What did General Honoré do during Hurricane Katrina? Revisiting heroic response to devastating storm amid the 20th anniversary

Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time, National Geographic Channel’s five-part docuseries, explores the devastation caused by the natural calamity and its aftermath. The documentary also explores the role Lt. General Honoré had during the search and rescue operations after the disaster hit New Orleans in August 2005.

The Gulf War veteran was the commander of the Joint Task Force Katrina. He led the joint operation of the U.S. Department of Defense and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Lt. General Honoré, a Louisiana native, oversaw the deployment of troops and the restoration of order.

Due to his hands-on approach in bringing in aid amidst the rescue efforts, the Joint Task Force Commander was dubbed “Category 5 General” by the Washington Post. Lt. General Honoré also became well-known for his catchphrase “Don’t Get Stuck on Stupid,” which he gave during a press briefing in 2005.

The now-retired lieutenant general famously told the reporters to move on and stop asking about the last storm. When a journalist asked him again, Lt. General Honoré told him:

“You’re Stuck on Stupid. I’m not gonna answer that question.”

Ray Nagin, then–NOLA Mayor, described him as a “John Wayne dude” when talking to the press (via The Guardian):

“I give the president credit on this, he sent one John Wayne dude down here that can get stuff done.”

In 2025, during an interview with WDSU Channel 6, Lt. General Russel Honoré responded to Nagin’s 2005 comments and said:

“Well, John Wayne was a **** actor, and he could shoot the scene over, and that wasn't the case there, and it stuck with a lot of people. [...] I'm honored to have served — and the biggest contribution personally was to clean up the message — I get far too much credit than I deserve, because the people who did the real work at the troops, and the first responders and the volunteers.”

Lt. General Honoré recalled Governor Blanco’s “shoot and kill” comments in Nat Geo’s recent Hurricane Katrina docuseries

National Geographic Channel’s five-part documentary series revisited the natural calamity that shook New Orleans in August 2005. The fourth episode of Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time examined the media's reporting of supposed anarchy in the city of New Orleans in the aftermath of the disaster.

At the time, the then–Governor of New Orleans, Kathleen Blanco, commented on the news reports that exaggerated lawlessness. She addressed the “hoodlums” in a press conference and claimed that over 300 Arkansas National Guard troops had deployed in NOLA. Blanco warned (via Australian Broadcasting Corporation):

“These troops are fresh back from Iraq, well trained, experienced, battle-tested and under my orders to restore order in the streets. They have M-16s and they are locked and loaded. These troops know how to shoot and kill and they are more than willing to do so if necessary and I expect they will.”

In the fourth episode of Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time, titled “Shoot to Kill,” Lt. General Honoré claimed that the city “did not have a crime problem” at the time. He explained in the documentary series that the city was struggling with issues related to evacuation, command and control, logistics, and transportation.

The lieutenant general recalled Gov. Blanco’s September 2005 comments:

“Governer Blanco talked to some of her guys in the National Guard. And she went out and did a press conference and said… [an archival footage of Gov. Blanco plays].”

He recounted his conversation with the NOLA Governor:

“I said, ‘Governor, you don’t want to tell your troops to shoot people to kill. That’s your people.’”

Lt. General Honoré emphasized how the “shoot to kill” order might have had a much more adverse effect. He added:

“I didn’t want to be any part of an operation where troops thought they had carte blanche to shoot people. [...] Our job was to protect people and evacuate them. That was the priority. Not protect some store or protect property.”

In the archival footage, Lt. Gen. Honoré asked troops to lower their guns. The army veteran highlighted in the interview that no one was shooting at them and shared how he was concerned for the safety of civilians. Elsewhere during the episode, Lt. General Russel Honoré revealed that the report of people sniping at rescuers’ helicopters was also misleading.

Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time also featured the witness accounts of many others. The docuseries, executive produced by Ryan Coogler, aired on National Geographic Channel on July 27 and 28, and is also available to stream on Hulu and Disney+.