Hardin, Missouri Collapse

“There are natural hazards, but disasters are the result of human actions that put people and property in harm’s way” (Cigler 2007: 64). Throughout history New Orleans has been continuously altered by the presence of humans through the creation of levees and canals, the introduction of artificial irrigation systems, and through human induced processes that have ultimately accelerated the process of land degradation and erosion. While a natural hazard struck New Orleans in 2005, the disaster portion resulting from Hurricane Katrina was a result of human induced interactions throughout the history of New Orleans.

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

As I was reading as The Great Molasses Flood of 1919, I was shocked!The closest relation that I could possibly think of that I have seen is the rainfall flood of 2008 in Saline County, Illinois. I remember going outside and wading in water, it was almost impossible to drive and buildings were flooded majorly. “Excess of 12 inches above normal.” (Flood of 2008) When I walked outside, I could not believe my eyes! I didn’t even think it was possible for Carrier Mills to get as much rain as it had

On August 12, the Americans of Louisiana woke up with water in their houses. A week passed, and now thousands evacuated the flooded regions around Baton Rouge. 40,000 homes were ravaged, and several were found deceased. People were stranded on highways and rooftops, trapped in deep waters infested with rodents and snakes, and floating through the destruction onto mattresses. The state has been declared a disaster area. However, national media seems entirely uninterested with this flooding - after all, it was not the first time Lousiana had to endure through a natural disaster. A multitude of critics advocated for the abandonment of Louisiana. Because Louisiana is prone to natural occurrences due to its location, critics believe that it is wholly pointless to rebuild a state that is always sinking. However, the abandonment of Louisiana would result in the movement of all the

On August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast at daybreak, “pummeling a region that included the fabled city of New Orleans and heaping damage on neighboring Mississippi. In all, more than 1,700 people were killed and hundreds of thousands of others displaced.” (Laforet, New York Times)

The Johnstown flood of 1889 is often remembered as the worst disaster that was caused by dam failure in America’s history. Over 2000 lives were lost, and about 17 million dollars in property damage was done to the town of Johnstown. Many of the leading industrialists of the 19th century were members of the club that owned the South Fork dam in 1889, drawing in nationwide attention. The relief effort was one of the first huge non-wartime disasters for the American Red Cross. Once again in the years 1936 and 1977 similar flooding would occur, ravaging the town of Johnstown, wreaking havoc on the lives of civilians.

The effects of the Buffalo Creek were massive. Most of the homes were damaged and demolished. There was millions in property damage to be paid. Approximately 500 houses and 40 mobile homes were completely wiped away by the flood and about 950 houses and mobile homes were damaged. The whole area was like one big pool, the water washing the homes down shore. Property damage totaled to an estimate of $50 million. It was almost like one side of the houses of the creek were more safe, as the water rushed down stream it would wash away the houses on the right side of the creek as the creek curved to the left, it would then take the houses on the left side further down when the next curve was to the right. The cleaning up process of this disaster took a very long time, since there was so much debris from the homes and cars it made it a lot more tedious work. It can only be imagined how much this disaster effected the people of this community. Approximately 120 people died, among those were 3 babies, over 4,000 were to be homeless, and 7 people were to never be found. Not only did this flood affect people physically, but also mental, psychologically, and finically. Local schools had been opened up as a center for people with no homes, also people were put into mobile homes. What was not put into consideration was their former neighborhood. People that they have been living

“In the entire flooded region, 50 percent of all animals--half of all the mules, horses, cattle, hogs and chickens--had drowned. Thousands of tenant farmer shacks had simply disappeared.” Said exactly from John Barry, the writer of the book “Rising Tides,” or the book all about the Mississippi River Flood of 1927. This quote explains the whole concept of this flood. Everybody near the Mississippi River were affected, and became devastated in some way. That could be by losing a loved one, or by losing a home. This flood was the worst one in U.S. history. Death, destruction, and depression were served to everybody.

Katrina hit New Orleans, Louisiana on August 29th, 2005, but the failure of the government started before this day “by allowing building and growing in areas in low flood lands.” The government did not regulate these land areas that have always been at a threat for flooding and natural disaster, which was ignored by the government and public, and was in place, still a place for growing infrastructure. Failures included by the author of the national agencies include design limits that can lead to levees being overtopped by flood and hurricane events that are larger than they were designed for and design flaws and construction and maintenance shortcomings that lead to protective works being breached when they cannot stand up to the forces exerted by large flood and hurricane events. The author also points out the problems with the hundred-year flood event, which only has a one percent chance of happening every year. When the NFIP focuses on this possible catastrophe, it losses the

The New York Times article, “Left to Louisiana’s Tides, a Village Fights For Time,” discusses the plight of Jean Lafitte, a town of seven thousand people located two miles below the levee protecting New Orleans. A fourth of Louisiana’s wetlands have been lost, much of which is due to intense hurricanes from 2005 to 2008. It is estimated that a football field worth of wetland disappears every 100 minutes and that in 200 years the wetlands will be completely gone. This degradation is due to climate change and human intervention in the area in pursuit of oil and farmland and in the creation of levees. Oliver A. Houck, a Tulane professor quoted in the article, claims, “It is the largest ecological catastrophe in North America since the Dust Bowl.” The loss of the wetlands puts coastal, working-class communities, many of which have lived in the area since the 1800s, in danger of washing away. Local governments

Billions of years ago, an asteroid destroyed nearly the entirety of life on Earth, wiping out various species of dinosaurs, fish, and other animals. However, life managed to survive the apocalyptic setting and evolution bested natural disaster in the same struggle fought today. Every natural disaster tests human and environmental abilities to recuperate from damage and turn desolation into a thriving ecosystem, which requires a pointed effort on the part of humans. Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans in 2005, and recreated an environment that forced the instinct to flourish to battle with unpredictability once more, as the question of rebuilding the city became prominent. Though many oppose efforts to rehabilitate the regions devoted by the

In May of 2015, a slow moving storm producing record amounts of rainfall and tornados caused flash floods across Texas and Oklahoma causing mass destruction and many causalities. Flooding in Texas and Oklahoma does not happen often in most areas. Some areas have not seen rainfall totals like what was seen in May for more than 50 years. The flooding in May of 2015 was the most widespread and record breaking. In some areas houses were ripped from their foundations. In Wimberley, Texas, a family was still in the house as it washed away, killing a mother and her two children. Trees were uprooted as well as lakes, rivers and creeks overflowed their banks. Streets and interstates were shut down because of the flooding. A tornado, touching down

Katrina hit New Orleans, Louisiana on August 29th, 2005, but the failure of the local government started before this day “by allowing building and growing in areas in low flood lands.” The local government did not regulate these land areas that have always

The environmental issue at hand is fairly obvious - the entire area was completely destroyed by the floods - including homes and businesses. Adams (2013) describes the surrounding area of Gerald Davis’s home as having “no plants, lots of weeds, and no trees. It was a dirt yard” (93). Dirt, in this case, is symbolic to these people. Everything that was once life became covered in dirt - much like the way the people were smothered by the stress of recovery. It was near impossible to have hope for the future with such a scenic view. Even

Flooding hit Baton Roughe, the capital of the southern state of Louisiana from August 8th to 14th. Thirteen people were killed and about 100,000 homes were damaged. Thousands of people are homeless. Many are staying in shelters or the homes of friends or family. People built a sandbag wall around their house to drain the water in their