State Marks 20th Anniversary of Hurricane Katrina

Rodney Hall serves as emcee for state observance ceremony in Gulfport

Photo: From left, Lt. Col. Rodney Hall, National Guard Capt. Kaylin Smith of Horn Lake, Gov. Tate Reeves and First Lady Elee Reeves at the ceremony in Gulfport Friday morning. Smith was in charge of site security for the ceremony. (Courtesy photo)

GULFPORT, Miss. — Mississippi paused Friday morning to honor the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, as Gov. Tate Reeves led a solemn ceremony at Jones Park in Gulfport.

At 8:29 a.m., Mississippians across the state observed a minute of silence, remembering the 238 lives lost in Mississippi and the thousands displaced when Katrina made landfall on Aug. 29, 2005. A flyover by the 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron — the Hurricane Hunters — followed, symbolizing the storm’s path across the Gulf Coast.

Ceremony of Honor

Serving as master of ceremonies was Lt. Col. Rodney Hall, a Mississippi National Guard officer and state representative from Southaven.

Hall highlighted Mississippi’s ongoing readiness efforts, noting his involvement in a joint airborne parachute exercise executed on Thursday. The exercise brought together agencies to test interoperability in disaster response.

“The airborne parachute jump was a joint exercise between the Navy, Coast Guard, National Guard and other agencies bolstering interoperability to respond quickly during times of natural disasters,” Hall said.

Photos courtesy LTC Rodney Hall

Gov. Reeves declared the date Hurricane Katrina Remembrance Day, saying the storm remains “a reminder that nature is an awesome force and that all life is precious and fragile.” Former Gov. Haley Barbour, who led Mississippi’s recovery two decades ago, reflected on how volunteerism and resilience defined the state’s response. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, Gulfport Mayor Hugh Keating, and Major General Bobby Ginn of the Mississippi National Guard also delivered remarks.

DeSoto County’s Response

While much of the devastation centered on the Gulf Coast, communities across Mississippi, including DeSoto County, mobilized to help. In the storm’s aftermath, volunteers and churches in North Mississippi rallied to provide food, supplies, and shelter to evacuees who had fled from the coast.

One example of that grassroots effort, for instance, was HeartLand Hands Food Pantry, now based in Horn Lake, which became one of the region’s key distribution hubs for meals and relief supplies in the weeks and months following the disaster. Nearly 20 years later, HeartLand Hands continues to serve families in need across DeSoto County, a lasting legacy of the generosity sparked by Katrina’s aftermath.

Reflection and Resilience

As Reeves and First Lady Elee Reeves laid a wreath at the shoreline, accompanied by “Amazing Grace” and “Taps,” the governor reminded the crowd that Mississippi’s greatest strength has always been its people.

“Twenty years later, we honor those we lost, the courage of our first responders, and the unbreakable spirit of our communities,” Reeves said. “Katrina tested us, but it did not defeat us.”