Day two. The heat and humidity had not abated at all and we were up early in what was to become the pattern of long days, with early starts, late nights and little sleep. It was mainly all work. We spent the day in a helicopter surveying the Mississippi Delta region and extensive wetlands. Many attempts at booming were apparent, and many of the levees were closed by riprap. The main impression from this day is the enormity of the task at hand should oil get into this area. All of the areas we flew over were under the tidal...

Day one. It was an uneventful trip down to Louisiana, and my first time in New Orleans. The signs of Hurricane Katrina are still everywhere, from the new houses side by side with abandoned wrecks with holes in the roofs from people hacking their way to safer ground on top of their homes. It is hard to imagine that another blow of immense proportions is happening. Everyone on the team arrived on the Thursday and met at the Maison Dupuy in New Orleans for our first get-together that evening. It was rapidly apparent that Deb Parsons-Drake, Senior Director, HSUS Animal...

Departure June 9, 2010 What a nightmare! I have been watching the Gulf spill happen from a safe distance, horrified at the images shown in newspapers and TV, all from the comfort of my own home. That ends this Thursday. I have been asked by the Humane Society of the US (HSUS) to join a very special group to visit and offer insight and expert knowledge into the long term impacts this spill will have for the wildlife in this region. As a rehabber, I know the joy and heartbreak involved in caring for wildlife that has come off second...