Five Days at Memorial Episode 4: Recap & Ending Explained

Five Days at Memorial Episode 4, Recap & Ending Explained: While Hurricane Katrina got over within a day or so, the aftereffects created a terrible situation for those stuck in New Orleans. With so many lives at stake, the local Memorial hospital goes through turmoil, trying to save everyone they can. Five Days at Memorial chronicles these events with a mix of documentary footage and dramatization. Episode 4 shows the events from day 4 of the hurricane, where the patients and the staff are trying to reconcile with the horrifying situation these people were stuck in, besides losing hope in the institutions that were supposed to help them.

Five Days at Memorial Episode 4 Recap

Episode 4 is mainly about desperation. It begins with real-life footage of people trying to find any possible way to survive. The news broadcasters mention the government’s failure at different levels in managing this crisis and helping people out. It also states their utter disregard for helping the poorest and most vulnerable. Then we see Dr. Wynn (Adepero Oduye) being questioned by investigators about what happened at Memorial hospital. She states the situation from Day 4 when water settled as they hoped but still caused an issue for them. Also, the hospital equipment stopped working, which is why they couldn’t help the patients either.

Dr. Wynn mentions how the lack of any communication from the authorities made not just handling but understanding the situation impossible. She is asked about the 45 dead bodies and her part as the head of the hospital’s ethics committee, where she shares how their focus was providing the best to the patients with what they had. Meanwhile, at the hospital, Dr. Wynn instructs the hospital staff to take the bodies to the helipad by holding them one by one over a mattress since the lifts had stopped working.

On the helipad, Richard (Ted Atherton), one of the higher-ups from the hospital, is looking for any sign of helicopters. Dr. Pou (Vera Farmiga) is seen with Dr. Horace (Robert Pine) about a patient who needed urgent help with the pain. She goes to bring medication and is still required to fill up the documents for morphine as a part of following the protocol. With every next battle she has to face, she seems increasingly anxious. Dr. Horace notices the same and mentions how she needs to take a rest, probably go to her car, turn on the AC, and listen to some music for a few moments of relief. But dedicated Anna does not wish to indulge in it.

Diane Robichaux (Julie Ann Emery) meets Susan Mulderick (Cherry Jones) to know when the patients from her hospital will be helped and rescued. While Susan gives the best response she can give at the moment, that doesn’t satisfy Diane, who gets frustrated and assumes it to be plain ignorance. After her emotional outburst, Susan calmly mentions that the Memorial hospital is doing its best to get the authorities’ help. But since the trucks or even helicopters are not coming to save them as they expected, she is not in the position to answer anything more herself. There is a discussion between the higher-ups about who needs to be saved, and the power dynamic comes into play again while sharing their individual desperation to escape.

Next, we see some of the black staff listening to a recording that states how the authorities are treating them like dogs and not helping them out the way they should. One of these people is Dr. Bryant King (Cornelius Smith Jr.), who seems shaken. On the helipad, Richard shouts at the people how they must evacuate over 200 people. One of the nurses pulls him back and informs him how the amount of people he has brought on the top is dangerous. But in his douchey approach, he tries to assert his authority over the hospital. The nurse mentions that she has more authority in handling such a situation since she was in the air force – which shuts him up. The unnecessary hospital staff is then told to get down from the helipad.

While some outsiders come to the hospital asking for help, one of the security guards threatens to shoot them if they don’t leave. When Dr. Bryant questions the security guard about it, he mentions how he is doing what he has been told. Meanwhile, President Bush is seen traveling over New Orleans but does not come down to share a word with them. It angers the hospital staff as it should, and the series symbolically convey their frustration. Since all three characters in this situation are black, it appears to be the writers‘ attempt to bring the racial angle into the narrative by showing how clueless everyone was during the hurricane.

During the night, several mishaps occur due to exhaustion, making Susan stop the evacuation efforts for the night. At the same time, this does not go well with some staff since they also want to escape as soon as possible. Suddenly at night, they are told to come downstairs. Since they don’t get clear answers about how they will escape, Anna decides to find out what is happening by herself. She starts walking through the hospital, where a guard asks her to return, which is also when she hears some gunshots.

Five Days at Memorial Episode 4 Ending Explained

Mark (JD Evermore) gets a call from Jill, his mother’s nurse, who mentions the terrible situation the patients are in and the absolute devastation of the hospital, making it more and more difficult for everyone to survive. She urges him to help them escape, and he shares the same information with the helpers on the other side. Sadly, the helpers mention how the Memorial hospital is their second priority and refuse to help. While they don’t get help this way, two locals decide to help him with their boat after the sun comes out.

The higher-ups are trying to latch on to every opportunity to help themselves escape, which they can’t ethically do until they help the patients. So, to stop any further intake, they start gearing up with guns, which appears to be just the beginning of something terrible about to happen. In the end, Dr. Pou goes to her car as Dr. Horace suggested, turning on the AC and then the radio. She goes through the different stations to hear the news of their devastating situation. She keeps changing the station until she reaches one where she can listen to some soulful music and finally relaxes for a bit.

<< Previous Episode

FIVE DAYS AT MEMORIAL EPISODE 4 LINKS – IMDB, WIKIPEDIA

CAST – VERA FARMIGA, CHERRY JONES, CORNELIUS SMITH JR., ROBERT PINE, JULIE ANN EMERY, ADEPERO ODUYE

Where to watch Five Days at Memorial