NEW ORLEANS-
Martha Brown stared at the field in the Louisiana Superdome, tears streaming down her face, her sister’s arm around her shoulders.
“Tonight wipes out a lot of hurt,” she said.
Like so many others in the newly renovated stadium Monday night, Brown hoped to erase some of the bitter memories that the Superdome had come to symbolize–the images of misery and suffering of a city plundered by a devastating storm.
“My mother and father, my sister, her husband, my nieces and nephews were all brought here after their house flooded,” Brown said. “I was in Atlanta seeing it on television. I thought they should tear this place down, but I’m so glad they didn’t.”
More than 68,000 jammed the Superdome to celebrate its rebirth and continued the revelry long after the New Orleans Saints wrapped up a 23-3 victory over the Atlanta Falcons. Saints owner Tom Benson danced on the stadium’s sidelines, capping a festive day rarely seen since Hurricane Katrina flooded the city more than a year ago.
By midnight, Bourbon Street was awash in Saints jerseys, T-shirts and the team colors of black and gold.
“What a day,” said Michael Fox, joining the party inside the Old Opera House bar before returning to his tiny government-issued trailer. “I had forgotten what fun felt like.”
Saints fans had not only suffered through a year of recovery, but also through a football season of seeing their team play its home games in Baton Rouge, San Antonio, and at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. They were ready for some hometown football.
“Everything has been life or death, totally serious,” said Alfred Robair Jr., who was unable to return to the city until late October. “This feels really good. It’s nice to be emotional about something else.”
The Saints and the Falcons were both undefeated at 2-0 going into the game. The victory left the Saints–who finished last season 3-13–in first place in the NFC South.
The $185 million restoration project left the Superdome in better shape than before the storm. New scoreboards flashed graphics, messages and pictures. A fresh field covered the playing surface. And everyone, from the people cleaning up to the security officers, seemed really pleased about the return.
“I never thought they’d be able to bring the building back,” said Donald Griffin, 47, a postal service worker. “But it’s truly beautiful.”
The crowd chanted, cheered, and waved white handkerchiefs. Most stayed long after the final seconds ticked off the clock, wanting to prolong their enjoyment. Fans were good-natured and orderly, Superdome spokesman Bill Curl said.
“We needed this, said Lionel Hotard, 53, who said he was still running from Katrina this time last year. “We needed something to cheer about and this is it. This puts life back in the city and boy do we need it.”
The Saints had last played in the Superdome in a 2005 preseason game a few days before Katrina.
After the storm, the Saints became the NFL’s traveling show, establishing a base in San Antonio amid speculation that owner Tom Benson might not bring them back to New Orleans.
Even now, a high-rise hotel, an office tower and an upscale shopping center stand empty just a few hundred feet from the stadium, with white boards covering blown-out windows. A few miles away, entire neighborhoods are wastelands of decaying houses.
Amid the desolation, some residents could not bring themselves to celebrate the team’s return.
Irma Warner, 71, and her husband Pascal, 80, live in a suburban apartment while working six days a week to restore a home flooded by seven feet of water in New Orleans’ Lakeview neighborhood.
“We rode around through the Ninth Ward yesterday,” Irma Warner said. “When I saw that, I thought, how can they spend $185 million on the Superdome. What about all these poor people?”
Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
