When catastrophe strikes, agents who respond quickly to their stricken customers get a chance to look like heroes. But when it's the agency that's been hit, who can an agent look to for a hero?

In Louisiana, a good candidate is David Bulloch — better known as “Moose” — a territorial manager for Bankers Insurance.

Based in Covington, La., 40 miles north of New Orleans, Moose has relationships with 105 agents throughout Louisiana — from jumbo brokerages to mom-and-pop operations. Like all insurer reps, his typical day consists of talking to his agents about marketing, what the competitors are up to, and how to sell more coverage. But when a cat strikes, Moose's days are anything but typical.

Since Hurricane Gustav made landfall, almost all of Moose's time has been split between helping about 20 agents in hard-hit areas like Baton Rouge, Houma and Thibodeau. These agents have lost “their buildings, homes and roofs,” he said.

A typical day for Moose now involves stocking up his car with fuel for generators, food, water, office supplies, changes of clothes, or whatever else they might need. ”I just went to the grocery store and bought ham, cheese and bread, and I'm waiting on a shipment of wireless cards to give to agents who don't have power,” he said.

Of course, these agents have customers with problems of their own, and claims that need to be processed. Many areas still don't have power, so they're doing their jobs however they can, with generators, cell phones and laptops, putting in 15-hour days. Moose helps out by filing customer claims himself, if the agency is operating in survival mode.

Since he's been at this for more than 10 years, Moose has seen it all. Many of his agents were wiped out in Katrina. Other agents in the area who escaped heavy damage let the agent use their offices to contact clients, hook up a computer and do business. For this agent and others struck by Katrina, things didn't get back to normal for at least six months afterward.

And with Hurricane Ike and other storms still lurking in the wings, Moose knows he could still have a lot of non-typical work ahead of him. ”I never evacuate, just stay with friends and wait for the storm to pass through,” he said. “I have two suitcases packed — one with business clothes in case I have a meeting, the other with T-shirts and stuff that can get dirty.”

It's all a part of doing business in Louisiana.

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