A Katrina Photographer Returns to New Orleans — Again and Again

Doomed Neighborhood
For several months, Tama followed the story of the B.W. Cooper apartments, which before the storm held about 1,000 families and was the city's largest housing project. When Tama started shooting there, the complex was 80% empty and destined to be torn down by decree of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

• Mario Tama's book: Coming Back, New Orleans Resurgent
• TIME: Katrina, Five Years Later