Hurricane Katrina Flashcards
When did it occur?
August 2005
What category was the hurricane?
5
When did the first storm develop and where?
23rd August over the Bahamas
When was Katrina upgraded to a category 4?
28th August
What were sustained wind speeds at?
280 km/hour
What were gusts of wind at?
345 km/hour
When were advanced warnings in place by?
26th August
What did President Bush declare and when?
a state of emergency on 27th August in Louisiana/Alabama/Mississippi
Where does New Orleans lie?
Gulf Coast of USA
How many hurricanes have there been since 1924?
33
Why do the flood controls mean the city is at risk?
the original flood control measures had resulted in the shrinkage of soils, meaning over 50% of land was below sea level
What failure was inevitable?
levee
When was the evacuation plan drawn up?
19 hours before Katrina would hit
How many people remained mainly by choice?(000,000)
150,000
What size was the storm surge that came?
up to 10 metres high in places
How many became refugees?(000,000,000)
1 million
How many states had refugees registered?
all 50 states
What percentage of New Orleans was submerged by water?
80%
How many homes were flooded?(000,000)
110,000 out of 180,000
How many homes were badly damaged?(00,000)
55,000
What sized area was declared a disaster zone?
233,000 km squared
How many fatalities?(0,000)
1,242
Why did limited amount of people die?
USA had the infrastructure
What was an immediate effect of oil installations being destroyed?
price of oil shot up, petrol in UK was £1 per litre for the first time
What was the financial costs?
$200 billion
What did the US senate authorise?
a bill assigning $10.5 billion in aid
How many did coastguards rescue?
33,000 out of 60,000
How much in aid for victims?
$62.3 billion
What did the storm surge cause?
Beach erosion - devastating coastal areas