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Tyrann Mathieu opens up about being a Katrina refugee in Houston

New Houston Texans safety Tyrann Mathieu knows his new city firsthand. He and his family fled to the Houston area after being forced from their Louisiana home by Hurricane Katrina when he was young.
Credit: Mark J. Rebilas
Dec 10, 2017; Glendale, AZ, USA; Arizona Cardinals safety Tyrann Mathieu (32) against the Tennessee Titans at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

New Houston Texans safety Tyrann Mathieu knows his new city firsthand. He and his family fled to the Houston area after being forced from their Louisiana home by Hurricane Katrina when he was young.

Mathieu faced a few questions about his Katrina experience during his introductory press conference in Houston.

“My family, we actually went to a shelter outside of Alexandria (La.),” Mathieu responded, “and then from there, we moved right outside of Houston, in Humble, Texas, and we enrolled in school there. We stayed there for about three months until the schools opened back up in Louisiana, then we went back home. Humble was definitely a residence of mine.”

When asked further about the experience, the Texans new No. 32 opened up more,

“It was tough. Obviously, I was a kid at the time and I didn’t really understand the responsibilities that my parents or my aunts or my uncles were facing, but it was a great challenge for us. Not only my family, but for the entire City of New Orleans. I’m sure the people of Houston can attest to the floods and hurricanes and whatnot. Just me being here, obviously I’m going to do my part to try to help this community out. Like I said, I want to do well on the field, but most importantly, I want to do better off the field.”

Welcome back to Houston, Tyrann. Hopefully this time around you can stay a little longer…

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