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natasha.chen@wreg.com
Twitter - natashanews3
(Memphis 8/29/10) When Katrina hit New Orleans five years ago, Dr. Edward Lazarus was locked in the Touro Infirmary, helping patients survive while also planning an escape route.
"The most dramatic thing is how rapidly life can change," Lazarus said. "I mean, moving to Memphis, which has really been a blessing, was really not in my life plan."
Not in his life plan, because Lazarus is a third-generation New Orleanian who thought he would never leave. That is, until Aug. 29, 2005.
"We ultimately lost electricity, water, telecommunications in and out of the hospital, ultimately. The generators failed, by the second day, and there was one generator that was left. And that serviced the pharmacy area, and I became very good friends with the pharmacist," he said.
Those who were caught in the same building that week all share a special connection. Lazarus was able to reconnect with one of the babies who made it out safely.
"Fortunately, that baby is now five years old, and I just got to talk to him on his fifth birthday, so that was quite exciting."
13 newborns in the intensive care unit were air-lifted to other hospitals. With no electricity to power up digital health records or print birth certificates, Lazarus and his team had to scribble notes to pin to the babies' clothes for identification.
"I remember nurses leaning out of the window, trying to get a signal," he said. Lazarus hadn't figured out how to text at the time, but he could at one point manage to place a call to his wife, who had already come to Memphis where their daughter and grandchildren already lived.
"Trying to survive in a hospital that had lost everything, and was really just hot and sweaty walls, was just really, really traumatic and pretty bad. In fact, when I got up here, I told my wife after telling her how much I loved her, and glad to be here, I don't think I ever want to go back to that situation again."
Lazarus's New Orleans house was flooded, but not nearly as badly as others. He was able to save a couple of paintings, a clock, and perhaps most importantly, his model train set.
One section of the train table is a mini New Orleans, with a tarp on a house and FEMA trailer. Another section, not quite finished, is mini Memphis, with "the MED."
Lazarus visits New Orleans often, and he has faith in its resilience.
"I think New Orleans will come back. But for me, Memphis has been a good move," he said.
- Doctor tended to newborns at a hospital in New Orleans as hurricane struck
- He helped others escape while trying to survive himself.
- He's now very happy with his new life as a Memphian.
natasha.chen@wreg.com
Twitter - natashanews3
(Memphis 8/29/10) When Katrina hit New Orleans five years ago, Dr. Edward Lazarus was locked in the Touro Infirmary, helping patients survive while also planning an escape route.
"The most dramatic thing is how rapidly life can change," Lazarus said. "I mean, moving to Memphis, which has really been a blessing, was really not in my life plan."
Not in his life plan, because Lazarus is a third-generation New Orleanian who thought he would never leave. That is, until Aug. 29, 2005.
"We ultimately lost electricity, water, telecommunications in and out of the hospital, ultimately. The generators failed, by the second day, and there was one generator that was left. And that serviced the pharmacy area, and I became very good friends with the pharmacist," he said.
Those who were caught in the same building that week all share a special connection. Lazarus was able to reconnect with one of the babies who made it out safely.
"Fortunately, that baby is now five years old, and I just got to talk to him on his fifth birthday, so that was quite exciting."
13 newborns in the intensive care unit were air-lifted to other hospitals. With no electricity to power up digital health records or print birth certificates, Lazarus and his team had to scribble notes to pin to the babies' clothes for identification.
"I remember nurses leaning out of the window, trying to get a signal," he said. Lazarus hadn't figured out how to text at the time, but he could at one point manage to place a call to his wife, who had already come to Memphis where their daughter and grandchildren already lived.
"Trying to survive in a hospital that had lost everything, and was really just hot and sweaty walls, was just really, really traumatic and pretty bad. In fact, when I got up here, I told my wife after telling her how much I loved her, and glad to be here, I don't think I ever want to go back to that situation again."
Lazarus's New Orleans house was flooded, but not nearly as badly as others. He was able to save a couple of paintings, a clock, and perhaps most importantly, his model train set.
One section of the train table is a mini New Orleans, with a tarp on a house and FEMA trailer. Another section, not quite finished, is mini Memphis, with "the MED."
Lazarus visits New Orleans often, and he has faith in its resilience.
"I think New Orleans will come back. But for me, Memphis has been a good move," he said.
