There's no doubt that Hurricane Katrina was one of the most devastating weather events to hit the United States-costing lives, property, and prosperity. In "Catastrophic Gumbo, " author Alvin JacQues provides a firsthand look at the facts, drama, details, and aftermath of this powerful storm. A survivor of Hurricane Katrina, JacQues considers himself lucky to be alive, and he credits his strong faith in God for both his survival and the opportunity to tell his story. In this memoir, he examines the enormous devastation and causalities and tells a heroic tale of survival. "Catastrophic Gumbo" includes more than thirty stories that describe what really happened during this natural disaster-including his rescue by the Coast Guard, his experience of six days of chaos at the Superdome, the drowning of his mother, the ever-present death and destruction that he witnessed, and the corruption of the New Orleans Police Department. A compelling account, "Catastrophic Gumbo" gives a behind-the-scenes and personal look at the before, during, and after of this tragedy that hit Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama in 2005.

From avalanches to volcanoes, and from the Gulf Oil Spill to bridge collapses, author Alvin JacQues explores the fascinating world of disasters-both manmade and natural. Inspired by his survival of Hurricane Katrina, chronicled in his first book "Catastrophic Gumbo, " JacQues delivers a compilation of facts and commentary on a number of global natural and manmade disasters, both historical and more recent, that have impacted the human race. Gathered from more than sixty locations, JacQues details the mayhem caused by a range of events that include an F5 tornado in Oklahoma, a typhoon in China, a blizzard in the United States, the flood of 1889, the sinking of the Titanic, and the crash of Flight 111. A compelling collection of stories, "Catastrophic Companions" narrates the reality of extreme events and communicates not only the power of Mother Nature, but of the perseverance of the human race to endure these tragedies for which often there is no preparation.