“Hurricane Katrina was an extremely destructive and deadly tropical cyclone that was the costliest natural disaster and one of the five deadliest hurricanes in the history of the United States It was the eleventh named storm and the fifth hurricane of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season.” The storm caused severe destruction along the Gulf coast from central Florida to Texas, much of it due to the storm surge and levee failure. Severe property damage occurred in coastal areas, such as Mississippi beachfront towns where boats and casino barges rammed buildings, pushing cars and houses inland; water reached 6–12 miles (10–19 km) from the beach.
“The storm was the third most intense United States landfalling tropical cyclone, behind the 1935 Labor Day hurricane and Hurricane Camille in 1969. Overall, at least 1,245 people died in the hurricane and subsequent floods, making it the deadliest United States hurricane since the 1928 Okeechobee hurricane.” Total property damage was estimated at $108 billion, roughly four times the damage wrought by Hurricane Andrew in 1992 in the United States! Over fifty breaches in New Orleans’s hurricane surge protection were the cause of the majority of the death and destruction during Katrina on August 29, 2005. Eventually 80% of the city and large tracts of neighboring parishes became flooded, and the floodwaters lingered for weeks!!
I was 10 when Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans, I didn’t realize at the time the impact such an event would have on not on me and my family, but the entire city has a whole. Hurricane Katrine was like something New Orleans had never experienced. Our city was completely turned upside down in just a blink of an eye and it was nothing we could do. To lose everything and be in the position where you honestly have to start over is so overwhelming, the stress alone was unbearable.
I remember everything. The emotional roller coaster we were on from the moment we left New Orleans was endless. My parents had no idea where exactly we were going, but they knew we would drive far enough to be away from the danger. Somehow the destination became Houston, Texas. A drive that normally takes about 8 hours, turned into over 23 hours, almost one whole day! One can imagine the stress and anxiety that alone came with. So many people were trying to get to safety, there was traffic backed up for hourssss; gas stations even began to run out of gasoline, creating other addiction problems for the people who cars were basically on E.
We truly had no idea the damage Katrina would do. My neighborhood was literally completely under water. Mid City (where we lived) had over 10 feet of water, the house was destroyed and everything in it. There was little to nothing able to be saved, everything I knew was no more, everything we had was no more. After such experience, there was so much pain and hurt left. Though I was “just a kid” I was well aware of what was happening and what my family was going through. Stress is such an overpowering emotion, it tends to take over one’s life, and after a while, the person becomes numb. I Thank God everyday for the protection he puts on my family, because even now, almost 13 years later, I can not imagine our outcome without him.
Reference:
http://www.cnn.com/2017/08/26/us/gallery/hurricane-harvey/index.html
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