Gulf Coast fishermen hurt by storms

NEW ORLEANS, Sept. 30 (UPI) -- Recovery from hurricanes Katrina and Rita was not complete when two more major storms disrupted the Louisiana fishing industry this year, fishermen said.

Many U.S. Gulf Coast fishermen were still waiting for federal loans to address losses from 2005 when Hurricanes Gustav and Ike tore up docks, and damaged processing plants and other infrastructure, Rex Caffey, director of Louisiana State University's Center for Natural Resource Economics and Policy told USA Today.

Katrina and Rita in 2005 caused an estimated $582 million in damage to the fishing industry, but much of the $175 million in federal funds earmarked for the industry went to habitat restoration, rather than individual fisherman, the newspaper reported Tuesday.

"A lot of the stuff we did after Katrina to get people back up is gone," said Pete Gerica, a shrimp fisherman who works Lake Pontchartrain and Lake Borgne.

U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez has declared the Gulf of Mexico a fishery resource disaster area, freeing up federal funds for Louisiana and Texas.

The declaration also makes fisherman eligible for Small Business Administration loans.

But, fishermen, like many others, are also still fixing their damaged homes.

"Everyone's spending money repairing with no income coming in," fisherman Billy Foret said.