Hope after the hurricanes: after hurricanes hit the South, state lawmakers rolled up their sleeves.

• Author: Wyatt, William

Representative Jim Simpson, Jr., committed a major faux pas when he took to the House floor during a special session of the Mississippi Legislature in late September. Representative Simpson was in clear violation of the House's coat and tie dress code.

"The fact is, I don't own a suit and I don't own a coat and I don't own a tie and I don't own a home," Simpson said as he apologized to his colleagues on the floor of the House chamber. "I am no different than 90 percent of my constituents and my neighbors."

Simpson is one of millions of Gulf Coast residents who were affected by Hurricane Katrina in September. Simpson was, however, not bitter or morose. In fact, he had risen to thank all those who had come to the aid of his constituents in the aftermath of the most destructive natural disaster in U.S. history.

In a scene that had played out more than 36 years before, Representative Simpson read the same speech that his father, Representative Jim Simpson, St., had delivered on Aug. 27, 1969, in the wake of Hurricane Camille.

The elder Simpson referred to a new light on the Mississippi Gulf Coast after Camille. "This light comes from the north, the east and the west and every point in this great state and generous nation," the younger Simpson read. "This light is called hope."

For many in Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi, hope is all that is left. Hurricane Katrina devastated homes, businesses and communities. Katrina packed sustained winds of 140 m.p.h, and an accompanying storm surge of 20 feet to 30 feet. Hurricane Camille in 1969 was more intense. It made landfall on the Mississippi Gulf Coast with 190 m.p.h, sustained winds. But Katrina's effects were felt across a wider swath. Wind gusts in New Orleans exceeded 100 m.p.h., 90 m.p.h. in Biloxi and 80 m.p.h, in Mobile, Ala.

Initially, it appeared that New Orleans had weathered the storm with relatively little damage. But the water in Lake Pontchartrain continued to rise in the hours following the storm. Several breaches occurred in the intricate system of levies surrounding New Orleans and 80 percent of the city was soon under some 20 feet of water.

Representative Emile "Peppi" Bruneau represents Louisiana's 94th legislative district near the 17th Street Canal where 75 percent to 85 percent of homes are uninhabitable. Bruneau, who has moved his legislative office to Baton Rouge, has spent 10 to 12 hours a day on the phone helping constituents since the hurricane.

"People want some answers...