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N0KFQ > TODAY 29.08.16 15:43l 65 Lines 3086 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
BID : 5793_N0KFQ
Read: GUEST
Subj: Today in History - Aug 29
Path: IW8PGT<IZ3LSV<F1OYP<F1OYP<LU4ECL<CT1ENI<N0KFQ
Sent: 160829/1432Z 5793@N0KFQ.#SWMO.MO.USA.NA BPQ6.0.12
2005
Hurricane Katrina wreaks havoc on Gulf Coast
On this day in 2005, Hurricane Katrina, the most destructive
hurricane ever to hit the United States, makes landfall on the
U.S. Gulf Coast, near New Orleans, Louisiana. Katrina, which
formed over the Bahamas on August 23, was the third major
hurricane of a particularly severe 2005 season. The storm caused
massive devastation in and around the city of New Orleans and
major damage elsewhere in Louisiana and along the coasts of
Mississippi and Alabama.
On August 28, Katrina briefly achieved Category 5 status_becoming
the second Category 5 storm of the season_and that day, the
National Weather Service predicted "devastating" damage to the
Gulf region. Although New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin then ordered a
mandatory evacuation of the city, an estimated 150,000 people who
either could not or would not leave stayed behind. The next day,
Katrina made landfall as a Category 4 storm, bringing with it
sustained winds of 145 mph with gusts of up to 175 mph and
massive storm surges that overwhelmed the city's levees, flooding
80 percent of the city, as well as many of the outlying
neighborhoods, or parishes.
Without electricity or basic supplies, tens of thousands of
people sought shelter in the New Orleans Convention Center and
Louisiana Superdome. At both sites, conditions rapidly
deteriorated amid overcrowding and a lack of supplies. Almost
unbelievably, it took more than two days for a full-scale relief
effort to be launched. In the meantime, frustration mounted as
stranded residents suffered from heat, hunger, crime and a lack
of medical care. As news networks broadcast scenes from the
devastated city to the world, it became obvious that a vast
majority of the victims were African-American and poor, leading
to difficult questions among the public about the state of racial
equality in the United States. The federal government and
President George W. Bush were roundly criticized for what was
perceived as their slow response to the disaster. The head of
the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) resigned amid the
ensuing controversy.
Finally, on September 1, an evacuation of stranded residents to
the Astrodome in Houston, Texas, began. Military convoys arrived
with supplies and the National Guard was charged with halting
lawlessness. As efforts began to collect and identify corpses,
the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers began fixing the damage to New
Orleans' levee system; the repairs were completed on September 6,
allowing crews to begin pumping water out of the city.
Hurricane Katrina was the most costly natural disaster in
American history, with damages of more than $80 billion. In all,
more than 1,800 people died, 1 million more were displaced and
400,000 lost their jobs as a result of the disaster. Even one
year later, despite efforts to rebuild the city, large parts of
New Orleans remained heavily damaged and thousands remained
homeless or unemployed.
73 - K.O., n0kfq
N0KFQ @ N0KFQ.#SWMO.MO.USA.NA
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