Executive summary Hazard mitigation planning is an approach aimed at ascertaining ways to reduce the effects, deaths and damage to property that might result in the occurrence of a natural of man-made hazard. Hurricanes are among the costliest and the most destructive of natural disasters. Since 1995, the United States has witnessed more intense activities by hurricanes with Mobile County in Alabama experiencing hurricane Ivan and hurricane Dennis in 2004 and 2005 (Link, 2010). In 2005, Hurricane Katrina was the costliest and one of the deadliest hurricanes to have hit the United States and was rated category three in Mobile County (Marchi, 2007). The response to the disaster was poor owing to the lack of proper disaster preparedness as well as hazard mitigation planning. The very possibility of a hurricane hitting Alabama in the near future-within which the County of Mobile is located- appears as a near certainty going by past occurrences. The authorities as well as the community in Mobile County need to be more prepared for disasters by instituting hazard mitigation measures. These measures should be actualized through an effort by the County authorities in conjunction with the major stakeholders to put together a team that will comprehensively analyze hurricane Katrina and other past hurricanes affecting Mobile County. The Hurricane mitigation plan for the city of Mobile sets out the available resources and important information that would assist the community in reducingthe effects of a hurricane that might occur in future. The plan concentrates on measures and actions that can be put in place to reduce the effects of a hurricane. It covers an assessment of risk, sets out a strategy for minimizing the effects, and present... ... middle of paper ... ... Hurricane Katrina and New Orleans. Ocean Engineering, 37(1), 4-12. Marchi, B. D. (2007). Not Just a matter of Knowledge: The Katrina Debacle. Environmental Hazards, 7(2), 141-149. Rodiek J. (2007). Landscape Planning in Hazardous Zones, Lessons from Hurricane Katrina, August 2005. Landscape and Urban Planning, 79(1), 1-4. Sadowski N. & Sutter D. (2008). Mitigation Motivated by Past Experience: Prior Hurricanes and Damages. Ocean and Coastal Management, 51(4), 303-313. Waugh, W. (2006). Shelter from the Storm: Repairing the National Emergency Management System after Hurricane Katrina. Michigan City: SAGE Publications. Yarnal B. (2007). Vulnerability and all that Jazz: Addressing Vulnerability in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. Technology in Society, 29(2), 249-255. Forren J. (2005). Hurricane Katrina. Journal of Peri Anesthesia Nursing, 20(5), 303-304.
New Orleans, Louisiana lies at the second lowest elevation among major cities in the United States. It is a city surrounded by water, making it almost like an island. To counter this dangerous combination of the low elevation along with the lakes, rivers and swamps surrounding it, the Army Corps of Engineers built a series of levees around the city to foster its protection. It is these very same levees however that might doom the city should a Category 3 hurricane ever hit. Our statistical analyses examined the current belief that there is a 39% probability that New Orleans will be hit by a major hurricane and based on the resulting Z-score, rejected that belief. We did find however that the probability, while not 39%, was still in the 30th percentile range, which should still be a major cause for concern among the leaders and residences of the city of New Orleans.
Royer, Jordan. “Hurricane Sandy and the importance of being FEMA”, Crosscut.com, Crosscut.com, Web. 1 Nov 2012, 3 May 2014.
In the late summer of 2005, a terrible tragedy occurred that changed the lives of many in the south-east region of the United States. A Category 3, named storm, named Hurricane Katrina, hit the Gulf Coast on the 29th of August and led to the death of 1,836 and millions of dollars’ worth of damage (Waple 2005). The majority of the damage occurred in New Orleans, Louisiana. Waple writes in her article that winds “gusted over 100 mph in New Orleans, just west of the eye” (Waple 2005). Not only was the majority of the damage due to the direct catastrophes of the storm but also city’s levees could no longer hold thus breaking and releasing great masses of water. Approximately, 80% of the city was submerged at sea level. Despite the vast amount of damage and danger all throughout the city, officials claimed that there was work being done to restore the city of New Orleans as a whole but many parts, and even the people, of the city were overlooked while areas of the city with higher economic value, and more tourist traffic, were prioritized along with those individuals.
Van Heerden, Ivor Ll. "The Failure of the New Orleans Levee System Following Hurricane Katrina and the Pathway Forward." Public Administration Review, 67.6 (2007): 24-35.
It was striking in New Orleans in July 2004. Unfortunately, this exercise was not successful because of three reasons: the funding was cut off for the follow-up to the exercise, while planning it became evident that multiple workshops would be required, and the issue for medication for hurricane Katrina victims was not finalized. A scenario-based planning exercise process was quite effective. As Katrina approached, state officials knew they were not prepared enough, and it had not been completed. However, after the exercise, the government and local originations have learned how to prepare and practice in emergency
The Coast Guard, for instance, rescued some 34,000 people in New Orleans alone, and many ordinary citizens commandeered boats, offered food and shelter, and did whatever else they could to help their neighbors. Yet the government–particularly the federal government–seemed unprepared for the disaster. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) took days to establish operations in New Orleans, and even then did not seem to have a sound plan of action. Officials, even including President George W. Bush, seemed unaware of just how bad things were in New Orleans and elsewhere: how many people were stranded or missing; how many homes and businesses had been damaged; how much food, water and aid was needed. Katrina had left in her wake what one reporter called a “total disaster zone” where people were “getting absolutely
According to Hurricane Katrina At Issue Disasters, economic damages from Hurricane Katrina have been estimated at more than $200 billion… More than a million people were displaced by the storm… An estimated 120,000 homes were abandoned and will probably be destroyed in Louisiana alone (At * Issue). For this perspective, “Hurricane Katrina change the Gulf Coast landscape and face of its culture when it hit in 2005” (Rushton). A disaster like Katrina is something the victims are always going to remember, for the ones the lost everything including their love ones. Katrina became a nightmare for all the people that were surround in the contaminated waters in the city of New Orleans. People were waiting to be rescue for days,
The Florida Catastrophic Planning (FLCP) Initiative was conducted under the auspices of the National Catastrophic Planning Process (CPP), as mandated by the Homeland Security Act of 2002, which was amended by the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act of 2007. The Act of 2007 expanded the roles and responsibilities of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in preparing for catastrophes as a result of the dismal response to Hurricane Katrina (Ruback et al., 2010). FEMA was given specific requirements to better prepare for catastrophic disasters and the FLCP planning process embodies one the first major tests of the CCP.
middle of paper ... ... The. “Hurricane Andrew: The Human Side of Recovery.” Disaster Recovery Journal, System Support Inc. 1 Sept. 2001. Web.
Hurricane Katrina was one of the most devastating natural disasters to happen in the United States. The storm resulted in more then US$100 billion in damage when the cities flood protection broke and 80% of the city was flooded (1). The protection failure was not the only cause for the massive flooding, the hurricanes clockwise rotation pulled water from north of New Orleans into the city. 330,000 homes were destroyed and 400,000 people from New Orleans were displaced, along with 13,00 killed (1). Although the population quickly recovered, the rate of recovery slowed down as the years went on leading us to believe not everyone
On August 29, 2005 Hurricane Katrina forced its way into New Orleans, Louisiana with winds of more than 140 mph. This storm was a strong category three when it hit New Orleans. Hurricane Katrina destroyed homes, businesses, and factories from the high winds and flooding. The devastation that the city suffered was terrible; many people lost family members young and old and also their most prized possessions. Most of all it displaced families and caused an abundance of damage to properties. Due to the costly destruction that the city of New Orleans faced after Katrina, they must now find a way to alleviate the blighted properties from their environment and also face the challenges.
Some of the damage done by Hurricane Katrina could have potentially been avoided if protection systems were installed to the proper extents. In Louisiana, “some parts of the metro area continue to lack hurricane protection built to federal standards” (Webster). Had the greater Louisiana area been better protected, it is very likely that more people would have survived and the total cost of the storm been less. Even in areas where levees...
All of us are aware that law enforcement plays a big role in our society. During the natural disasters, law enforcement becomes even more important and many people begin to depend on them. It is obvious that natural disasters tend to create chaos, mess, disorganization and their role is to calm people down. They are the ones who are helping victims with their fears, concerns, and public safety and still keeping “law and order”. In my paper I want to take a deep look at how law enforcement dealt with natural disasters, such as Hurricane Katrina, and at their positive and negative impacts on our society. By looking through the article, journals and books I came to know that during Hurricane Katrina, law enforcement agencies were not well prepared to handle it. During natural disasters the most important part of law enforcement agencies is to be aware of pre-disaster planning as well as have special training. According to Michael Smith, “Katrina clearly demonstrated, however, that the failure by local law enforcement agencies to imagine and plan for major hurricane exacerbated the public safety impacts of the storm and severely hampered their ability to provide much-needed public services” (2006: 05).
Kay, Joseph. "Hurricane Katrina: a calamity compounded by poverty and neglect." World Socialist Website. N.p., 31 Aug. 2005. Web. 17 Apr. 2014.
Hurricanes occur all over the world, at different times, but commonly through June first and late November. However in late August 2005 a catastrophic hurricane struck. This was Hurricane Katrina. With winds traveling over one hundred miles per hour making it a category five on the Saffir- Simpson Hurricane Scale it was said to have cause billions of dollars’ worth of damage. Hurricane Katrina flooded nearly forty thousand homes, and killed at least two thousand people (“Hurricane”). An average category five hurricane has enough energy to power street lamps for more than twenty seven thousand hours (Williams 58). Knowing about Hurricane Katrina, and the devastation of the city in New Orleans would be beneficial. Also, general information on hurricanes can help civilians and people of higher authority better understand and prepare for damage that could once hit their town and community. Because experts know the general information on these storms they can help explain to the public why and how Hurricane Katrina and other hurricanes occur. Hopefully, in the future civilians will know and use this information to their advantage against hurricanes.