"Initially, we had supplies; we had drugs. . . .The pharmacy wholesaler had been contacted. The Food Services Director and staff had gone ahead and secured the anticipated supplies as previously discussed. By Wednesday, we began rationing food and water. Our maintenance and engineering staff under the leadership of Karl Warner, along with some volunteers, ventured in chest-deep water through the water moccasin populated lobby and parking lots to the medical office building across from the hospital (Medical Center of East New Orleans). With the help of a pass key, they entered every doctor’s office and brought back all the five gallon bottles of water that they could find. The rationing and evacuation continued through Friday. Some of us in the administrative team were told that we would not leave until Saturday, but I was confident that, with the majority of the 760 people evacuated by mid morning on Friday, we would have enough supplies to sustain us an additional day. Had the evacuation not been completed by Friday, we would have had an even greater challenge."

Dr. Barrocas provided this description of the damage to Methodist Hospital and their patients:

"We had wind damage affecting the roof and windows. We had 4½ feet of water in the lobby and surrounding areas. Around 7:00 a.m., windows began imploding. We lost 12 patients. All the patients received the best possible care under the circumstances with a dedicated team of hospital, medical staff, and volunteers. The consensus of several of my colleagues was that, if we had received the necessary supplies, we could have salvaged half of the patients who died during the five days. The other six unfortunately would have died regardless of Katrina due to their severe illnesses. Some frail patients were evacuated to areas unknown to us, and we were concerned as to whether the receiving site had adequate medical personnel."