Causes Of Hurricane Katrina

Numerous different aspects were altered due to the ruckus of Hurricane Katrina. The first major aspect was housing and location. Katrina nearly demolished 300,000 homes. The ascending sea level along the coast resulting from onshore winds is a storm surge. With a twenty-two foot storm surge in New Orleans and a twenty-seven foot storm surge in Mississippi, Hurricane Katrina averaged a shocking twelve foot storm surge. As a storm surge’s footage increases, the surge will continue to move inland farther and farther. Hurricane Katrina’s storm surge is documented as moving inland a total of twelve miles into the state of Mississippi (FAQS, 2013). Hurricane Katrina impacted a total of seven states. Five of these states were Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana. Kentucky and Ohio were two more states affected but in a different way. Because of the tremendous amount of water, Kentucky and Ohio were victims of the Mississippi River flooding. Some states experienced more extreme destruction than others. Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana experienced Hurricane Katrina’s wrath firsthand. These three southern states were affected the worst by the massive storm (FAQS, 2013). Mississippi’s forest industry experienced a great amount of destruction losing 1.3 million acres of valuable forest land. The main cause of destruction in New Orleans was blamed on the failure of the levee system to stand its ground

In the late summer of 2005, a terrible tragedy occurred that changed the lives of many in the south-east region of the United States. A Category 3, named storm, named Hurricane Katrina, hit the Gulf Coast on the 29th of August and led to the death of 1,836 and millions of dollars’ worth of damage (Waple 2005). The majority of the damage occurred in New Orleans, Louisiana. Waple writes in her article that winds “gusted over 100 mph in New Orleans, just west of the eye” (Waple 2005). Not only was the majority of the damage due to the direct catastrophes of the storm but also city’s levees could no longer hold thus breaking and releasing great masses of water. Approximately, 80% of the city was submerged at sea level. Despite the vast amount

Hurricane Katrina began as tropical Depression twelve, which formed over the Bahamas on August 23, 2005. On August 24, the storm strengthened and became known as Tropical Storm Katrina, the 11th named storm of the 2005 hurricane season. A few hours before making landfall in Florida on August 25, Tropical storm Katrina was upgraded to Hurricane Katrina (Category1, 74mph winds). An analysis by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA’s) climate prediction center

The 1900 storm, like countless powerful Atlantic hurricanes, is thought to have begun as a Cape Verde type hurricane a tropical wave moving off the western coast of Africa. Specifics of the storm were not extensive; damage to telegraph lines restricted communication. The Weather Bureau's central office in Washington, D.C., ordered storm warnings raised from Pensacola, Florida, to Galveston. By the afternoon of September 7, large swells from the southeast were observed on the Gulf, and clouds at all elevations began moving in from the northeast. The first train to reach Galveston left Houston on the morning of September 8 at 9:45 a.m.

August 19, 2005 will always be one of the most devastating days in American history because of Hurricane Katrina and its effect on the south. Hurricane Katrina was a category 5 hurricane that struck New Orleans, Alabama, and Mississippi; its force hitting New Orleans and the Lower Ninth Ward the hardest. Levees previously built by U.S. Army Corps engineers were only strong enough to withstand a category 3 hurricane, which the government had knowledge of. These were in place to control flooding caused by nearby rivers such as the Mississippi and

Levees were implemented as the primary form of protection from the bodies of water surrounding the city. Moreover, officials recognized these structures were critical to protecting the city’s inhabitants given the city’s topography. However, a confluence of factors led to projects that were more immediately profitable being a top priority while simultaneously allowing the infrastructure critical to protecting the city deteriorate. Because of decisions to postpone upgrades and maintenance, the city’s chances of withstanding a hurricane of Katrina’s magnitude were decreased. Ultimately, the levee breaches caused the city’s destruction.

Hurricane Katrina hit the southeastern coast of the United States in August of 2005. The eye of the storm went through the city of New Orleans and caused thousands of casualties and more than eighty billion dollars in damage (Schwartz). However, poor engineering and design allowed the immense flooding to breach the levee system and flood most of the metropolitan area. Despite the Delta Service Corps admitting that they knew of the possible failures for over twenty years, they claimed that insufficient budgets set by Congress and local governments prohibited them from restructuring and preserving the levees (Can We Save New Orleans?). Katrina was the third most intense land falling tropical storm in United States history. The combination of

Hurricane Katrina was not New Orleans’ first time being hit with devastating effects from a hurricane. New Orleans has been struck by hurricanes six times over the past century. In 1915 was a category 4 hurricane, it killed 275 people and caused millions of dollars’ worth of damage. 1940, 1947, 1965, 1969 and again in 2005. The Mayor of New Orleans issued a first ever mandatory evacuation. With New Orleans being hit multiple times over the past decade surprised me that serious precautions weren’t taken previously, such as better levees or seawalls. Living in a place below sea level, one would think that the levees and seawalls would be stronger, but the levees collapsed below design height during the Katrina storm .

History will affirm that from the beginning of the settlement of New Orleans in 1717, it was then and continues to be a location destined to periodic flooding caused by the Mississippi river and rising storms. Throughout time, New Orleans would challenge nature by primarily fortifying the river’s natural levees to periodically engineering levees to combat issues of flooding, only to return to reinforcing or rebuilding according to damages inflicted as time progressed. Each attempt to fight nature from overwhelming New Orleans kept setting engineers back. Refusal to abandon the coastal areas became more costly over time; the intent to preserve the coast became more valuable than the value of life and property.

Hurricane Katrina hit the southern coast of the United States on August 28, 2005. The center of Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans on the morning of August 29, 2005. The devastating effect of this hurricane resulted in more than 1,800 citizens losing their lives, as well as more than an estimated $81 billion dollars in damages occurred. By August 31, 2005, eighty-percent of the city became submerged under water because the storm surge breached the city's levees at multiple points. If the levees are damaged massive water will flood Louisiana from the Gulf Coast, the Mississippi River, and other surrounding bodies of water. Some areas of New Orleans were 15 feet under water. Winds of Hurricane Katrina reached an astounding category 3 as

First, they were overtopped by waves of water stemming from the rain and high velocity winds (www.fofweb.com). Secondly, the levees breached or broke open and as a result, New Orleans filled up like a bowl as water from the canals and Lake Pontchartrain poured in. Consequently, the breached levees resulted in storm surges that measured to about 17 feet high. About 80% of the city was flooded during Katrina (www.nola.com). After hitting New Orleans, Katrina moved north and destroyed casinos in Mississippi. As many people predicted, the scenes from Hurricane Katrina and the Gulf Coast were horrifying and the nation watched in shock as these events unfolded. In order to rescue individuals, helicopters and boats rescued people that were trapped on roofs and treetops. Those that were stranded on treetops were forced to eat leaves because it was their only means of greenery. Many people were stranded on the overpasses of highways without water, food, or protection from the blazing sun as temperatures soared into the upper 90s and the humidity level remained above 100 percent. Homes were leveled in New Orleans and Mississippi to such an extent compared it to the scene of Hiroshima or Nagasaki. On Friday, September 2nd 2005 the National Guard arrived at the Superdome and Convention Center with food, water, and supplies. Refugees were dispersed throughout the United States to places such as Denver, Colorado. Interestingly, Katrina left as much

The levees are giant concrete walls covered by a layer of topsoil to ensure flood waters to not enter the general populous of a large establishment or city, the storm that tested this system was called Katrina. This was the storm that killed 1,836, and was able to harm anyone do to the failure of the levee system and the lack of preparation to the levee system and the sudden change of the storm’s category. The United states Geological survey scientists have walked on levee ruins in the aftermath of the hurricane. What they saw shocked all of New Orleans; There was a flaw towards the design and the Army Corps of engineers were discovered to be way behind schedule in the completion of the levee system in New Orleans. The flooding caused major damage to 80% of the great city. It is believed that The failure was expected, regardless. Not everyone believed the levees would break, thus there was controversy upon the topic. New Orleans’ sea level was considerably low and next to the Gulf of Mexico. To fix this they inserted them in every major canal and river, but this project was not completed before

While the city did not take a direct hit, New Orleans also felt the impact of Katrina as she came ashore. The wind and rain from the storm put enormous stress on the levees protecting the city. Unfortunately, the levees could not withstand the forces applied to them and they eventually gave way flooding large portions of the city of New Orleans and surrounding areas. Large public places began to become places of refuge for those still in the

On August 29, 2005, hurricane Katrina made landfall in Louisiana as a category three storm and brought with it some of the most catastrophic effects that any hurricane has ever left behind. Twenty foot surges of flood water washed into New Orleans after the levees broke, and ended up flooding over 80% of the city. It was now in the hands of the United States government to help the millions of displaced Americans find proper shelter, food, water, and services that were required for their recovery.

Hurricane Katrina pounded the Gulf Coast with tremendous force at daybreak, August 29, 2005, severely punishing regions that included the city of New Orleans and its neighboring state Mississippi. Resulting in a total of just over 1700 people killed, and hundreds of thousands missing. When we think of Hurricane Katrina stories, we think of stories that were published by the media such as, “Packing 145-mile-an-hour winds as it made landfall, the category 3 storm left more than a million people in three states without power and submerged highways even hundreds of miles from its center. The hurricane's storm surge a 29-foot wall of water pushed ashore when the hurricane struck the Gulf Coast was the highest ever measured in the United States.