Louisiana Weekly - Your Community. Your Newspaper.

This is great if the homeowner can afford it, but many cannot. Then what?

Louisiana Weekly - Your Community. Your Newspaper.:

"A year after Hurricane Katrina ripped through here the damage is everywhere evident, and to drive along U.S. Highway 90 is to witness almost unrelieved devastation. While most of the major casinos along the beachfront are once again functioning, only the battered frames or the foundations remain of the majority of nearby homes.

But, remarkably, there are a few determined, enterprising homeowners who have not waited on insurance payments or federal allocations to rebuild their homes. 'I used all of my own money to rebuild my house,' said Minnie Miller, whose small house was virtually inundated by 17 feet of flood water. 'I spent more than $50,000 to do it, and I didn't get a dime from insurance companies or the federal government."