Uncle Ben's white rice

Procedure:

  • Brown the meat until beef is no longer pink.
  • Add Worcestershire sauce.
  • Remove meat from pan and saute vegetables in the leftover oil.
  • Add cooked rice and more Worcestershire sauce to taste.
  • While it cooks down, "sit and wait like a pit bull."

Serves six. All measurements are approximate.

Related:

This program aired on August 27, 2010.

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Deborah Becker Host/Reporter
Deborah Becker is a senior correspondent and host at WBUR. Her reporting focuses on mental health, criminal justice and education.

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