Sneak Peek: Beyond Katrina

Travelers

who missed being in New Orleans to observe the fifth anniversary of
Hurricane Katrina will have the opportunity to discover what really

happened during the storm beginning this October 26, when the Louisiana

State Museum opens an exhibit devoted to the hurricane and the wild,

wet weather that has influenced the Gulf Coast in its history.

Living With Hurricanes: Katrina and Beyondis a $7.5 million exhibit opening at the historic Presbytere in the

heart of the French Quarter. “Visitors to New Orleans will see and

experience what happened, and see how the region has rebuilt itself to

be better than it was before,” said Louisiana State Museum Director Sam

Rykels. Rykels and his curators hunted down and found iconic artifacts

to display — like the Fats Domino’s water-damaged Steinway piano
(above) salvaged from the musician’s Lower Ninth Ward home and a tarnished

menorah, retrieved from a flooded synagogue in Lakeview, an affluent

neighborhood. Also in the exhibit: videos that relay stories of

survival and rescue like Ken Bellau’s – the professional bicycle racer

commandeered a loose boat and proceeded to rescue some 400 people from

their homes. (Watch one of the videos after the jump.)

Though the State Museum of Louisiana is housed in the

Presbytere, a 219-year-old building, it boasts some thoroughly cutting edge technology — QR codes — a bar code that will immediately link smart phone

users to in-depth additional information. In the museum’s case, the

QR code for its upcoming exhibitLiving With Hurricanes: Katrina and Beyondlinks visitors to the exhibit’s Facebook page where they can upload their own thoughts or experiences.

Images and video: The Louisiana State Museum