Hurricane Ivan hit the North Atlantic Ocean in 2004. It killed more than 100 people, destroyed thousands of homes, and had a negative impact on the government at all levels. The Storm washed out 5 major regions including: The Caribbean, The Cayman Islands, Jamaica, Grenada, and much of the Eastern United States. From an economic standpoint, Hurricane Ivan is one of the costliest Hurricanes on the record ranking 4th behind Hurricane Katrina, Andrew and Ike. Ivan’s winds registered at more than 125 miles per hour, that spread 230 miles wide that measured the size of Texas. This Category 5 Hurricane caused a vast amount of damage to the Gulf Coast as well as the Atlantic Coast. It is estimated that Hurricane Ivan caused 18 billion dollars in damages. Introduction: On the 16th of September 2004, Hurricane Ivan, made landfall in Orange Beach, Alabama and registered as not only for the whole outcome of the storm, but precisely in Orange Beach, as category 5; ranking the hurricane one of the top seven dreadful storms throughout history. The storm affected the economy, in many ways. Both the federal and the local governments were strained by the fiscal responsibility to rebuild. The decline in tourism affected local businesses across the city, and the residency declined as some migrated into safer zones of the country. The storm traveled through the Caribbean, hitting the Cayman Island and Jamaica, before making its way through the Gulf of Mexico, and finally making landfall in Gulf Shores, Alabama. According to “Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale (HHSH), Ivan is classified as a category 5 Storm. The Cayman Islands were well prepared when comparing it to other countries hit by the storm. “Classical long lives Cape Verde Hurricane” i... ... middle of paper ... ...cal consequences for survivors of future catastrophes. Communities should have a well prepared plan in dealing with disasters such as Hurricane Ivan. Unfortunately, Hurricane Ivan was the culprit of major damage among many communities, and many lives were lost. Of course there are no fingers to point because it is a force of the earth that caused this tragedy, but every day we are learning of better methods to prepare us for any disaster. It seems like we hear of a major natural storm outbreak almost every month, but every time it seems like we are more prepared. Scientists and engineers have teamed up to ensure that our architecture and safety plans are the best they can be. We're also developing technology that can help us to detect these incidents faster and earlier than before, so we hope that these incidents can be reduced to a minimum in the future.
Nearly 45 years ago one of the most powerful and damaging weather phenomenon’s ever to be recorded slammed into the shores of the Gulf of Mexico, a storm that effected people far and wide. Camille formed on August 14th just west of the Cayman Islands and rapidly intensified overnight becoming a category 3 hurricane approaching the island of Cuba. The storm trekked north-northwestward across the Gulf and became a stage 5 hurricane and maintained its strength before making landfall on the Mississippi Coast on the eve of August 17th. The devastating aftermath in the weeks to follow induced by the winds, surges, and rainfall took the lives of 256 people, and caused an estimated damage of 1.421 billion dollars.
On August 24th, 1992 in the state of Florida, complete destruction was the end result of Hurricane Andrew. A Hurricane that began in the Atlantic ocean at 20mph. That is almost twice the strength that normal hurricanes begin at. The peak strength of Hurricane Andrew was so strong that devices were not able to measure the winds. An approximation of the force of the winds was said to be up to 200mph. Andrew destroyed about 28,000 homes, damaged 100,000 homes and left 250,000 people homeless along with 30 billion dollars in damage and almost 30 deaths. Hurricane Andrew did not end its devastation in Florida, soon it went to Louisiana causing more damage. (Fig.1)
On August 29th 2005, Hurricane Katrina, a category 3 storm, slammed into the Gulf Coast. In it’s wake, Katrina left a trail of destruction that killed over 1800 people and cost an estimated 108 billion dollars in damages, making it the most destructive natural disaster in US history. Right in the path of the most powerful part of the storm was the city of New Orleans. (Hurricane Katrina)
Leading up to this storm, many prominent scientists believed that the hurricane would never make landfall, or if it did hit, would not cause any major damage. Due to this foolhardy belief held by the scientists, many civilians did not have any time to evacuate their homes and barely escaped with their loved ones and whatever small valuables or keepsakes they could grab. Regretfully, many families had to leave everything they had behind. Hurricane Andrew also damaged the livelihood of many small shop owners or farms and caused long term problems as well. Due to the large flooding and high wind speeds, much of southern Florida was left in ruin and many years were spent trying to clean the rubble and restore buildings. Hurricane Andrew also destroyed many precious ecosystems on top of all of that.
The category 3 storm changed the lives of the residence who lived there forever. The storm in combination with the fault of the man-made flood protection walls (levee’s) resulted in the death of at least 1,300 people (1). With nearly half the victims over the age of 74, deaths were caused by; drowning, injury/ trauma and heart conditions (2). Hurricane Katrina was one of the most costliest storms to land on American soil, costing around US$135 billion in damages (3). Although the number of deaths caused by Hurricane Katrina are not as high as other natural disasters, Katrina displaced a massive amount of people from their homes, around 85% of the population were displaced directly after the storm hit (6). Being one of the most devastating natural disasters to hit the United States, Hurricane Katrina impacted not only the residence of New Orleans by also many of the surrounding
On August 29, 2005, the third strongest and biggest hurricane ever recorded in American history hit the Gulf Coast at eight o’clock a.m. The interaction between a tropical depression and a tropical wave created a tropical storm later referred to as Hurricane Katrina (FAQS, 2013). Forming over the Bahamas, Hurricane Katrina gradually strengthened as it moved closer and closer to the Gulf of Mexico. Recorded on August 28th, 2005, Katrina jumped from a category three storm to a category five storm with maximum sustained winds up to 160 miles per hour. Although other hurricanes, such as Hurricane Rita and Hurricane Wilma, exceeded Katrina, this dominant storm was classified as the fourth most intense hurricane based its pressure capacity. Once Hurricane Katrina hit land, it was pronounced as a category four storm moving slowly. While people thought that the slow speed of this storm prevented trauma, records show that Katrina did more damage than any fast-moving storm could have ever achieved (Solanki, 2013). Katrina produced abundant debris. The debris was in such large quantity that if it was stacked together on a football field, the rubble would reach the elevation of ten and a half miles. The size of Katrina also caused 90,000 square miles to be affected. Once proclaimed a category three storm, Hurricane Katrina slowed to the speed of 155 miles per hour. At this point in time, Katrina proved to be the sixth most prevailing hurricane traced in history. (Solanki, 2013). Several different aspects of life were impacted by Hurricane Katrina such as availability of gasoline, economic issues, and the ability to have an adequate supply of drinking water (Solanki, 2013). Hurricane Katrina was a large storm ...
Hazards pose risk to everyone. Our acceptance of the risks associated with hazards dictates where and how we live. As humans, we accept a certain amount of risk when choosing to live our daily lives. From time to time, a hazard becomes an emergent situation. Tornadoes in the Midwest, hurricanes along the Gulf Coast or earthquakes in California are all hazards that residents in those regions accept and live with. This paper will examine one hazard that caused a disaster requiring a response from emergency management personnel. Specifically, the hazard more closely examined here is an earthquake. With the recent twenty year anniversary covered by many media outlets, the January 17, 1994, Northridge, California earthquake to date is the most expensive earthquake in American history.
There were many things destroyed and many people displaced from their homes and family. Studies show more than 400,000 people in the New Orleans and Mississippi Gulf area were forced to travel away from everything they knew (Katrina Displaced 400,000, Study Says). The emotional damage of the storm is not something easily communicated but the financial toll calculated is somewhere around $96-$125 billion, the insurance losses were looked at at around half that (Hurricane Katrina Damage Facts and Economic Effects). With so many people not where they should be and facing the financial hardships of the storm’s aftermath, the economy suffered. As well as the oil and gas pipelines damaged in the storm and unattainable through the debris. All these costs affected production, sales, and caused the Gross Domestic Product and economic growth to change from 3.8% to 1.3% by the October-December quarter. Total estimated costs to property was es...
A little over ten years ago, a catastrophic event struck the American shoreline and left devastating effects for years to come. It was very early in the morning on August 29, 2005; Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast of the United States. For days before, the hurricane could be charted by various meteorologists so there was no mystery that a very large storm was approaching a very vulnerable part of the United States coast line. The storm made landfall as a Category 3, meaning sustained winds of 100–140 miles per hour. The hurricane stretched some 400 miles across. While the storm hit relatively quickly and harshly, its aftermath was the most catastrophic. Levee breaches led to massive flooding.
Hurricane Wilma then headed up toward the United States, aiming tworad Collier, Florida. It cost more than 6 billion dollars in damages [1 billion dollars was recorded in Collier, Florida] in Southwest Florida, making it the most damaging natural disaster in 45 years in Florida.
Hurricanes are powerful and destructive storms that involve great rain and wind. The United States of America has dealt with many hurricanes that have cost a great amount of damage. However, there is one hurricane that happened in 2005 that stands out among the others, Hurricane Katrina. Hurricane Katrina was one of the worst hurricanes to hit the United States, a category 5 on the Saffir/Simpson Hurricane Scale. An estimated 1836 people died because of the hurricane and the floodings that happened after (Zimmermann 1). Katrina initially beg...
...ral disaster safety and relief efforts. Today, many organization have been created to aid the victims in areas that have been pounded by hurricanes and other nasty natural disasters like the Red Cross Association and UNICEF. Both groups collect funds for, distribute supplies to, and send out volunteers to the broken areas pleading for someone to rescue them from tragedies. Thanks to organizations that are apart of relief efforts many lives have been spared and cities have been rebuilt. As far as safety precautions, weather and news channels provide constant coverage and warnings for any storms that are within the area, houses are built to within severe weather, and disaster kits are even sold in stores all across the nation. It is important that we take these storms seriously and make an honest effort to keep not only the citizens safe but our environment as well.
Florida has to contend with the costliest natural disaster in U.S. history. Hurricane Andrew swept through southern Florida in August 1992, just south of Miami, leaving 41 people dead, making more than 200,000 homeless, and doing about $20 billion worth of property damage. In August 1995 Hurricane Erin crossed Florida along the same path, then turned and swept through the panhandle, causing an estimated $360 million in damage. The panhandle was pounded again later in 1995 by Hurricane Opal, which caused damage of $2.1 billion. A series of tornadoes hit the central part of the state in February 1998, claiming 42 lives. That is just one case in particular. All over the world the same story happens over and over. What is so sad is that in the 3rd world countries, there is little to no protection and many more lives are lost. Such as in 1998, Hurricane Mitch devastated Honduras, killing between 5,600 and 7,000 people. It also swept away 70 percent of their crops and cost billions of dollars to put the nation back together.
For example, the current hurricane, Hurricane Irma, is catastrophic. Hurricane Irma is now becoming known as the most destructive hurricane in the Atlantic Ocean. Hurricane Irma is an extremely strong hurricane. The winds are measured at 185 miles per hour, and is about 400 miles wide making it strong than both Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Andrew. For several of the Caribbean island, the hurricane is more catastrophic than they ever imagined. 95% of Saint-Martin, Barbuda, and the British Virgin Islands are complete destroyed. Many of the people who live on the Caribbean Islands were not able to evacuate leaving them stranded in the middle of the catastrophic storm. Irma has ripped off the roofs of houses,