RedRover® Remembers 20th Anniversary of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita and How it Changed the Future of Animal Disaster Response

As the 20th Anniversary of Hurricane Katrina approaches on August 29, 2025, RedRover, a national animal welfare nonprofit, reflects on animal disaster response and how it has evolved.

Hurricane Katrina’s devastation was unprecedented. Not only were human lives lost, but, tragically, an estimated 50,000 to 70,000 pets were killed, and hundreds of thousands were left behind during evacuations and displaced. It is also estimated 44% of the people who refused to evacuate did so because they could not evacuate with their animals.

RedRover, then known as United Animal Nations (UAN), deployed 400 volunteers and 15 veterinarians for three months in the wake of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita to help care for 2,100 animals rescued in six locations across Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas. In addition to volunteering, donations enabled RedRover to purchase needed supplies, equipment, medicine, and support animal agencies decimated by the storm.

At the time $255,000 in hurricane grant relief funds were disbursed to bring additional help to animal victims and the people who loved them. Hurricane Katrina’s destruction and massive loss of life changed the landscape of animal disaster response forever. To improve readiness in the aftermath, animal rescue and animal welfare organizations came together to create the National Animal Rescue and Sheltering Coalition (NARSC), of which RedRover is a founding member. The Coalition was founded to prevent tragedies of this scale and protect animals in harm’s way. It seeks to identify, prioritize, and find collaborative solutions to major human-animal emergency issues. The creation of NARSC has led to collaboration between agencies that used to operate independently, and the coordination of resources to better help communities, especially during widespread disasters.

RedRover Director of Field Services Beth Gammie said, “Hurricane Katrina’s catastrophic impact made it clear that human and pet safety are inseparable during disasters. Seeing pets included in disaster preparedness plans, and the collaborative effort between organizations to ensure evacuations that protect all family members is real progress.”

Twenty years later the Coalition is still strong and continues to work closely together when large-scale natural disasters strike. Member agencies have cooperatively responded nationally and internationally to wildfires, floods, ice storms, tornadoes, hurricanes and other natural disasters; as well as human-caused animal disasters including hoarding situations.

Since 1987, RedRover has responded to 296 natural disasters and other crises across the nation including Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, Harvey, the Camp Fire, Superstorm Sandy, the Northridge Earthquake, and many more. 

About RedRover

RedRover is a 501(c)(3) animal welfare nonprofit based in Sacramento, California, serving the United States and Canada. Since 1987, RedRover has focused on bringing animals out of crisis and strengthening the human-animal bond through emergency sheltering, disaster relief services, financial assistance, and humane education. RedRover has earned a coveted 4-star rating from Charity Navigator, America’s largest independent charity evaluator. To learn how RedRover is creating a more compassionate world, visit RedRover.org.