My Amazing Book: Hurricane Katrina in Lousiana Story

The corner of New Orleans City, Louisiana, once hit by Hurricane Katrina. Photo by @ayijufridar.

Friday August 26, 2005

On moonless nights the men and boys of Jableh, a dusty fishing town on the coast of Syiria, would gather their lanterns and set out in their quietest boats. Five or six small craft, two or three fisherman in each. A mile out, they would arrange the boats in a circle on the black sea, drop their nets, and, holding their nets, holding their lanterns over the water, they would approxiamate the moon. 

(The first paragraph of Zeitoun's book by Dave Eggers)

I do not remember the exact year. Perhaps around the year of 2010 or 2011, Haji Nazaruddin Ibrahim, my best friend and teacher who at that time settled in Seatle, USA, gave me a souvenir of a book. Every returning to Lhokseumawe, Aceh, from the United States, he often brought gifts to his companions. Some get hats, t-shirts, cigars, and so on. To me, he often gives me books that are usually books bestseller in United States, at least in certain states. At that time, Haji Nazaruddin Ibrahim who is familiarly called Pak Haji gave me a best seller book in the United States, Zeitoun, by Dave Eggers.

Although not very familiar with English, I tried to read Zeitoun's book. In short, the book tells the story of a Muslim family (immigrants from Syria) caught up in United States government policy in the face of war and terrorism and the response to Hurricane Katrina which then attacked New Orleans, the state of Louisiana. The wife of Pak Haji, Elizabeth Drexler-associate professor at Michigan State University-said the book was a subject of discussion on many campuses. In the midst of a catastrophic battle still in Syria, Zeitoun remains relevant today despite Katrina in Louisiana.

Surprises happen in 2012. I have the opportunity to attend International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) for a month in several states in the United States. The one I visited was New Orleans to see the city right after it was hit by Hurricane Katrina.

I looked at the Lower 9th Ward, the most heavily hit area of Katrina in August 2005, the residents' housing structure has turned into a stage house whose legs remind us of traditional Acehnese houses but with different heights. The shape of the wood-constructed house is a unique and distinct cube between one house and another. The forms are the result of a new home construction race initiated by Hollywood top actor Brad Pitt along with his (former) wife Angelina Jolie. "They even have a house here," said Shawn Callanan, our interpreter.

Geographically, New Orleans is not strategic because it lies beneath the surface of the sea so the local government must build a fortress in several places to protect its citizens. But not every point has a fortress, and the fort was not strong enough to withstand Katrina's brunt. It was admitted by Jeffrey McPlayers, a Katrina victim who had to flee to Houston when a storm hit.

According to him, a violent storm not only destroys buildings physically, but also a fragile community structure in New Orleans, just as it had happened during the Tsunami crashing into Aceh. Many residents left New Orleans after the storm, but Jeffrey was unaffected. Although his house on the beach and the threat of storms still haunted in the future, he still chose to live in New Orleans because of his love of the city.

Jeffrey did not have time to witness Katra's ferocity because after getting word from the Meteorology Agency, he immediately evacuated his family. On the way to Houston, he listens to the destruction of New Orleans from the radio in the car. After his family was in Houston, the father of three returned to New Orleans. However, he is forbidden by police, unless he has firearms to defend himself. With a pistol, he returned home after the storm subsided and found a group of young men looting his possessions.

Looting, robbery, robbery, police violence, and then aid graft for victims, are some of Katrina's subsequent damage. With that pistol, Jeffrey thrust three looters from his home.

The death toll of 1,289 people is not as much as the Aceh Tsunami that reaches about 200 thousand inhabitants. Three important lessons for Indonesian people who are also vulnerable to disaster are community awareness of disasters, technological advances in detecting, as well as "friendly" development of disasters. They at least do not experience a routine disaster like the flood that we experience at the end of the year.

Physical destruction caused by disasters can be dealt with quickly when sufficient funds are available, but the damage to social institutions is difficult to handle and takes a relatively long time. This also happened in New Orleans. Many residents are reluctant to return after the disaster. About 6,000 employees were fired because the city government could not afford the salaries. Now, the number of employees is only 4,000.

Oliver Wise, director in Office of Performance and Accountability of the City of New Orleans, said the number of people had reached 650 thousand people and shrank to 400,000 and is now beginning to show an upward trend of 500,000 people and is considered positive for economic growth. Wise admitted, New Orleans is not a dream place to live. Education and ill health, corrupt police, high crime, the number of taxpayers is also low. In fact, taxes from residents are the mainstay of government funding, including the police.

Some of the areas I visited, were in Zeitoun's book. In fact I like getting guided from Zeitoun's book. Reading books does work miracles. Have you ever experienced it?

Bahasa:
(Paragraf pertama buku Zeitoun karya Dave Eggers)

SAYA tidak ingat tahun berapa persisnya. Barangkali sekitar tahun 2010 atau 2011, Haji Nazaruddin Ibrahim, sahabat sekaligus guru saya yang saat itu bermukim di Seatle, Amerika Serikat, memberikan saya oleh-oleh sebuah buku. Setiap pulang ke Lhokseumawe, Aceh, dari Amerika Serikat, ia sering membawa oleh-oleh untuk para sahabat. Ada yang mendapatkan topi, kaos oblong, cerutu, dan sebagainya. Untuk saya, ia sering memberikan buku yang biasanya merupakan buku yang menjadi pembicaraan di Amerika, setidaknya di negara bagian tertentu. Waktu itu, Haji Nazaruddin Ibrahim yang akrab disapa Pak Haji memberi saya buku best seller di Amerika Serikat, Zeitoun, karya Dave Eggers.

Meski tidak terlalu paham bahasa Inggris, saya mencoba membaca buku Zeitoun. Singkatnya, buku kisah nyata itu bercerita tentang keluarga Muslim (imigran dari Suriah) yang terjebak dalam kebijakan pemerintah Amerika dalam menghadapi perang dan terorisme serta tanggapan tentang badai Katrina yang waktu itu menyerang New Orleans, negara bagian Lousiana. Istri dari Pak Haji, Elizabeth Drexler—associate professor di Michigan State University—mengatakan buku itu menjadi bahan diskusi di banyak kampus. Di tengah bencana peperangan masih melanda Suriah, sampai saat ini Zeitoun tetap relevan meski tidak ada Katrina di Lousiana.

Kejutan terjadi pada 2012. Saya mendapat kesempatan mengikuti International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) selama sebulan di sejumlah Negara bagian di Amerika Serikat. Salah satu yang saya kunjungi adalah New Orleans untuk melihat langsung kota itu setelah dihantam badai Katrina.

Saya melihat di Lower 9th Ward, sebuah kawasan yang paling parah diterjang Katrina pada Agustus 2005 silam, struktur perumahan warga sudah berubah bentuknya menjadi rumah panggung yang kaki-kakinya mengingatkan kita pada rumah tradisional Aceh tetapi dengan ketinggian berbeda. Bentuk-betuk rumah berkonstruksi kayu itu berbentuk kubus yang unik dan berbeda antara satu rumah dengan rumah lain. Bentuk-bentuk tersebut adalah hasil dari perlombaan pembangunan rumah baru yang digagas aktor top Hollywood, Brad Pitt bersama (mantan) istrinya Angelina Jolie. “Bahkan mereka punya rumah juga di sini,” kata Shawn Callanan, seorang interpreter kami.

Secara geografis, New Orleans memang tidak strategis karena terletak di bawah permukaan laut sehingga pemerintah setempat harus membangun benteng di beberapa tempat untuk melindungi warganya. Tapi tidak semua titik memiliki benteng, dan benteng itu pun tak cukup kuat untuk menahan terjangan Katrina. Hal itu diakui Jeffrey McPlayers, seorang korban Katrina yang harus mengungsi ke Houston saat badai menerjang.

Menurutnya, badai dahsyat tidak hanya meluluhlantakkan bangunan secara fisik, tetapi juga struktur masyarakat yang memang rapuh di New Orleans, seperti yang pernah terjadi saat Tsunami menerjang Aceh. Banyak warga meninggalkan New Orleans setelah badai, tetapi Jeffrey tak terpengaruh. Meski rumahnya di tepi pantai dan ancaman badai masih menghantui di masa mendatang, ia tetap memilih hidup di New Orleans karena kecintaannya terhadap kota itu.

Jeffrey tidak sempat menyaksikan ganasnya Katrina karena setelah mendapatkan kabar dari Badan Metereologi, ia langsung mengevakuasi keluarganya. Dalam perjalanan ke Houston, ia mendengarkan kehancuran New Orleans dari radio di mobil. Setelah keluarganya berada di Houston, ayah tiga anak itu kembali ke New Orleans. Namun, ia dilarang masuk oleh pihak kepolisian, kecuali kalau ia memiliki senjata api untuk mempertahankan diri. Dengan sepucuk pistol, ia balik ke rumah setelah badai reda dan mendapati sekelompok anak muda sedang menjarah barang-barang miliknya.

Penjarahan, pencurian, perampokan, kekerasan oleh polisi, dan kemudian korupsi bantuan bagi korban, adalah beberapa bagian dari kerusakan susulan akibat Katrina. Dengan pistol itulah, tiga kali Jeffrey mengusir penjarah dari rumahnya.

Jumlah korban meninggal 1.289 orang memang tidak sebanyak Tsunami Aceh yang mencapai sekitar 200 ribu jiwa. Tiga pelajaran penting bagi masyarakat Indonesia yang juga rentan bencana adalah, kesadaran masyarakat akan bencana, kemajuan teknologi dalam mendeteksi, serta pembangunan yang “ramah” terhadap bencana. Mereka setidaknya tidak mengalami bencana rutin seperti banjir yang kita alami saban akhir tahun.

Kehancuran fisik akibat bencana bisa ditangani dengan cepat bila tersedia dana yang cukup, tetapi kerusakan pranata sosial yang sulit ditangani dan membutuhkan waktu relatif lama. Ini juga terjadi di New Orleans. Banyak penduduk yang enggan kembali setelah bencana. Sekitar 6.000 pegawai dipecat karena pemerintah kota tak mampu membayar gaji. Sekarang, jumlah pegawai hanya 4.000 saja.

Direktur Office of Perfomance and Accountability City of New Orleans, Oliver Wise, mengatakan jumlah penduduk sempat mencapai angka 650 ribu jiwa, kemudian menyusut menjadi 400 ribu jiwa dan saat ini mulai menunjukkan kecenderungan meningkat menjadi 500 ribu jiwa dan itu dianggap positif bagi pertumbuhan ekonomi. Wise mengakui, New Orleans memang bukan tempat impian untuk ditinggali. Pendidikan dan kesehatan buruk, polisi korup, kejahatan tinggi, jumlah pembayar pajak juga rendah. Padahal, pajak dari warga merupakan andalan utama pembiayaan pemerintahan, termasuk polisi.

Beberapa daerah yang saya kunjungi, ada dalam buku Zeitoun. Bahkan saya seperti mendapat panduan dari buku Zeitoun. Membaca buku memang memberikan keajaiban. Anda pernah mengalaminya?