Hurricane Katrina

1533 Words4 Pages

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. Hurricane Katrina put a hindrance on New Orleans because the city was left with blighted properties that span from the 9th ward to the 7th ward. Blighted properties were a direct result from flooding, wind damage, and citizens that moved or were displaced by Hurricane Katrina. When the levees broke an abundance of water entered the city and caused homes and business to become flooded. When the city was under water for days it created damage, homes were crumbled to pieces and even uprooted from the ground. Flooding even caused homes to deteriorate and become inhabitable and unsuitable. Blighted properties became breeding grounds for crime, infestation of rodents and other animals, dumping of dead bodies, fires (arson), mold, squatters (homeless), and other serious health issues. These are serious challenges that the city of New Orleans must tackle. Blighted properties are homes are lots that are not livable to humans. As stated in the RS 14:107.3 for the Louisiana State Legislative that: (1) "Blighted property" means those commercial or residential pre... ... middle of paper ... ...4. Orleans, Jesse Hardman / New. "Abandoned but Not Uninhabited: The Blighted Homes of New Orleans." Time. Time Inc., 06 June 2011. Web. 9 Mar. 2014. "Rodents." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 29 July 2010. Web. 8 Mar. 2014. "La Vie Orleans." La Vie Orleans. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Mar. 2014. . Williams, Timothy. "Blighted Cities Prefer Razing to Rebuilding." The New York Times. The New York Times, 11 Nov. 2013. Web. 20 Mar. 2014. . Singer, Merrill. "A World Out Of Balance ." Introduction to syndemics a critical systems approach to public and community health. Unabridged. ed. San Francisco, Calif.: Jossey-Bass, 2013. 193. Print.

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