Hurricane Katrina formed over the Bahamas in late August 2005 and strengthened to a Category 5 storm as it approached the Gulf Coast of the United States. It made landfall on August 29th near New Orleans as a Category 3 storm, causing devastating wind damage, heavy rainfall, and a catastrophic storm surge. The failure of levee systems in New Orleans resulted in more than 80% of the city being flooded, with some areas under 6 meters of water. Over 1,800 people lost their lives and property damage was estimated at $81 billion, making Katrina the costliest hurricane in U.S. history.

1. Hurricane
Katrina –
calm eye is
1
August 28th
2005
New
Orleans 2
on the Gulf
of Mexico
coast, USA
2
1

2. After crossing southern Florida -
where it left some 100,000 homes
without power - it strengthened
further before veering inland
towards Louisiana, eventually
making landfall 90km south of
New Orleans, at 10am local time
on 29 August.
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3. It was the sixth-strongest Atlantic hurricane ever
recorded and the third-strongest landfalling U.S.
hurricane on record.
The track
of the
hurricane
23rd
to
29th
August
2005.

4. At this point,
Katrina's
sustained wind
speed was
approximately
200 km/h. The
storm passed
directly
through New
Orleans,
destroying
many lighter
buildings and
causing
extensive
damage to
others.

5. Track and wind
speeds
Hurricane
force winds
were recorded
along an
200km stretch
of coastline,
with scenes of
similar
destruction
and flooding in
Louisiana,
Mississippi and
Alabama.

6. Storm Surge
The intense
LOW PRESSURE
and strong winds
… allows sea
level to rise
… Flooding
coastal areas
-several
kilometres
inland in some
places

7. Storm Surge:
Sea level
about 9metres
above normal
Katrina was a Category 5
storm with sustained winds
of about 160 mph as it
approached the Gulf Coast.

8. Initially it was hoped that New Orleans had weathered the
worst of Katrina, but within hours of the storm passing, it
emerged that several key levees had been breached …..
… causing
floodwater
to pour into
the low-
lying city.

9. Much of New Orleans lies below sea level. The
city has a system of canals and levees topped
with concrete floodwalls to keep water out.
These are designed to withstand a category
three hurricane, but when Katrina - a category
four storm - hit, they were quickly
overwhelmed. Within 24 hours, 80% of the city
was flooded.

10. Mississippi Delta
Levees broken and land flooded
Especially around New Orleans city.
By August 31,
2005, 80% of the
city was flooded,
with some parts
under 6.1 meters
of water.
Four of the city's
protective levees
were breached,
including the 17th Street
Canal levee, the
Industrial Canal levee,
and the London Avenue
Canal floodwall.

11. Flooding affected
large parts of the
poor areas of the
City in general
The situation quickly
deteriorated as it
became apparent
that thousands of
people had been
unable to evacuate
or chosen to stay
put.

12. Many took refuge in the city's
Superdome, but without
sanitation or proper supplies,
conditions inside the crowded,
overheated stadium became
increasingly unbearable. …

13. … Law and order across
the city broke down, with
reports of widespread
looting and violence.
7,000 active-duty troops sent to
Louisiana for additional hurricane
relief. Despite hopes all would be
evacuated Friday, some New
Orleans flood victims remain at
the Superdome. Security forces
are still trying to restore order,
and engineers are working to
drain the city.

14. On 2 September a
series of huge
blasts, apparently
at a chemical
plant near the
French Quarter,
rocked the city.
Large fires also broke out in
several other districts

15. Although more
than 80% of
residents
evacuated, the
rest remained
There was blistering criticism from the mayor of New Orleans
and others who said the federal (US) government (Bush) had
bungled the relief effort and let people die in the streets for
lack of food, water or medicine.

16. Enormous
social,
environmental
and economic
effects.
Lowest pressure: 902 mbar
Damages: $81.2 billion (2005 USD)
(costliest Atlantic hurricane in history)
Fatalities: ≥1,723 total

17. Idea of area
affected by
impact on
Postal
Deliveries
two weeks
later.

18. Repairing
the levees
By August
2005 –one
year on,
the city's
levees and
floodwalls
have been
repaired to
a standard
equalling
their prior
condition.Despite this work, critics say not
enough has yet been done to improve
the city's storm protection system.

19. Repairing the
breach: Helicopters
dropped huge
sandbags into the
breach in the 17th
street canal.
Earthmovers built a
causeway allowing
trucks to bring in
stones to strengthen
the repairs.
Steel dam: A
temporary steel
barrier has been
built at the mouth
of the canal,
sealing it off from
Lake
Pontchartrain.
Pumping out:
Once all
breaches are
sealed, pumps
will start to drain
floodwater out
into the lake, a
process which
could take 80
days.

20. About $1bn (£542m) in
relief meant for victims of
Hurricane Katrina was lost
to fraud, with bogus
claimants spending the
money on Hawaiian
holidays, football tickets,
diamond jewellery and
Girls Gone Wild porn
videos (allegedly).
A year on and still New
Orleans is eerily empty. Of a
pre-Katrina population of
half-a-million fewer than
200,000 have returned.