Katrina is one of the 10 most destructive natural disasters in American history.

Narrator: Katrina is one of the 10 most destructive natural disasters in American history. On August 29, 2005, the city of New Orleans became a dead city after Hurricane Katrina passed. The city's seawall system was broken. 80% of the city was underwater and more than 1800 people were killed in the storm. East New Orleans was the area that suffered the most damage and this was also where the Vietnamese live the most. Under the emergency evacuation order, local people, including the Vietnamese community, had to leave the city to live elsewhere. After only a very short time, Vietnamese people in turn returned to make a living from the devastation in the areas affected by the storm. The American press praised this miraculous revival of the Vietnamese. Quân Huỳnh: Many old men and women came home with only a box of instant noodles, a few cups of water, a flashlight, and a match. When they got home, they built the hut next to it, cleaned it every day, and when they were hungry, they cooked instant noodles. Then they stayed. Our Vietnamese community is famous for that personality. When the press asked me, I replied like this: "We Vietnamese are used to suffering and being in poverty so we encounter a situation of poverty, deprivation like this and we consider it as usual. " Narrator: The revival of the Vietnamese community after the storm came from the little Vietnamese themselves. Woman 1: I have lost everything, and my career has nothing left. People owed me more than 1 million dollars and no one paid me a single cent because the bills were gone. I have to have bills to be able to get money from them but all of the bills have already gone to the river or the sea. In Versailles, it was like a graveyard. No people, no electricity, nothing at all, but I still came back here. I make cakes to sell to make a living. Slowly I will get my things all over again. I haven't taken a day off in 30 years. Our Vietnamese people are very hard-working, we have to accept it and just do it. For the sake of bread and butter, for the sake of the children, for the future, we have to accept it. As long as we are healthy, we still work to help life, to help our family, and help those less fortunate than myself. Narrator: One of the main occupations of the Vietnamese in New Orleans is shrimp fishing, and Vietnamese own up to 80 percent of the shrimp boats here. When Hurricane Katrina swept through this area, it also destroyed almost all the boats of Vietnamese fishermen. Phạm Văn Xuân: I started empty-handed and had to buy some rudimentary ships from an American, so I had no income. Every day I save more and more so I have the capital to build ships like this. Of course, I have to save money because I have been a seaman for 17 years to have this iron ship. Narrator: Xuan's joy of having an iron-hulled ship after 18 years of savings did not last long. His ship was severely damaged by Hurricane Katrina. The support of the Vietnamese community itself has helped them overcome the difficult time. Phạm Văn Xuân: Spending about ten thousand but if I ask, relatives and brothers also help. The Vietnamese people, wherever they go, are industrious. The US has great respect for the hard work of the Vietnamese people. Narrator: A few months after Hurricane Katrina, green has gradually returned to the gardens of Vietnamese people in the US. Mr. Tuc was one of the first in the Vietnamese community to return to New Orleans just months after Hurricane Katrina engulfed the city. He and his wife worked hard every day and diligently rebuilding everything with their bare hands. Túc: This boat drifted away during Hurricane Katrina, I picked it up and brought it back to grow vegetables and harvest. Our Vietnamese people are very industrious that we can grow it to be as lush as it is today. Narrator: It has been many years since Hurricane Katrina devastated the United States. It was also through this storm that the resilience, indomitable will, and mutual support of the Vietnamese people became stronger than ever. Túc: Every time I come here to see the lush plants, I miss Vietnam a lot less.