In the chaotic aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in August 2005, while floodwaters surged and communications failed, a different kind of rescue operation began online. Not by emergency responders - but by coders, designers, and open-source advocates from around the globe.
With no Facebook, Twitter, or even any centralized crisis platforms at the time, these volunteers came together to build what became perhaps the first comprehensive online disaster relief platforms, using the newly released Joomla! content management system. It began as the Katrina Evacuee Help Center—and within days became DisasterSearch.org.
A Call for Help—Posted on a Forum
The project began with a single plea posted on the Joomla Community Forum on September 1, 2005. Pastor Jay Dearman, from Mississippi, who ran www.churchofthe.net, had seen desperate messages scattered across the web from Katrina evacuees trying to reconnect with loved ones. His post read:
“There are people posting desperate messages for help in different places all over the Internet... We need a centralized registry and we need it fast.”
The Joomla community heard the call. Within hours, Peter Koch of Switzerland (facileforms.biz) led the formation of an international consortium of developers and designers to answer it. Using Joomla 1.0, which had only been released days earlier, they worked around the clock.
By September 6—just five days later—the site was live.
Built in 5 Days, Powered by Passion and Joomla
In its first 24 hours of development—even before it officially launched—over 500 people visited the unfinished site, and 12 families were already reunited.
The team worked up to 20 hours per day, unpaid, some taking personal leave from their day jobs. As Koch explained:
"We’ve been working around the clock... Even before the website was finished, families were reuniting as a result of what we were able to do."
A Digital Relief Hub—Years Ahead of Its Time
While many early Katrina-related websites were simple lists or message boards, DisasterSearch.org was a comprehensive digital relief center. Here's what set it apart:
- Centralized Missing Persons Database: Merged name lists from MSNBC, CNN, and others into one searchable source.
- Private Medical Records System: Secure portal for triage doctors to store and access emergency patient information.
- Shelter Directory: Let evacuees find shelters and allowed shelters to post available space and request aid.
- Volunteer Matching: Matched people with specific skills to urgent needs.
- Downloadable Aid Forms: Provided quick access to government assistance paperwork.
- Communication Forums: Enabled families to exchange updates and stay in touch.
- Morgue Listings: Helped families locate lost loved ones, in tragic cases.
- Web and Mobile Integration: Offered WAP access and RSS feeds—cutting-edge for 2005.
Growing Needs: From Katrina to Rita and Beyond
As Hurricane Rita followed Katrina in the 2005 Atlantic season, many displaced people were forced to evacuate again. DisasterSearch adapted quickly, extending its mission beyond one disaster. As Lynne Pope, a city councilwoman and web designer from New Zealand, put it:
"It became clear with Rita that the 2005 hurricane season was not going to leave us alone."
The site was officially renamed from Katrina Evacuee Help Center to DisasterSearch.org and began preparing for broader use.
In just two months:
- Over 750,000 people were registered as either safe or missing.
- Nearly 497,000 people were still registered as unaccounted for.
- The site received an average of 95,000 visits per day, with Spanish-language usage growing rapidly.
Ezequiel Amaya of Florida led a team of volunteer Spanish translators, ensuring all content was accessible in both English and Spanish—the only site of its kind to do so.
As John Long of Delaware said:
"Amongst the 496,000+ people still registered, there are probably many who are safe yet don’t know that others are desperately worried about them."
A Platform That Grew With Its Purpose
While the site began as the Katrina Evacuee Help Center, it soon evolved into DisasterSearch.org, with a broader mission: to serve any future disaster. The name may have changed, but the core idea stayed the same—“people helping people.”
It was also a precursor to today’s digital relief platforms like Facebook Crisis Response, which now lets users check in safely, offer help, or donate. In 2005, those features didn’t exist—so Joomla's community built their own solution from scratch.
Katrina’s Broader Legacy: Global Disaster Risk Reform
Years later, the United Nations acknowledged Katrina's impact on global disaster planning. Margareta Wahlström, head of the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, stated:
“Katrina’s true legacy is that it spurred disaster risk management around the world.”
The UN integrated many of Katrina’s lessons into the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (2015–2030), including:
- Greater focus on vulnerable populations like the elderly and disabled, who represented nearly half of Katrina’s fatalities.
- Community-driven solutions and real-time information sharing.
- Building back better with stronger, more resilient infrastructure and governance.
Conclusion: From Forum Post to Life-Changing Platform
What began as a forum post from a small-town pastor turned into a global humanitarian tech project—powered by open source and compassion.
In just five days, the Joomla community created a working disaster platform that:
- Reunited families
- Gave doctors access to emergency tools
- Connected shelters and volunteers
- Inspired future digital crisis platforms
And it did all that before Facebook or Twitter even went mainstream.
It remains one of the most powerful examples of what open-source communities can achieve in a time of need.
Original Forum Request (Sept 1, 2005):
https://forum.joomla.org/viewtopic.php?t=3045
Archived Site (DisasterSearch.org):
https://web.archive.org/web/20071014064040/http://disastersearch.org/