SULPHUR, LA – This week marks the 10th anniversary of Hurricane Rita – a storm that was the fourth-most intense Atlantic hurricane ever recorded but is often referred to as “the forgotten storm” in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
To shed light on the untold stories of Hurricane Rita, CITGO will hold a special media and invitation only screening of a Hurricane Rita documentary called “In the Eye of the Forgotten Storm,” and a book launch, for a book under the same title, that tells of Lake Charles’ first responders’ efforts to rebuild their community in the aftermath of the storm.
The preview will be held at the CITGO Lake Charles Refinery, 4401 Highway 108, in Sulphur, LA, on Thursday, September 24, 2015, from 11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m., exactly 10 years after Hurricane Rita struck the area.
“In the Eye of the Forgotten Storm” features interviews from current and retired CITGO employees and community officials who witnessed Hurricane Rita’s devastation firsthand and worked tirelessly to revive Calcasieu and Cameron Parishes following the storm. Inspired by the resiliency demonstrated throughout the Gulf after Hurricanes Rita and Katrina, CITGO started its Caring for Our Coast initiative last year to commemorate these storms and boost coastal restoration and wetlands conservation via volunteer efforts and education opportunities.
This is one of several events CITGO is leading in commemoration of Hurricane Rita’s anniversary and as part of the company’s Caring for Our Coast environmental restoration and education campaign.
On Saturday, September 26, from 7:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m., on Constance Beach, 290 Richard Lane, in Cameron, the company, in partnership with the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana, will also lead the largest ever one-day volunteer restoration project in Louisiana – a dune restoration event on the Cameron Parish coast.
The volunteer event will commemorate the 10th anniversary of Hurricane Rita during National Estuaries Week.
Participants will plant a 5-mile stretch of Cameron Parish coastline with 60,000 plugs of dune grass. The goals of the project is to increase soil retention along the beach, promote dune growth, provide critical habitat for nesting birds and enhance protection to Highway 82 and the coastal communities of Cameron Parish.
Throughout the years, storms along the Gulf Coast have contributed to significant coastal change, reflected in the many disappearing beaches, dunes and wetlands. This partnership is one of several environmentally focused projects that CITGO has hosted as part of its Caring for Our Coast program. Since the program’s inception last year, CITGO has contributed millions of dollars to support these environmental initiatives, led more than 1,200 volunteers in restoring 81 acres of coastline and wetlands; planted more than 70,000 trees, bushes and grass plugs to help guard against coastal erosion; and removed more than 230 pounds of trash.
