Response to Hurricane Katrina Essay Flashcards
Introduction
Hurricane Katrina was one of the most severe hurricanes in US history, hitting New Orleans on the 23 of August 2005 and leaving many devastating impacts on people’s lives. There were many ways that the people of New Orleans showed courage in response to the Hurricane. There was a controversial response from the federal government, who took days to take action. Contrarily, there was a very courageous response from healthcare workers who had to care for patients without power or technology for days. Finally, the survivors were truly the bravest group of people who responded to Hurricane Katrina.
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The group that showed the least amount of courage during Hurricane Katrina was the government and their response. When a disaster strikes, it is expected that a society should be able to turn to the government to provide supplies and shelter, aid the rebuilding and help evacuate people. Most importantly, the federal government is expected to act promptly and calmly, but their response was far from that. The National Weather Service of the United States gave the government a warning that “there will be human suffering incredible by modern standards” the day before the Hurricane struck, but they were unprepared despite this.
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After Katrina, the government was not proactive in organising evacuations and supplies for the people stranded at the Superdome, although it came across that way when they gave faulty information to the public about their actions. In the weeks and months after the Hurricane, the government made mistakes that could have easily been avoided, like paying around $900 million for new mobile homes for residents whose houses were damaged, that couldn’t even be used. There were also supply failures where supplies were sent to the wrong places and did not have enough in the first place.
It is clear that the government’s response to Hurricane Katrina was slow and unreliable, leaving many residents suffering for days and weeks succeeding in Hurricane Katrina.
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Contrastingly, a group that showed courage during Hurricane Katrina were the medical workers. For the majority of Hurricane Katrina and the aftermath, the hospitals in New Orleans had to function without power and technology for days. Nurses and doctors worked around the clock to ensure the health of many critically ill patients. Workers at Charity Hospital including Dr Ben DeBoisBlanc showed courage by staying behind in the trauma ward with the patients, waiting for them to be evacuated. When rescue helicopters finally arrived 5 days later, Dr DeBoisBlanc stopped at nothing to ensure that his patients would get the care they needed, in some cases this meant getting patients across chest-deep water to the nearest helipad.
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Meanwhile, at Memorial Hospital power was also out and temperatures inside were a stifling 38 degrees. The staff were stuck in the hospital for days with around 250 patients, so a small group of doctors had to make decisions on whose lives they would prioritise in terms of getting them to the rescue helicopter first. This took a lot of courage to make these ethical decisions, and many of those staff members still question whether they did the right thing. Therefore, medical workers showed courage during Hurricane Katrina because of their determination to help ill patients and the difficult ethical decisions that needed to be made.
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Finally, the Survivors undoubtedly showed the most courage in response to Hurricane Katrina by coming together and rebuilding the city. The citizens of New Orleans are used to packing up and evacuating for a few days, with minimal damage done when they returned. However, this time many people could not return to their homes, as the destruction was too extensive. Children and teens like Kenyon Dunbar and Myron Miller, who were 14 and 12, moved schools and houses many times.
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Katrina disrupted countless numbers of people’s lives but many of these people demonstrated resilience by facing their fears and returning to the damage. Many people had to start fresh, which is why over a year later, half the original population of New Orleans had finally returned, and that number increased to almost two-thirds by the following year. Over a decade later, these people have come together to help rebuild the city and its economy, and they are slowly but surely recovering. The uniting of New Orleans citizens after Hurricane Katrina meant they showed a lot of courage when rebuilding the city back to its former glory.
Conclusion
Overall, the survivors of Hurricane Katrina undoubtedly showed the most courage by returning and rebuilding their homes, followed by the medical workers who put their patients’ lives in front of their own. On the other hand, the federal government were not proactive or reliable and therefore didn’t demonstrate courage. Today, New Orleans has bounced back relatively well from the Hurricane, with its vibrant night-life culture and carnivals returning once more. But none of that would be possible if it wasn’t for the strength and spirit of the New Orleanians through the months and years of adversity after Hurricane Katrina.