Hurricane Katrina 2005

The Costliest Natural Disaster in U.S. History Destroyed New Orleans

May 29, 2008

Katrina was one of the five deadliest hurricanes to ever strike the U.S. and caused extensive damage in the coastal areas along the Gulf of Mexico.

Hurricane Katrina is most remembered due to the extensive destruction of New Orleans where levees were overpowered by a 30-foot storm surge. In addition to extensive flooding in New Orleans, buildings along the Mississippi and Alabama coastline were smashed by the storm surge.

How Hurricane Katrina Formed

Tropical Depression Ten which never became a storm dissipated northeast of the Barbados on August 14th but it left behind unsettled weather. On August 11th, a tropical disturbance originating near the west coast of Africa crossed the Atlantic Ocean and merged with the remnants of Tropical Depression Ten on August 22nd.

On August 23rd 2005, this weather disturbance was named Tropical Depression Twelve as it slowly crossed the southeastern Bahamas. By the morning of August 24th, the depression intensified and by the afternoon, this tropical storm was named Katrina. It was the 11th tropical storm of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season.

As Katrina started to mix with the atmospheric conditions produced by the Gulf of Mexico and southern States, it was upgraded to a hurricane on August 25th while it was positioned over the northwestern Bahamas. Less than two hours later, Katrina made landfall on the southeastern coast of Florida.

Katrina was classified as a Category 1 hurricane as it made landfall at Miami-Dade County around 10:30 pm local time. The maximum sustained wind speed was clocked at 70 knots or 80.6 mph. As it moved westward overnight in Florida, Katrina weakened slightly to a tropical storm status. Katrina then emerged into the Gulf of Mexico six hours later at 5:00am local time on August 26th 2005. One hour later, it regained hurricane status as it picked up moisture from the Gulf of Mexico.

During the period of August 26th to August 28th, Katrina intensified over the Gulf of Mexico. Within the first 24 hours, the wind speed had increased to 95 knots or 109.4 mph. around 6:00am. By noon on August 27th, Katrina was upgraded to a Category 3 hurricane with sustained winds of 100 knots or 115.2 mph. At this stage, Katrina was approximately 365 miles southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River.

For the remainder of August 27th, Katrina continued to intensify as it moved westward over the Gulf of Mexico. By the end of the day, Katrina had doubled in size and the storm force winds extended out approximately 140 miles from the storm center.

On August 28th Katrina took on a northwest path and went through a period of rapid intensification. By noon of August 28th, Katrina had jumped up to a Category 5 hurricane sustained winds of 145 knots or 167 mph. and hit is peak of 150 knots or 172.8 mph at 6:00pm. By now, Katrina was 170 miles southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River. Tropical storm force winds extended 200 miles from the center and hurricane-force winds extended out for 90 miles.

Very late on August 28th, Katrina started to weaken as the eyewall began to erode. By the time Katrina made landfall on the Gulf coast, it was classified as a Category 3 hurricane.

At 11:10am local time on August 29th 2005, Katrina made landfall at Buras Louisiana with sustained winds of 110 knots or 126.7 mph. It continued northward and made its final landfall entry near the mouth of the Pearl River near the Louisiana and Mississippi border. Katrina quickly weakened as it moved inland over Mississippi. By 6pm, it was downgraded to a Category 1 hurricane and then to a tropical storm by midnight.

Damage Caused by Katrina

The Mississippi and Alabama coastlines suffered severe damage from Katrina’s 30-foot (9 m) storm surge. Levees along Gulf Intracoastal Waterway and the London Avenue and 17th Street canals in New Orleans failed which caused extensive flooding. Approximately 80% of New Orleans was under water. Estimated damage was around $81.2 billion and it’s still not the final figure. So far, 1,836 people have been confirmed dead as a result of Katrina’s fury. Parts of New Orleans have never been cleaned up.

Tropical Cyclone Report, Hurricane Katrina: Richard D. Knabb, Jamie R. Rhome, and Daniel P. Brown. National Hurricane Center, 20 December 2005

The copyright of the article Hurricane Katrina 2005 in Tornadoes & Hurricanes is owned by Maureen K. Fleury. Permission to republish Hurricane Katrina 2005 in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.