Hurricane Katrina, a tropical cyclone, struck the southeastern United States in August 2005. It breached levees and caused widespread death and damage. Here are some key facts:
- Impact and Destruction:
- Deaths: Hurricane Katrina claimed more than 1,800 lives.
- Costliest Natural Disaster: It ranked as the costliest natural disaster in U.S. history.
- Damage: The storm caused over $160 billion in damage.
- Population Impact: Between the fall of 2005 and 2011, it reduced the population of New Orleans by 29 percent1.
- Formation and Intensity:
- Katrina formed on August 23, 2005, and within a week, it grew from a tropical depression into a category 4 hurricane.
- It made landfall near New Orleans on the U.S. Gulf Coast, bringing widespread destruction and flooding.
- The storm intensified rapidly over the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico1.
- New Orleans Impact:
- Deaths: More than 1,400 Louisiana residents, most from New Orleans, lost their lives.
- Flooding: The city experienced 140 square miles of flooding.
- Housing Damage: Approximately 160,000 homes in the area were damaged or destroyed.
- Even a year later, portions of the city remained blighted, and around 240,000 New Orleans residents were still displaced2.
- Beyond New Orleans:
Hurricane Katrina left an indelible mark on the region, reshaping lives and communities in its wake.
As Hurricane Katrina approached the state of Louisiana, I paid her no mind as I lived in Washington State. I didn’t know that my perception was wrong, wrong, wrong. At the time, I worked as an Office Manager at Rolls Royce Marine. We employed engineers who completed warranty work on propellers used to propel all types of commercial ships.
How did Hurricane Katrina impact us? All of our servers were located physically in New Orleans, Louisiana. Our entire enterprise was compromised. There were so many meetings, conferences, and conference calls.
Hurricane Katrina is unforgettable to me because of this. I became so aware that crises come whether you are prepared or not.
August 2005, I believe this was the pivot point for what we are experiencing today. Hurricane Katrina was a spiritual milestone. A point of no return. I tried to answer some spiritual questions through prayer, sacrifice, and advocacy. I volunteered, I went to church, I lectured, I worked hard, I did everything that I knew to do to try to alleviate the bumper crops of ill will and judgment that was to come.
Nothing I could do was going to change outcomes.
Something changed though. I changed.
I learned to let sleeping dogs lie.
I learned to stop helping the doomed.
I learned to sever ties with those who had already died mentally and spiritually even as physically they still moved, walked, and breathed. However, they were completely and totally dead. There was nothing for me to do but leave flowers, light a candle and go on with my life.
I remember Hurricane Katrina today.
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