11 Facts About Hurricane Katrina

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1. Hurricane Katrina was the largest and 3rd strongest hurricane ever recorded to make landfall in the US.^[National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. "Hurricanes in History." National Hurricane Center. Accessed March 2, 2014. http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/outreach/history/#katrina.]
2. In New Orleans, the levees were designed for Category 3, but Katrina peaked at a Category 5 hurricane, with winds up to 175 mph.^[National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. "Hurricane Katrina: A climitalogical perspective." National Hurricane Center. Accessed March 2, 2014. http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/reports/tech-report-200501z.pdf.]
3. The final death toll was at 1,836, primarily from Louisiana (1,577) and Mississippi (238). More than half of these victims were senior citizens. Keep seniors safe and sound, and help them plan for hurricane season.^[Jorgenson, Ellen. "Hurricane Katrina: Humanitarian Obligations and Lessons Learned." University of Denver.Accessed March 2, 2014. https://www.du.edu/korbel/criic/humanitarianbriefs/ellenjorgenson.pdf.]
4. The storm surge from Katrina was 20-ft (six meters) high.^[Ahrens, C Donald. "Hurricanes." InStudyguide for meteorology today by ahrens, c. donald, isbn 9780840054999. S.l.: Academic Internet Publish, 2012. 447.]
5. 705 people are reported as still missing as a result of Hurricane Katrina.^[Jorgenson, Ellen. "Hurricane Katrina: Humanitarian Obligations and Lessons Learned." University of Denver. Accessed March 2, 2014. https://www.du.edu/korbel/criic/humanitarianbriefs/ellenjorgenson.pdf.]
6. Hurricane Katrina affected over 15 million people in different ways varying from having to evacuate their homes, rising gas prices, and the economy suffering.^[FREY, ASHLEY ELIZABETH. "THE IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON HURRICANE FLOODING INUNDATION, PROPERTY DAMAGES, AND POPULATION AFFECTED." Texas A&M University. Accessed March 2, 2014. https://repository.tamu.edu/bitstream/handle/1969.1/ETD-TAMU-2009-05-616/FREY-THESIS.pdf?sequence=2.]
7. An estimated 80% of New Orleans was under water, up to 20 ft deep in places.^[Cooper, Anderson, Kathleen Koch, David Mattingly, Jeanne Meserve, Miles O'Brien, Jim Spellman, Gary Tuchman, and John Zarrella. "New Orleans shelters to be evacuated." CNN. Accessed March 2, 2014. http://www.cnn.com/2005/WEATHER/08/30/katrina/index.html?section=cnn_us.]
8. Hurricane Katrina caused $81 billion in property damages, but it is estimated that the total economic impact in Louisiana and Mississippi may exceed $150 billion, earning the title of costliest hurricane ever in US history.^[Answers Corporation. "New Orleans Economy Still Recovering from Hurricane Katrina." Business Answers. Accessed March 2, 2014. http://business.answers.com/economics/new-orleans-economy-still-recovering-from-hurricane-katrina.]
9. Hurricane Katrina impacted about 90,000 square miles.^[National Research Council. Environmental Public Health Impacts of Disasters: Hurricane Katrina, Workshop Summary. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press, 2007.]
10. The region affected by the storm supported roughly 1 million non-farm jobs, and still, hundreds of thousands of local residents were left unemployed by the hurricane.^[Burton, Mark L.; Hicks, Michael J. "Hurricane Katrina: Preliminary Estimates of Commercial and Public Sector Damages." Marshall University: Center for Business and Economic Research. September 2005. Retrieved on March, 2, 2014.]
11. More than 70 countries pledged monetary donations or other assistance after the hurricane. Kuwait made the largest single pledge of $500 million, but Qatar, India, China, Pakistan and Bangladesh made very large donations as well.^["From abroad, offers of aid for Katrina victims." People's Weekly World, September 10, 2005.Retrieved March 2, 2014. http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=103x155747.]