Coast Guard Heroes of New Orleans, Captain Robert Mueller (ret.)

Mueller’s premise is that “With disaster scenarios of increasing interest and disaster preparedness of paramount importance, it’s time to take a deeper look at what went very right before, during, and after Hurricane Katrina.” The unprecedented surface rescue put into action under Capt. Mueller took place with little fanfare, and saved the lives of 25,000 people by boat and 8,500 by helicopter.

Capt. Robert G. Mueller, U.S. Coast Guard (ret.) led the surface rescue operations in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. He retired after 30 years in the service and is the vice president for compliance at Turn Services, a towboat and fleeting company. He is an adjunct professor at Tulane University teaching Homeland Security in the graduate program.