page_title: Timeline of Hurricane Katrina
section_title: Wednesday, August 31, 2005
hierarchical_section_title: Timeline of Hurricane Katrina / Aftermath / Wednesday, August 31, 2005
caption_attribution_description: English: President George W. Bush looks out over the devastation in New Orleans from Hurricane Katrina as he heads back to Washington D.C. Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2005, aboard Air Force One.
context_section_description: Hurricane Katrina is downgraded to a tropical depression.
  At 10:00 PM CDT (0300 UTC), Mayor Ray Nagin announced that the planned sandbagging of the 17th Street Canal levee breach had failed. At the time, 85% of the city was underwater.
  Michael Chertoff released a memo to other cabinet members and the Environmental Protection Agency stating that, "the President has established the 'White House Task Force on Hurricane Katrina Response.' He will meet with us tomorrow to launch this effort." The memo also declared Hurricane Katrina to be an Incident of National Significance and designated Michael Brown, Under-Secretary for Emergency Preparedness and Response (EP&R), as the Principal Federal Official (PFO) for incident management purposes."
  In a national news conference presided over by Chertoff, EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson announces relaxation of Federal fuel and emissions standards in response to Katrina.
  The USS Bataan was positioned off the coast of Gulfport, Mississippi to support the relief efforts. The United States Navy moved additional ships and helicopters into the region at the request of FEMA. The number of National Guardsmen on duty in the Gulf Coast rose to approximately 8,300 [actually 10,428 Army National Guard and 960 Air National Guard were deployed - 11,388 total]. They remained under their respective governor's control, which enables them to provide law-enforcement support in the affected regions, which is prohibited [to the military] by the Posse Comitatus Act.
  President Bush returned early to Washington from vacationing at his ranch in Crawford, Texas. Though he does not stop in Louisiana, Air Force One flies low over the Gulf Coast so that he can view the devastation in Air Force One. He later declared a Public Health Emergency for the Gulf Coast.
  Mayor Nagin ordered almost the entire New Orleans' police force to abandon search and rescue missions and turn their attention toward controlling the widespread looting and a curfew is placed in effect.
  State workers began work at closing the 17th Street Canal breach, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers adds additional resources to the task.
  At 11:00 PM EDT (0300 UTC), the National Hurricane Center announced that the center of the remnant low of what was Hurricane Katrina has been completely absorbed by a frontal boundary in southeastern Canada, with no discernible circulation. The remnants of the hurricane caused roads in northern Quebec to be rutted and eroded by heavy rainfall, isolating the north shore communities for several days.
  BNSF Railway announced that it expected to restore limited freight service to southern Louisiana by September 1. Other than debris on the mainline, the biggest problem facing crews working to reopen the line is the damage to the Bayou Boeuf bridge in Morgan City, Louisiana. The bridge and bridge piers were struck by a barge propelled by the storm's winds and wave action. BNSF sent crews to repair damaged railway signal systems starting on August 30. BNSF transferred freight through other hubs such as St. Louis, Chicago, and Memphis until service was restored.
  Norfolk Southern (NS) announced that the majority their mainlines that were damaged by Hurricane Katrina were again operational. They removed almost 3,700 fallen trees and inspected over 1,400 miles (2,253 km) of track before setting trains in motion. Tracks directly into New Orleans, however, remained out of service due to washouts, continued flooding, as well as the city's evacuation orders. Freight that would have normally transferred in New Orleans was routed to other terminals across the NS system. The company's experience with previous hurricanes helped it to prepare action plans before Katrina made landfall. They moved repair equipment, supplies and employees into nearby areas and quickly deployed them to inspect and repair the system after the storm passed.
  USCG helicopters rescued 1,259 more people off house roof tops to total of 1,609.
caption: President Bush observes damage from Hurricane Katrina over New Orleans, August 31.
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