Displaced New Orleans Residents in the Aftermath of Hurricane Katrina: Results from a Pilot Survey

The Displaced New Orleans Residents Pilot Study (DNORPS) provides preliminary information on post-Katrina New Orleanians in term of their whereabouts, well-being, and plans to settle in a new location or return to the city. This pilot study was based on a probability sample of pre-Katrina dwellings in New Orleans and was fielded in the fall of 2006, approximately one year after Hurricane Katrina. It was designed to form the basis for a larger, more extensive effort to track and interview displaced New Orleans residents in the coming years. In this paper, we describe the return to New Orleans of displaced residents. We begin by providing an overview of current data sources for studying the demographic effects of Hurricane Katrina and by describing the design and implementation of DNORPS, including the sampling plan, questionnaire, fieldwork operations, and fieldwork results.