Note: This story accompanies the story titled "Maps as Art," by Monty Siekerman.
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By Jimmy Wilson
I was the lowest level employee in the mapping section of the Louisiana Department of Transportation. The manager in the geospatial section asked me Saturday if I would mind coming into the headquarters to monitor Hurricane Katrina as it came ashore in the Florida panhandle, which at the time us what everyone believed would happen.

I essentially lived in the LaDOTD headquarters for the next three weeks.

At first my efforts centered around pumping out first responder maps as fast as I could develop and print them. I didn't even watch the news as I was so busy.

And the requests were coming in at a fevered pitch from all kinds of organizations and agencies.

Everyone needed paper maps with basic roadway and location information.

Then efforts turned to damage assessment.

Much of what we were doing was new and, at that time, considered cutting edge in terms of technology and application.

It's so commonplace these days to use remotely sensed imagery to estimate flooded areas and damage.

Now, 10 years later, even the most ordinary person can do what we were doing, and do it better and easier.