It’s tempting to think of the Big Easy as just that: a laid-back city with a vibrant cultural and historical tradition. New Orleans’ perceived personality, however, belies the very dangerous and violent natural disasters that have battered the city throughout its past. Perhaps one of the most devastating weather-related events in recent memory is 2005’s Hurricane Katrina. With storm surges that reached up to 20 feet, New Orleans’ levees were handily breached and flooding filled the city.
Although incredible damage is incurred by living residents of the city when hurricane season hits, the historical dead — some even interred centuries before — also suffer a loss. Mass-scale flooding can create surreal and disturbing landscapes filled with uprooted vaults, tombs, and coffins. Understanding how natural disasters impact cemeteries — particularly ones in New Orleans — is critical to effectively preserving them and ensuring that those who have passed on remain in their final resting places.
Dangerous Weather Conditions
August and September are the months most closely associated with hurricanes in New Orleans. When Hurricane Katrina notoriously hit the city almost two decades ago, it shifted over 1,500 deceased individuals from their graves. As evidenced in this case, floodwaters can and do displace caskets and burial accouterments, which contributes to widespread familial and cultural loss.
When it comes to hurricanes and tropical storms, the immediate deluge of water can inundate cemeteries unable to withstand such forces. Similarly, floodwaters can erode what appears to be solid ground over time, which substantially weakens the foundations of burial sites and contributes to tomb collapse. Winds can reach speeds of over 150 mph in severe hurricanes and uproot large objects that crash into cemetery markers and burial structures. Tornadoes, earthquakes, and even heat waves can all contribute to short and long-term cemetery damage over time.
Recovering & Restoring Damaged Cemeteries
In the aftermath of such disasters, specialized units like the Disaster Mortuary Operational Response Team (DMORTs) are typically deployed to assist in recovery efforts. These teams comprise a combination of specialists including coroners, funeral directors, forensic specialists, and other professionals. Taken together, these groups are tasked with identifying and reinterring displaced remains to their original homes.
Much of this recovery and restoration work is accomplished nowadays through methods like DNA sampling, dental remains analysis, and cemetery records. In many cases, living kin are consulted for more information about buried individuals and to provide genetic swabs to match up family lines. In many cases, though, relying on existing relatives is not possible. This situation is when methods like combing through digital and printed records is critical to effectively identify bodies and match their characteristics with historical documentation of distinctive physical features.
For New Orleans specifically, the state of Louisiana has collaborated with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to create the Louisiana Cemetery Response Task Force. This organization develops processes and addresses needs for cemetery recovery and response initiatives. This type of attention — particularly before a natural disaster occurs — is important for overall preservation efforts.
Fixing Damage to Cemeteries
In the case of sites like St. Louis Cemetery No. 1, the prevalence of above-ground tombs reflect a slightly more resilient approach to burials than below-ground coffins. However, this does not mean that above-ground tombs are immune from natural disaster damage. Restoration efforts involve stabilizing and repairing masonry, resetting displaced tombstones, and shoring up structural integrity for future storms.
Preventative measures are critical in mitigating future cemetery damage. Some strategies include maintaining proper drainage systems around cemeteries, reinforcing levees, and using advanced materials and techniques in the construction and restoration of tombs. Additionally creating detailed records and maps of burial sites can help more quickly and accurately identify remains post-disaster.
When you visit sites like St. Louis Cemetery No. 1, a portion of your ticket cost is directly supporting the Abandoned Tomb Initiative, a conservation effort to preserve damaged and dilapidated tombs in New Orleans. Protecting cemeteries today leads to future generations being able to access a part of the city otherwise lost to time. For more information about booking a cemetery tour, please visit our website.
