Hurricane Katrine Case Study Flashcards
Where did hurricane Katrina first hit
Around the Bahamas
When did hurricane Katrina hit the Bahamas
23rd August 2005
Where did hurricane Katrina go onto hit
New Orleans
When did hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans
August 29th 2005
What category of hurricane was Katrina
Category 5 hurricane
What winds did this category 3 hurricane produce
111mph
What was the storm surge of hurricane Katrina
8.5 storm surge
Within 24 hours how much rain did New Orleans experience
250mm of rain
Formation. What are the 4 essential conditions for hurricane formation
26 degrees sea temp for top 60m
Latitude of 5-20N/S of the equator
Seasonality (June-November)
High humidity
Describe the reasons for a hurricane needing 26 degrees sea temp for top 60m of water
This is required to heat the air above which leads to the air rising, cooling , with humidity increasing. Dew point is then reached. Condensation occurs with water droplets forming around a nuclei, then the water droplets grow in size (collision theory) forming large CUMULONIMBUS thunderstorm clouds
Why does hurricane formation need latitudes of 5-20N/S of the equator
Here the coriolus spin effect can help clumped thunderstorms start to spin in their anti-clockwise direction to build up their to the required 74mph category 1 status
Why is hurricane season from late June until November
At this time of year the sea water has retained heat from the strong summer insulation due to LAWS OF THERMODYNAMICS. This will result in a very strong conventional uplift heating
Why does hurricanes require high humidity
Hugh humidity allows the air in the Atlantic to reach dew point quickly and help drive the latent heat engine found in hurricanes. When thunderstorms pour out their rain, latent heat us given off and the storm heats up further lowering the surface pressure and drawing in more surface air
IOP. how many people where killed in New Orleans
1836 people killed
IOP. How many people were killed directly from the levee breach surge of water
700
IOP. What % of people were evacuated and where too
90% of residents evacuated to Texas
IOP. How many people were temporarily homeless and what did many people find difficult
500,000 and many people found it difficult to leave the area
IOP. How many jobs where lost
250,000 jobs were lost
IOP. Why were so many jobs lost and where
Many businesses damaged/destroyed and many ports were destroyed in the Gulf of Mexico
IOP. How many people were left without electricity
3 million without electricity
IOP. What were the health hazards
Water was contaminated with sewage and dead bodies
IOPR. Where where many houses destroyed
Mainly close to the 9th Ward and London street levees
IOPR. How many houses where destroyed
300,000
IOPR. How many temporary houses were built
100,00 temporary houses
IOPR. what collapsed in New Orleans
New Orleans Superdome roof collapsed
IOPR. What was the most damaged hotel in New Orleans
Hyatt Regency hotel
IOPR. What was the name of the mayor that had an outburst
Mayor Nagin
IOPR. why did mayor Nagin have an outburst
He had an outburst over the no electricity supply for 3 million people for 6 weeks
PMS. Describe the efficiency of the NHS warning system
The NHS had a very easy and efficient working system which was able to accurately predict and track the back of the hurricane to warm the most endangered areas
PMS. How many hours warning did the NHS warning system give people
19 hours warning
NMS. Why was the NHS warning system not totally effective
Although the NHS warning system was well thought out and thorough, in order to be most effective, the plan and warning needed to be given 3 days before the hurricane hit, but with Katrina the warning was only 19 hours which resulted in many people stranded in floods
NMS. Describe the FEMA emergency service preparation
The preparation was robust and helped New Orleans before and 6 months after the storm but a year later the former FEMA chief reviewed that there was no plan for dealing with the aftermath of Katrina
PMS. How was the Red Cross effective with its help and in how many states
The Red Cross was able to set up 356 temporary shelters to help the sick, homeless and injured in 9 states
NMS. Why was there an improvement needed with rescuing
Many people were stranded on top of rooftops for days without any food or water. Many people felt that the government were slow and delayed in getting the right aid to the right people
NMS. Why did the levees breach
The levees were built to survive a category 3 hurricane not a category 5 hurricane
PMS. How did the government practice responses to a similar storm event
The government created a fictional Hurricane Pam in 2004 and modelled different responses to cope with category 3 hurricane
Overall how effective were the management strategies put in place for hurricane Katrina
Overall ineffective
Why was the management strategies overall ineffective
- Many significant engineering errors in the structure and building of levees as they failed. The levees allowed the storm surge to enter New Orleans (9th Ward and London Avenue)
