Hurricane Katrina Flashcards
(44 cards)
When did Hurricane Katrina begin and when did it end?
Began on the 23rd August 2005 and ended on the 31st of August.
What was the path of Hurricane K and how did its wind speeds change?
Began to the north of Cuba and Haiti. 25th Aug - Category 1 w/ speeds of 75mph. Travelled west across southern Florida and then north towards New Orleans. Made landfall in Louisiana on the 29th - Category 3 storm w/ wind speeds of 120 mph.
What were Hurricane K’s highest wind speeds?
132 mph
How many ppl were killed by the hurricane and subsequent floods?
1,836
What was the cost of property damage due to the hurricane?
$81 billion
How many homes were left w/o power?
100,000
Why was New Orleans physically vulnerable?
It is near both Lake Pontchartrain and the Mississippi River. Wetlands of the Mississippi delta no longer offer protection as they have been drained and starved of sediment - Mississippi River so heavily embanked against flooding it stops erosion up stream so there is no deposition downstream.
NO is sinking - built on drained soft sediments which have compacted under the weight of buildings and water that supported struc. of soil has been drained.
Low lying land.
Why was there a failure of the protections put in place?
Levees - both earthen and flood walls - were designed to cope w/ Category 3 storms, not Category 5 like Katrina. This was shown by a stimulation exercise the yr before but was not acted on.
The Industrial Canal and 17th Street Canal failed the most and had the most impact.
What % of the city was flooded?
80%
Where was the worst property damage?
In coastal areas like the Mississippi beachfront towns.
How far in from the beach did waters reach?
6-12 miles
Economic impacts: What did the Bush Administration do?
Sought $105 billion for repairs and reconstruction. This didn’t include the potential interruption of oil supplies, destruction of Gulf Coast’s highway infrastruc., or exports of commodities like grain.
Economic impacts: How many oil platforms were damaged or destroyed?
- Caused the closure of 9 refineries.
Economic impacts: How much forest land was destroyed and how much did this cost?
1.3 million acres. Cost around $5 mil.
Economic impacts: How many non-farm jobs in the region before Hurricane K? How many in NO?
1 million non-farm jobs in region. 600,000 of these in NO.
How much was the total economic impact in Louisiana and Mississippi?
Over $150 billion
Economic impacts: What issue was there w/ insurance?
Some companies stopped insuring ppl in the area because the costs were too high or raised insurance premiums to cover risk.
Envi impacts: What happened in terms of coastal erosion?
Storm surge caused substantial beach erosion. In Dauphin Island, the sand that comprised the barrier island was transported into the Mississippi Sound, pushing the island further inland.
Envi impacts: How much land was transformed by the water of Hurricane K and Rita?
217 square miles
Envi impacts: What happened to breeding lands?
Breeding grounds for marine mammals, brown pelicans, turtles and fish were destroyed.
Envi impacts: How many National Wildlife Refugees were closed?
16
Envi impacts: How much oil was leaked?
26 million litres.
Envi impacts: What was pumped into Lake Pontchartrain during the clean up?
Flood waters were pumped into the lake which took 43 days. Residual waters contained raw sewage, bacteria, heavy metals, pesticides, toxic chemical and oil.
Social impacts: What happened to distribution of ppl?
Redistributed over 1 mil ppl from central Gulf coast to elsewhere in US. Houston, Texas, had an increase of 35,000 ppl.
