...The initial response to the extensive disaster in the Gulf Coast area of New Orleans, resulted from Hurricane Katrina, showed high levels of ineptitude and disorganization by government officials. The world was shocked by images of distressed individuals awaiting salvage on their rooftops, and the masses of people packed together in unpardonable conditions, in the Super Dome. There was no hiding from the painful reality and obvious inaction or inability of those responsible for caring for the residents in the wake of this catastrophe. Although, a substantial amount of the blame has been placed on FEMA, it should be understood that various aspects contributed to the circumstances in New Orleans. Some of the levees had been unsuccessfully built and were not properly maintained. Local agencies failed to plan and prepare of such a large event, even though they have been getting hit by hurricanes since the late 1800's. Government officials delayed ordering an evacuation, and did not take into account how to assist those citizens who lacked the monetary resources or had health risks that prevented them from evacuating the area. An 8.3 magnitude earthquake in San Francisco in 1906 that left over 250,000 people homeless and killed 478 people began the Federal involvement in the aftermath of natural disasters. While the disaster itself was obviously inescapable, the fires that burned throughout the city were the result of thoughtless planning. In an effort to improve the nation’s...
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...Datrel Johnson Professor Peter Johnson Geography 101 25 August 2013 Describe Hurricane Katrina Beginning in the 1950s, the United States have witnessed two Category Five Storms and seven Category Four Storms naming Hurricane Katrina as one of the most deadly Category Four hurricanes to hit the Gulf Coast. On August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina dismantled several sections of the levee which caused it to collapse. The storm then breeched the New Orleans’ levee system allowing Lake Ponchartrain and the Mississippi River to flow in the heart of the city. Furthermore, a tremendous amount of damages occurred throughout the coast of Mississippi and Alabama. The state of Louisiana sustained most of the damages not just from Hurricane Katrina, “but also to a unique physiographic setting of New Orleans.” (Locke) The storm, Hurricane Katrina was identified as powerful and huge because of the well-formed eye of a typical category four hurricane. Throughout the duration, warm sea water was its fuel for continued momentum and power. The intensity had “closely matched the water temperature” which led the hurricane to reach its peak intensity; category five. (Locke) The storm predicted maximum “rainfall east of the storm-eye track.” (Locke) As Hurricane Katrina took her course, evidence provided “that the right front quadrant” was indeed the most powerful part of the hurricane. (Locke) “The powerful winds and rain occurred here because of rotational winds and steering winds (the prevailing...
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...Housing market in New Orleans after hurricane Katrina Table of contents 1. Introduction………………………………………………………………………3 2. Pre-Katrina situation ………………………..…………………………………..4 3. After-Katrina situation…………………………………………………………..6 4. Current situation New Orleans….………………………………………………8 5. Conclusion……………………………………………………………………...…9 6. References…………………………………………………………………….….10 Introduction It is August 29th of 2005 when the United States of America is badly affected by one of history’s most catastrophic nature disasters. Hurricane Katrina hits the south of New Orleans and causes severe damage to this city. This second biggest hurricane in the entire history of America left 80 percent of New Orleans flooded, approximately 80 billion dollars of damage and more than 1800 killed civilians. Due to this disaster, New Orleans was almost completely destroyed including the residences of thousands of families. Not only were there economic enormous problems but also political questions rose by that time. The president by then, president Bush, came in discredit because of cutting in the federal funding which was protecting New Orleans. Since then a lot of things have actually changed but unfortunately, too late. Complete neighborhoods were removed from the map, people became homeless and moved to different places. The effects on the housing market in New Orleans were immense. Because of the effect hurricane Katrina had on the housing market in New Orleans...
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...Running Header HURRICANE KATRINA Implementation Failure Stephanie Anderson Public Policy and Social Services Sociology 320 Professor John Zurovchak February 20, 2012 1 Hurricane Katrina In 2005 the United States experienced a tough lesson regarding it's preparedness related to natural diasters and it's ability to respond to the needs of it's citizens. The arrival of hurricane Katrina and the devastation that followed, revealed many weaknesses in the country's structure regarding a national emergency response system. The issues identified as the Federal Government attempted to respond to the situation revealed numerous area's of opportunity, regarding the country's lack of readiness to respond. Some of the challenges that surfaced with the wake of Katrina: Ineffective National Preparedness, Public Communication, Public Safety, Search and Rescue and Homeland Security Professional Development and Education to name a few. These challenges made it impossible for the Federal Government to provide a timely and effective response to the devastation. With the challenges that surfaced, it became apparent that new policies would need to be implemented in order to prevent the breakdown and lack of preparedness experienced with Katrina. The first being a need to adopt an effective policy regarding National Preparedness, our current system ...
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...devastating natural disasters, Hurricane Katrina, hit near New Orleans, Louisiana and caused more than 9,000 confirmed casualties and $96 billion in damage. The lack of communication, cooperation, confusion, being able to share responsibilities and other factors made this chaotic event even more chaotic when the affected areas were trying to recover from the storm. A storm in which Louisiana just wasn't prepared for. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is an agency made to reduce the loss of life and property, and protect the nation from hazards of all kinds through preparedness, protection, response and recovery. They were involved in helping with the recovery of Hurricane Katrina. However 13 months before the hurricane hit FEMA started a simulation plan called Hurricane Pam that if they would have finished would have been very helpful in the recovery process. FEMA still helped out at they could through. They were constantly working 24 hour shifts and having 25 search and rescue teams out helping. They only have 2,600 people involved in FEMA, so they had most of their workers out helping FEMA was also big on respecting those who died from the storm. They put in huge efforts in trying to recover dead bodies and respecting the dead by asking the media not taking pictures of those who passed. Michael Brown, the director of FEMA, was put in charge for a while until Michael Chertoff removed him from being in charge of the Katrina case. When Brown was in charge though...
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...Hurricane Katrina was one of the deadliest and costliest hurricanes in the United States. Katrina made landfall as a category three hurricane on August 29, 2005. The initial landfall was made in the Gulf Region near Buras Louisiana and later at the Louisiana and Mississippi border at Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. Katrina packed sustained hurricane force winds of 125 mph, and extended out 75 miles from the eye of the storm (NOAA, 2012). Katrina’s damage was devastating to residents of the area affected. The causes and impact of hurricane Katrina were negative environmental, social, and economical effects on the Gulf Coast Region. A hurricane is a type of tropical cyclone or a low pressure system which forms in the tropics. It is a huge storm and is accompanied by thunderstorms. They can be as wide as 600 miles across and carry winds as high as 200 miles per hour. Hurricanes gather heat and energy from contact with warm ocean waters. The warmer the water is, the more intense the hurricane becomes. The storm surge caused by the hurricane which can be more than eighteen feet high causes flooding once it reaches land. Hurricanes range in categories one through five. A category one hurricane has winds of 74-95 miles per hour, and is considered to cause minimal damage. A category five storm has winds greater than 155 miles per hour, and the damage to expect is catastrophic. In 2001 FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) released a report that listed three most likely catastrophic...
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...Hurricane Katrina is one of the worst natural disasters in the history of the United States of America. It took thousands lives of citizens of New Orleans, left them without homes and families, and changed their lives forever. Many of those who survived the hurricane died waiting for help to come. Hurricane Katrina exposed the existence of ''two Americas''. It took government several days to get help to the victims of Katrina in New Orleans. After watching Spike Lee's documentary ''When The Levees Broke'' I learned that the Government doesn't care about its citizens. After Hurricane Katrina, the Federal Emergency Management Agency failed to do what it was created to do - provide immediate relief to the victims of the disasters. People were waiting for help for days, suffering from the heat, lack of food and drinking water and watching their loved ones die without medical help. Those who were tired to wait for the rescue buses and started to walk toward the Gretna bridge were turn around at the gun point. They were not allowed in, like they were citizens of another country- refugees, and thats how the media called people of New Orleans. The disaster of Hurricane Katrina could've been avoided if the levees that protect city would have been designed and built properly. I believe that Federal Government and other officials were aware of the situation for a very long time and still did nothing to protect the people of New Orleans. Most of the citizens of...
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...Hurricane Katrina was one of the five deadliest and most destructive hurricanes in United States History. There were at least 1833 deaths and 80 billion in damages. I was not personally affected by Hurricane Katrina. However, I remember seeing news coverage on the tragedy. I remember seeing all the destruction that the hurricane had caused, seeing people trying to hold on to whatever they could. I was in middle school at the time and several students who were survivors of the tragedy were move to my class. This one student in particular I remember him telling me how his family had lost everything. He was worried how him and his five siblings and his mother were going to make it; they were in a new place and they knew no one. He shared with me that even though he was happy that him and his family were safe he missed New Orleans and wanted to go back. After several months I did not see him anymore. I am not sure if he did make it back to New Orleans. Anthony David Feat. Algebra & Phonte Kenny Lattimore – “For You” Luther Vandross – “Here And Now Monica – “Angel of Mine” Kc JoJO all my life Eric Benet Tamia Spend My life with you Jagged edge lets get married Luther/Mariah endless Mariah carey Monica for you I will Lovin you Mariah carey vision love Emeli sande ny kind of love John Legend All of me John Legend Nobody in the world Jagged edge rest of my life The one he kept for me You Caught me Tori Kelly Beyonce my heart still beats Your my everything boys...
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...Hurricane Katrina Jordan Edge Herron High School In August of 2005, Hurricane Katrina made landfall in the gulf coast and left widespread devastation in its path. New Orleans was the hardest hit and most affected area in path of the hurricane. As well as physical damage, the hurricane had economic, social, political, and environmental effects on the entire eastern seaboard. The physical storm effects of hurricane Katrina reached states as far north as Ohio, and resulted in a large shift in population from southern states. Hurricane Katrina was one of the most powerful storms to impact the United States in the last 100 years. During its time in the Atlantic and the central part of the gulf, Katrina reached specifications to be classified as a category 5 hurricane with estimated wind speeds as high as 175 miles per hour (NOAA). When it reached shores in the gulf, Hurricane Katrina was classified as a category 3 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson scale and had estimated wind speeds of 125 miles per hour (Anne Waple). In terms of economic impact brought about by the hurricane, the largest contributing factor was the disruption of the oil industries located in the affected regions. According to Anne Waple (2010), “Preliminary estimates from the Mineral Management Service suggest that oil production in the Gulf of Mexico was reduced by 1.4 million barrels per day (or 95 % of the daily Gulf of Mexico production) as a result of the hurricane.” In direct result to the disruption of...
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...Hurricane Katrina According to (Brunner, 2007), Hurricane Katrina slammed into the U.S. Gulf Coast on Aug. 29, 2005, destroying beachfront towns in Mississippi and Louisiana, displacing a million people, and killing almost 1,800. When levees in New Orleans were breached, eighty percent of the city was submerged by the flooding. About twenty percent of its 500,000 citizens were trapped in the city without power, food, or drinking water. Rescue efforts were so delayed and haphazard that many were stranded for days on rooftops and in attics before help arrived. The city became a toxic pool of sewage, chemicals, and corpses, and in the ensuing chaos, mayhem and looting became rampant; about fifteen percent of the city’s police force had simply walked off the job. The 20,000 people who made their way to the Superdome, the city’s emergency shelter, found themselves crammed into sweltering and fetid conditions. At a second shelter, the convention center, evacuees were terrorized by roaming gangs and random gunfire. Relief workers, medical help, security forces, and essential supplies remained profoundly inadequate during the first critical days of the disaster. New Orleans was in the path of that particular storm. I remember it like it was yesterday. My family and I received minor damage from this hurricane that year. We were left in the dark for over a week when this storm occurred. The city was mostly deserted during this storm. It was mostly the poor...
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...After the recent disaster of Hurricane Katrina, there have been many opportunities to examine the multiple sides of the story. Many of these sides have been released to the public, but told with conflicting viewpoints. The most common conflict brought up again and again is between FEMA and the relief victims. Relief victims and FEMA argue over humanitarian aid issues such as evacuation, supplies, and housing. Evacuation was the most important humanitarian effort that FEMA could provide. Getting residents out of the disaster area was the primary goal of FEMA. Evacuation by bus was the initial form of evacuation. The bus evacuation plan that FEMA provided allowed the whole city to evacuate in a reasonable amount of time. Then evacuation by plane was added as another way for FEMA to get relief victims out of the city in large numbers. The plane evacuation was very efficient once it got under way. The conditions at the airport allowed only outbound aircraft. The last form of humanitarian aid shown through evacuation was the creation of emergency shelters. FEMA, in conjunction with surrounding states, had set up shelters where the evacuees could go. Then states further away volunteered to house evacuees. The shelters provided a place for evacuees to stay after the hurricane and provided time for them to look for more permanent housing. FEMA provided basic humanitarian aid by evacuating Katrina survivors. Supplies were a form of humanitarian aid that FEMA provided. The most basic...
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...Hurricane Katrina: Race and Class in America and the Failure of Its Government Carlus R. Townsend English 215 2/25/12 Introduction How hurricane Katrina exposed Racism in the US Hurricane Katrina that happened 7 years ago was a natural adversity. Few years following Hurricane Katrina, individuals are still feeling the repercussion and queries of racism. Katrina uncovered racism and division inequality in America, and the way the government failed the citizens in so many aspects. Many black people residing in New Orleans that were affected felt as if they considered themselves as genocide victims compared to what happened to them and the treatment they received after the hurricane. The majority of the affected people were blacks and this paper try to analyze how the victims of the hurricane were discriminated upon because of their race and face unbearable inequality because of their race ethnicity. Discrimination against Hurricane Katrina victims Various people, particularly the politicians, spoke out insisting that the comparison of the holocaust was inappropriate, as there was no use of any gas chambers utilization. This resulted to many people wondering if the act of racism was in existence without absolute violence. Communities residing in New Orleans insists that individuals died because of utter neglect. This took place because the affected persons were the black race, and so the government neglected them and was not concerned to what happened...
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...Tameka Whitney Introduction to Geography April 7, 2013 Hurricane Katrina On August 29, 2005 the Gulf Coast of The United States would change forever. The country watch from near and far as one of the strongest hurricanes in the past century made landfall. It caused havoc for so many. The days leading up the predicted landfall of Katrina, many residence of the South from Louisiana to Florida took warning and evacuated. It was the less fortunate fold such as the elderly, homeless and the immobile that were left to “ride” the storm out or find means to get to safer grounds. From Biloxi, Mississippi to New Orleans folks scrambled to take what they could salvage. As Katrina made landfall with a punch carrying hurricane force winds sustained at 125mph with a central pressure recorded to be the third lowest on record (Hurricane Katrina, NOAA). According to the Saffir and Simpson scale, Katrina made a rating of a Category 3 at landfall. With Katrina’s strength it broke sea walls and levees that were in place to hold the waters back from such storms. As the levees failed on the Mississippi River at New Orleans, Katrina pushed on ward flooding at least 80% of New Orleans with 3-10 feet of water (Getis, Pg. 81) Hurricane Katrina moved on land and vanished into the Ohio Valley and Northeast causing a major rainfall event for them. The real reality was just beginning to unfold as residence of the Gulf Coast were watch and seeing firsthand what devastation was left behind. Lives...
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...Covering Katrina “Let people know the facts and the country will be safe” - Abraham Lincoln. Hurricane Katrina was one of the worst natural and subsequently man-made disasters of the year 2005 Katrina and its aftermath has gone down in history as one of the governments worst response to a domestic emergency. As a way of giving understanding to the search and rescue aspect of Katrina, The Times- Picayune printed a guide to the spray painted markings on people’s homes. Each aspect of the X marking had a meaning. The top numbers represents the date that that home was searched, the left is for who searched it, the right is a warning or potential gas leaks or drowned wires, and the bottom represents the body count. This has to be the most gruesome part of the guide itself. It was a reminder that lives were lost due to the storm, human error, and plain neglect. The rescue markings are a haunting reminder of the wrath of Katrina. Journalist Chris Rose said at a elegy, “Who grieved over 1 dead in attic and who buried 1 dead in attic?” at a elegy. This sort of coverage changes the averages Americans mindset from one of apathy to one of empathy. It make you not think of the lost as nameless and faceless people, but instead of as some ones sister, brother or friend. One part of the exhibit that stuck out to me the most was the plywood from the Oriental Rugs store in New Orleans. The wooden board read “you know what it means to miss New Orleans y’all come back 4 carnival. I have...
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...Matthew Simmons 3/1/2013 Huricane Katrina Study Public Admin Hurricane Katrina was the single worst natural disaster to strike The United States in recorded history. There is really nothing that could have prevented the category three storm, as was the strength when it mad landfall, from wreaking havoc on the Gulf coast of Louisiana as well as Mississippi. There are however certainly some measures that could have been taken to prevent loss of life as it appeared Katrina would make landfall around New Orleans. With a storm as powerful as Katrina was, Mayor C. Ray Nagin and Governor Kathleen Blanco, would have been well served to physically enforce evacuation of the city. As Katrina approached it was a category five storm, much more powerful than the levee system, implemented by the Army Corps of Engineers to protect the city, was designed to protect against. Even though as it finally did strike it was downgraded to category three, the category the levees were rated for, the levees failed any way, which is a contingency state and local government should have been more prepared to face. It can be said that it is impossible to be fully prepared for anything, but in a city that is predominantly below sea level, located in a path that hurricanes travel, evacuation should have been conducted in a more effective manner. Since prevention was not successful, Mayor Nagin was required to enact a plan to rebuild and recover. President Bush himself called for...
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