Hurricane Katrina Research Paper

677 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: The second effects of Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina was one of the deadliest, destructive and costly tropical cyclones that have hit the United States in decades. Katrina was part of the hurricane season in the Atlantic in 2005. It was the third most powerful storm of the season; it was a great tropical cyclone that hit southern and central United States in August 2005. Producing serious damage in Florida, Bahamas, Louisiana and Mississippi, including material damage and severe flooding. It made landfall on the Louisiana coast on August 29 becoming a Category 3 hurricane, and although at the last moment deviated slightly from its route directly through the city of New Orleans, there was widespread destruction in the same and nearby areas. For damage, it became one of the most …show more content…

After reaching Category 5 storm weakened before landfall for the second time as a Category 3 hurricane on August 29 in southeast Louisiana; this cyclone devastated the Gulf Coast from Florida to Texas because of its intensification. The largest number of deaths occurred in New Orleans, which was flooded because its levee system failed, collapsing many several hours after the hurricane had continued inland. The most significant property damage occurred in coastal areas, such as rapid flooding of all coastal cities of Mississippi, dragging numerous boats and floating to shore casinos, prompting his clash with buildings, waves reaching distances of 10 to 19 km from the coast.
Besides, environmental damage and public health threats were the most durable and dangerous effects of Hurricane Katrina. Industrial waste, oil spills, sewage household, toxic chemicals and other hazardous pollutants were scattered in the affected areas and neighboring regions. Contaminated water that overflowed the residential areas caused effects on long-term health in humans, animals and other locals. It also led to contamination of groundwater reserves, which is a major source of drinking

Show More
Related

  • The Bias and Suffering after Hurricane Katrina: Trouble The Water, and Zeitoun

    1460 Words  | 3 Pages

    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 of damage and danger all throughout the city, officials claimed that there was work being done to restore the city of New Orleans as a whole but many parts, and even the people, of the city were overlooked while areas of the city with higher economic value, and more tourist traffic, were prioritized along with those individuals.

    Read More

  • Comparisons between Hurricane Sandy and Hurricane Katrina

    1844 Words  | 4 Pages

    Hurricane Katrina occurred in the year 2005; it made landfall on the morning of August 29th. However, the origins of this storm began as early as August 24, 2005. In the course of those six days, Hurricane Katrina varied in location and intensity before making final landfall on the southeast portion of the United States (Ahrens & Sampson, 2011).

    Read More

  • Hurricane Camille

    637 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Racial Discrimination In Zeitoun By Dave Eggers

    1190 Words  | 3 Pages

    Hurricane Katrina roared through Louisiana demolishing everything in its path. It obliterated the city of New Orleans, inside and out leaving almost nothing untouched and intact. Homes, schools, office buildings, and almost all infrastructures were ravaged by the mighty storm. Thousands of people ...

    Read More

  • Hurricane Katrina American Identity Essay

    660 Words  | 2 Pages

    Eleven years ago Hurricane Katrina hit us, hard. The levees failed to do what they were made for. It was both a natural and man made disaster that was destined to happen and too late to stop. The damage has been done; the lives lost. But this storm, awful as it was, did more than destroy. The hurricane brought people closer as we cleaned up cleaned up after it’s mess. There were people donating, volunteering. It all just goes back to show our identity as Americans. It shows that even when we get knocked down, we always resurface, united as one, and if that isn’t our identity; I don’t know what is.

    Read More

  • Cause of Destruction and Plans to Rebuild after Katrina

    3011 Words  | 7 Pages

    In August of 2005, Hurricane Katrina slammed into the Gulf Coast, leaving its signature of destruction form Louisiana all the way to Florida. The hardest hit area and the greatest catastrophe was in the city of New Orleans, Louisiana. For many years the people of New Orleans had feared that one day a hurricane would drown their city with its storm surge. Katrina brought that nightmare storm surge and flooded the city. Yet the New Orleans levees system and flood control was the major cause of flooding, due to the inadequate repair and maintenance failure, incompletion of the levee system, and engineering designs based on outdated scientific data.

    Read More

  • Hurricane Katrina: America's Costliest Storm

    967 Words  | 2 Pages

    Early in the morning on August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast of the United States. When the storm made landfall, it had a Category 3 rating on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale–it brought sustained winds of 100–140 miles per hour–and stretched some 400 miles across. The storm itself did a great deal of damage, but its aftermath was catastrophic. Levee breaches led to massive flooding, and many people charged that the federal government was slow

    Read More

  • Hurricane Harvey Essay

    1057 Words  | 3 Pages

    Hurricane Harvey was one of the most devastating hurricanes to strike the United States in several years. Harvey resulted in over eighty fatalities and over 150 billion dollars in damages. This proves to be one of the most destructive hurricanes to be recorded. The overwhelming damage was caused by many different aspects; however, three of the greatest aspects are: varying weather patterns throughout the storm, the city structure of Houston, Texas, and the lack of evacuation. Each of these factors affected the city in a different way, but all resulted in a common outcome, devastation.

    Read More

  • Impact Of Hurricane Katrina

    1195 Words  | 3 Pages

    Hurricane Katrina was one of the most devastating natural disasters to happen in the United States. The storm resulted in more then US$100 billion in damage when the cities flood protection broke and 80% of the city was flooded (1). The protection failure was not the only cause for the massive flooding, the hurricanes clockwise rotation pulled water from north of New Orleans into the city. 330,000 homes were destroyed and 400,000 people from New Orleans were displaced, along with 13,00 killed (1). Although the population quickly recovered, the rate of recovery slowed down as the years went on leading us to believe not everyone

    Read More

  • Hurricane Katrina Disaster Essay

    2499 Words  | 5 Pages

    Hurricane Katrina left a devastating scar on the citizens of the southern coast of the U.S., especially New Orleans, Louisiana. The category 5 hurricane was the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the most deadly. Katrina hit New Orleans on August 29th, 2005 and after that day, 66,000 people were displaced from their homes. Of those who decided to ride out the storm with hopes of success and survival as they had experienced with other storms, they were found on their rooftops, in their attics, hoping for boat or helicopter rescue, relying on others for help to survive. The storm had reached 28,000 square feet inward to Louisiana, which was 60 percent of the state. 1,100 Louisianans lost their lives, and 200,000 were displaced and/or lost their homes (Davis 8). It was a devastating time of despair and suffering. People were put through experiences that would scar them for a long time. While preparing for evacuation, people left most of their belongings at home to flee to a safer city or to find shelter in the Superdome and Convention Center. Some even decided to remain in their boarded up homes. After the hurricane had past, a few hours went by and a levee located near the Mississippi River canal broke leaving New Orleans flooded (Delisi). After the disaster, the state and federal governments were pointing fingers at each other as to who was to blame for the poorly planned evacuation and rescue efforts for the victims. The state government promised to help evacuate those who could not transport themselves. Citizens were told to go to the Superdome and convention center for evacuation, but the supplies needed for survi...

    Read More

  • Hurricane Katrina

    1157 Words  | 3 Pages

    Hurricane Katrina had a huge impact on the world and more specifically, New Orleans for there was substantial damage to the citizens property and more importantly their body and minds. The biggest impact Hurricane Katrina has was on the people of New Orleans. Having their homes destroyed or uninhabitable, thousands of New Orleans residents were forced to flee in the Superdome and t...

    Read More

  • The History of Hurricane Katrina

    1811 Words  | 4 Pages

    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 ...

    Read More

  • Hurricane Katrina

    1533 Words  | 4 Pages

    Hurricane Katrina put a hindrance on New Orleans because the city was left with blighted properties that span from the 9th ward to the 7th ward. Blighted properties were a direct result from flooding, wind damage, and citizens that moved or were displaced by Hurricane Katrina. When the levees broke an abundance of water entered the city and caused homes and business to become flooded. When the city was under water for days it created damage, homes were crumbled to pieces and even uprooted from the ground. Flooding even caused homes to deteriorate and become inhabitable and unsuitable. Blighted properties became breeding grounds for crime, infestation of rodents and other animals, dumping of dead bodies, fires (arson), mold, squatters (homeless), and other serious health issues. These are serious challenges that the city of New Orleans must tackle.

    Read More

  • Hurricane Katrina: Causes, Effects, and Aftermath

    1428 Words  | 3 Pages

    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 flooding that happened after (Zimmermann 1). Katrina initially began forming over the Bahamas on August 23rd, as a tropical depression....

    Read More

  • Natural Disasters- Hurricanes

    1668 Words  | 4 Pages

    Hurricanes occur all over the world, at different times, but commonly through June first and late November. However in late August 2005 a catastrophic hurricane struck. This was Hurricane Katrina. With winds traveling over one hundred miles per hour making it a category five on the Saffir- Simpson Hurricane Scale it was said to have cause billions of dollars’ worth of damage. Hurricane Katrina flooded nearly forty thousand homes, and killed at least two thousand people (“Hurricane”). An average category five hurricane has enough energy to power street lamps for more than twenty seven thousand hours (Williams 58). Knowing about Hurricane Katrina, and the devastation of the city in New Orleans would be beneficial. Also, general information on hurricanes can help civilians and people of higher authority better understand and prepare for damage that could once hit their town and community. Because experts know the general information on these storms they can help explain to the public why and how Hurricane Katrina and other hurricanes occur. Hopefully, in the future civilians will know and use this information to their advantage against hurricanes.

    Read More

More about Hurricane Katrina Research Paper

Open Document