Katrina on the Gulf Coast 

NASA photo
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Chapter 2

Hurricane Katrina: 

Indicators of Impact

Deaths caused by Hurricane Katrina, as of May 23, 20061 1,577

Deaths caused by 20th century’s most lethal hurricane, 

1935’s “Labor Day Hurricane” in Florida2

 400+

Land area damaged by Hurricane Katrina3

 90,000 sq. miles 

Ratio of area damaged by Katrina to area of United Kingdom 1:1

Homes destroyed or made unlivable by Hurricane Katrina4 300,000

Ratio of homes damaged or made unlivable by Katrina to 

the number similarly aff ected by 1992’s Hurricane 

Andrew, the most destructive recent hurricane5

 10:1

Estimated economic loss related to Hurricane Katrina6

 $125 - $150 billion 

Estimated economic loss related to 20th century’s previous 

most destructive hurricane (Andrew, FL, 1992)7 $48.4 billion (2005 dollars)

Economic losses from 9/11 terror attacks, 20018

 $87 billion (2005 dollars) 

Louisiana unemployment rate, August 2005 5.6 percent9

Louisiana unemployment rate, September 2005 12.1 percent10

Widest extent of Katrina’s tropical-storm force winds the 

day before landfall11 460 miles

Approximate ratio to distance from Kansas City to Dallas 1:1

Sustained-wind speed at landfall, August 29, near Buras, LA12 125 miles per hour

Rainfall accumulation along Gulf Coast from Katrina13 8 to 10 inches 

Storm surges above normal ocean levels, various locations14 20 to 30 feet

Electric customers, all types, left without power by storm15 1.7 million

Gulf of Mexico daily oil output shut down by Katrina16 95 percent

Number of oil spills caused by Katrina17 142

Gallons of oil spilled18 8 million

Gallons of oil recovered by Coast Guard as of Dec. 7, 200519 3.8 million

Estimated debris created by Hurricane Katrina20 118 million cu. yds

Ratio to debris created by Hurricane Andrew21 6:1

Number of children reported displaced/missing22 5,088

Number reunited with families or guardians23 5,088

 

Last date at which bodies have been found in New Orleans24 April 17, 2006

Number of bodies unclaimed or unidentifi ed25 200
Chapter 2

38

Approximate ratio of New Orleans population in 2000 to 

January 200626 3:1 

Ratio of tons of debris created by Katrina in the three coastal 

Mississippi counties, as compared to the combined 

debris of the 9/11 attacks and Hurricane Andrew27 1:1

1 Michelle Hunter, “Deaths of evacuees push toll to 1,577,” New Orleans Times-Picayune, May 19, 2006, p. 1. Th e article 

indicates that the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals added 281 victims to earlier counts on May 18, 2006, 

aft er offi cials concluded from a review of evacuees’ out-of-state death certifi cates that many were Katrina-related, such as 

from stress or loss of access to essential medications. 

2 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), “NOAA’s Top U.S. Weather, Water and Climate Events 

of the 20th Century,” Dec. 13, 1999. http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories/s334c.htm. Accessed on Mar. 26, 2006. 

3 Written Statement of Sec. Michael Chertoff , U.S. Department of Homeland Security, for the U.S. Senate, Committee 

on Homeland Security and Governmental Aff airs, hearing on Hurricane Katrina: Th e Homeland Security Department’s 

Preparation and Response, Feb. 15, 2006, p. 1.

4 Written Statement of Sec. Chertoff , Senate Committee hearing, Feb. 15, 2006, p. 1.

5 Written Statement of Walter Isaacson, Vice Chairman, Louisiana Recovery Authority, for the U.S. House, Committee 

on Financial Services, hearing on H.R. 4100, the Louisiana Recovery Corporation Act, Nov. 17, 2005, p. 1.

6 Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, “Bank Performance Aft er Natural Disasters: A Historical Perspective,” Jan. 16, 

2006. http://www.fdic.gov/bank/analytical/regional/ro20054q/na/2005_winter01.html. Accessed on Mar. 26, 2006.

7 Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, “Bank Performance Aft er Natural Disasters: A Historical Perspective,” Jan. 16, 

2006. http://www.fdic.gov/bank/analytical/regional/ro20054q/na/2005_winter01.html. Accessed on Mar. 26, 2006.

8 Written Statement of Douglas Holtz-Eakin, Director, Congressional Budget Offi ce, for the U.S. House, Committee on 

the Budget, hearing on Aft er the Hurricanes: Impact on the Fiscal Year 2007 Budget, Oct. 6, 2005. 

9 U.S. Department of Labor, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “State Unemployment Rates in September 2005,” Oct. 24, 

2005. http://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2005/oct/wk4/art01.htm. Accessed on Mar. 29, 2006.

10 U.S. Department of Labor, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “State Unemployment Rates in September 2005,” Oct. 24, 

2005. http://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2005/oct/wk4/art01.htm. Accessed on Mar. 29, 2006.

11 Richard D. Knabb, Jamie Rhome, and Daniel Brown, National Hurricane Center, “Tropical Cyclone Report, Hurricane Katrina,” Dec. 20, 2005.

12 NOAA, National Climatic Data Center, “Climate of 2005: Summary of Hurricane Katrina,” Dec. 29, 2005. http://

www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/research/2005/katrina.html. Accessed on Feb. 17, 2006.

13 NOAA, National Climatic Data Center, “Climate of 2005: Summary of Hurricane Katrina,” Dec. 29, 2005. http://

www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/research/2005/katrina.html. Accessed on Feb. 17, 2006.

14 NOAA, National Climatic Data Center, “Climate of 2005: Summary of Hurricane Katrina,” Dec. 29, 2005. http://

www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/research/2005/katrina.html. Accessed on Feb. 17, 2006.

15 NOAA, National Climatic Data Center, “Climate of 2005: Summary of Hurricane Katrina,” Dec. 29, 2005. http://

www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/research/2005/katrina.html. Accessed on Feb. 17, 2006.

16 NOAA, National Climatic Data Center, “Climate of 2005: Summary of Hurricane Katrina,” Dec. 29, 2005. http://

www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/research/2005/katrina.html. Accessed on Feb. 17, 2006.

17 Cmdr. Anthony Popiel, e-mail to Jason Yanussi, Senate Committee staff member, Apr. 6, 2006, 2 pm. 

18 Cmdr. Anthony Popiel, e-mail to Jason Yanussi, Senate Committee staff member, Apr. 6, 2006, 2 pm.

19 Cmdr. Anthony Popiel, e-mail to Jason Yanussi, Senate Committee staff member, Apr. 6, 2006, 2 pm.

20 Written Statement of Sec. Chertoff , Senate Committee hearing, Feb. 15, 2006, p. 2.

21 Written Statement of Sec. Chertoff , Senate Committee hearing, Feb. 15, 2006, p. 2.

22 National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, “National Center for Missing and Exploited Children Reunites 

Last Missing Child Separated by Hurricane Katrina and Rita,” press release, Mar. 17, 2006. http://www.missingkids.

com/missingkids/servlet/NewsEventServlet?LanguageCountry=en_US&PageId=2317. Accessed on Mar. 30, 2006.

23 National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, “National Center for Missing and Exploited Children Reunites 

Last Missing Child Separated by Hurricane Katrina and Rita,” press release, Mar. 17, 2006. http://www.missingkids.

com/missingkids/servlet/NewsEventServlet?LanguageCountry=en_US&PageId=2317. Accessed on Mar. 30, 2006.
Hurricane Katrina: Indicators of Impact

39

24 “Never-ending Sorrow,” New Orleans Times-Picayune, Apr. 19, 2006, p. 6. 

25 Michele Norris, All Th ings Considered, NPR, “New Orleans Seeks Final Home for Nameless Victims,” Feb. 13, 2006, 

9 p.m. Transcript accessed on LexisNexis.

26 City of New Orleans, Emergency Operations Center, Rapid Population Estimate Project, Jan. 28-29, 2006. http://www.

gnocdc.org/reports/NOLAPopEstimate.pdf. Accessed on Apr. 6, 2006.

27 Testimony of Don Powell, Coordinator of Recovery and Rebuilding in the Gulf Coast Region, U.S. Department of 

Homeland Security, before the U.S. Senate, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Aff airs, hearing on 

Mississippi’s Recovery from Hurricane Katrina, Jan. 17, 2006.