What they saw: “water gushing from the sewer grates.” The deadly flooding had only just begun. Fink reports that on the second day, a nurse called for Pou to look out the window. Described as a “surgeon whose strong work ethic earned respect from doctors and nurses alike,” Pou is played by Vera Farmiga in the miniseries. One of the key figures in Fink’s reporting is Anna Pou. The hospital’s generators took over and many, Fink writes, believe they had “seemed to have weathered one more storm.” The Flooding Begins When the storm hit during on the morning of August 29, the city’s power failed. According to Fink, about 2,000 people were inside the hospital when the storm hit, including more than 200 patients and 600 staff. Fink notes:įor generations, the hospital’s sturdy walls served as a shelter when hurricanes threatened: employees would bring their families and pets, as well as coolers packed with muffulettas.Īnd so, when Katrina hit, many naturally sought refuge in the building. Since the 1920s, Memorial Medical Center had served as a shelter during storms. This, plus rising sea levels due to climate change, makes storms and subsequent flooding that hits the region particularly deadly. But by pumping water out of the city, it began to shrink and continues to do so to this day. As the city expanded in the 19th and 20th centuries, developers began draining swampland to make room for more people. A large portion of the city sits below sea level. The topography of New Orleans makes it particularly prone to hurricanes. Here is a look at the true story behind the series. Among the events detailed in the book was the controversial decision by doctors to inject patients, many of whom the doctors believed were near death, with fatal drugs.įink’s book serves as the inspiration for the upcoming miniseries of the same name, Five Days at Memorial, from Apple TV+. As the storm raged, the hospital went without power for days. The book, based in part on a long feature she published in the New York Times and ProPublica in 2009, details five days at Memorial Medical Center in New Orleans. In 2013, journalist Sheri Fink, herself a medical doctor, published a book, Five Days at Memorial: Life and Death in a Storm-Ravaged Hospital. As chaos ensued, first responders and medical professionals faced every challenge imaginable. Katrina devastated the city of New Orleans in particular. The hurricane hit the Gulf of Mexico in August of 2005, impacting states around the region.
Hurricane Katrina remains one of the deadliest and most destructive storms in the history of the United States. This installment focuses on the true story behind the upcoming Apple TV+ series Five Days at Memorial.
Real Stories is an ongoing column about the true stories behind movies and TV shows.
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