FEMA Situation Update: Around this time 17 years ago, Hurricane Katrina bore down on New Orleans, and permanently changed life for thousands of people across the country. Hurricane Katrina: Caught on Camera Over three days in August 2005, a cataclysmic storm brought flooding and disaster to the Gulf Coast of America, leaving over 1,800 people dead in Louisiana and Mississippi. It was late August, and some of the staff of the NREMT and I were attending the combined NAEMT conference and EMS Expo in New . Bring enough to sustain yourself, your family, your children. Gettridge,a fifth generation New Orleanian, would go on to die from a heart attack in 2014 at the age of 91 at the home he had successfully rebuilt. Michael Ainsworth/The Dallas Morning News/epa/Corbis Just last week, a federal court ordered a new trial for five officers convicted of the Danziger Bridge shootings. Flew into the city. Around 9:30 a.m. Mayor Ray Nagin issues a mandatory evacuation. Find out more about how we use your personal data in our privacy policy and cookie policy. I went to the Adjutant General [Landreneau] and I went to Gov. Four were wounded, and 17-year-old James Brisette and 40-year-old Ronald Madison were killed. Rescue efforts are delayed because of the inability of rescuers to communicate with each other. The majority of industrial buildings will become non functional. ", Leo Bosner, FEMA watch officer: "I at least wanted a mandatory evacuation of New Orleans and the surrounding parishes [on Saturday]. When we didn't get any assistance from the state or from FEMA in the time period that we thought was appropriate, I got someone in an automobile and said, 'Go to Baton Rouge, go find out. Explore FRONTLINEs collected and ongoing reporting on Russia's war on Ukraine. ', And the president was a little stunned, and he kind of stepped back, and he recovered. The storm flooded New Orleans, killed more than 1,800 people, and caused . Officials said the complete evacuation of New Orleans two days earlier was necessary, citing the prospect of diseases caused by rotting bodies and polluted waters as well as other risks caused by Hurricane Katrina. Since many New Orleans streets are still filled with stagnant, fetid waters smelling of garbage and raw sewage, the military was considering using planes to spray for mosquitoes.". And then finally I just stopped and said: 'Excuse me, but time is of the essence. Kathleen Blanco, governor of Louisiana: Before Hurricane Katrina hit, New Orleans residents gathered to ride out the storm in what seemed like a pretty safe place, the Superdome, the city's football stadium . What I hope people will realize when they see Trouble the Water is that we still have so much to do here, and that Katrina really changed so many lives, but we are a really resilient people and we want our city to come back. I was able to get Governor Blanco to sit with me several times in the office that she had and talk about what needed to be done. What happened next was more than just a natural disaster especially in New Orleans, where the . At 1:30 in the morning, Denise Thornton walked with her group up to the helipad, out in the open air, and there it was. Years after Hurricane Katrina, a new documentary asks: What happened to Hurricane Katrina Superdome New Orleans National Guard - ESPN They were making suggestions about we need to do this and that. The hurricane caused billions of dollars of damage to the city, and killed thousands. The hurricane and its aftermath claimed more than 1,800 lives, and it ranked as the costliest natural disaster in U.S. history. hurricane katrina ripped through the Gulf Coast, claiming 1,800 lives. [Governor Blanco] probably should have asked sooner. NBC probing Brian Williams's reports on Iraq, Hurricane Katrina They didn't have communication. As of Nov. 22, 2005, more than 900 people are known to have died in New Orleans. But for five days in the midst of the storm, about 20,000 of these . Panels blew off and the roof was severely damaged, but it was the only shelter . ", Gov. And I knew it wasn't true, because 8:00 or 10:00 that morning, I received a report from one of my staffers that either a levee had been topped or had actually broken. And we need to get these people out of the Superdome because it's a shelter of last resort, and they only have a limited amount of resources.". In what looked like a scene from a Third World country, some people threw their arms heavenward and others nearly fainted with joy as the trucks and hundreds of soldiers arrived in the punishing midday heat. It has been nearly six years since Hurricane Katrina ripped through the Gulf of Mexico cutting a swathe of devastation and shock through the psyche of the American people. The police department -- reeling from desertions, flooding and the immensity of the disaster -- was in a survival mode itself. and catcalls of 'What took you so long?,' a National Guard convoy packed with food, water and medicine rolled through axle-deep floodwaters Friday into what remained of New Orleans and descended into a maelstrom of fires and floating corpses. Gov. The spot urges victims to report their assault by calling 1-800-656-HOPE. Exploring the experiences of a black member of the New Orleans Police Department and assorted other New Orleans residents during their stay in the Louisiana Superdome during and after Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans in 2005. Their communications center was useless. Thousands of displaced residents take cover from Hurricane Katrina at the Superdome in New . U.S. Cities and States Are Suing Big Oil Over Climate Change. Go up there, face to face and say, "What is happening here? Plus, if you lived in a FEMA trailer for three years like I did, the last thing you want to do is go to a trailer for medical care. And I said, "We're doing one in the morning.". Listen 7:57. "Katrina will regenerate on Friday over Gulf of Mexico, head west-northwest then turn northward. "I remember reading [that New Orleans had dodged a bullet]. And it was a very good meeting, I thought. As a shocking New Orleans documentary airs on HBO tonight, Phyllis Montana-LeBlancbestselling author and gutsy survivorexplains why the city is still drowning. And he said definitively, "Mr. Mayor, the storm is headed right for you. And there seems to be this dance about who has ultimate authority. The Coast Guard mobilizes to respond after the storm hits. Victims of Hurricane Katrina fight through the crowd as they line up for buses to evacuate the Superdome and New Orleans, Sept. 1, 2005. Last September, when Trouble the Water first premiered in New Orleans, I remember thinking, "I have to go down to Canal Place Cinema and support this." Visit us at HISTORY.com for more info. Even $20, if thats all you can afford in the recession, that helps. Nature Documentary hosted by Helen Baxandale, published by Channel 4 in 2010 - English narration Cover Information . More than four days after the storm hit, the caravan of at least three-dozen camouflage-green troop vehicles and supply trucks arrived along with dozens of air-conditioned buses to take refugees out of the city. The California Disaster Medical Assistance Team spent 24 hellish hours inside the Superdome. Hurricane Katrina: Caught on Camera - DocuWiki When Hurricane Katrina forced New Orleans poet Shelton Alexander to evacuate his home, he took his truck and video camera to the Superdome. Floodwaters from Hurricane Katrina fill the streets near downtown New Orleans, La., on Aug. 30, 2005. Hurricane Katrina: Lessons Learned - Chapter Five: Lessons - Archives hide caption. And he was the first guy that told us about the amount of devastation and the levee breaches. He escaped the chaotic shelter a few days . The Most Risky Job Ever. Reporting on ISIS in Afghanistan. I said, 'OK, great.' Anastasia says thugs were still wandering the streets of her neighborhood more than a week after the flood. Heres What the Claims Say and Where They Stand. There's no question.". Because of the ensuing . The outer ends of the hurricane also produced tornados . At 10 a.m., the Thorntons headed together to the Superdome. "Drug and alcohol use is another contributing factor, and no police presence to prevent them from doing whatever they wanted to, to whomever they wanted to.". We can only deal with what we know.". home+introduction+watch online+interviews+analysis+14 days "I got a call, I think Saturday afternoon [from] Max Mayfield, the hurricane director. Note: In the last hours before Katrina made landfall, dozens of copies of the Hurricane Pam report are distributed to emergency planners. "[I] got to the president. Thats whats going to help us rebuild the mosttalking about what happened and how we can move onand why documentaries like Trouble the Water are still so relevant. Listen 7:57. It is 250 miles south-southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River. ' Gettridge told FRONTLINE. Very shortly, he said, Cars are beginning to float out of the parking lot. At a press conference in Baton Rouge, 80 miles away, Gov. ISIS' growing foothold in Afghanistan is captured on film. But Mayor Nagin goes on radio and castigates state and federal officials for their inaction and demands they "fix the biggest god-damn crisis in the history of this country." And that this could potentially be the big one that we had planned for in Hurricane Pam.". A hurricane warning is issued for north central Gulf . Saints came marching in: How football helped Katrina revival - CNBC They were finally able to leave the city on Saturday. A decade later . Lewis says that later in the week, national guardsmen forced evacuees out of the building at gunpoint. More women are coming forward with stories of sexual . Airborne debris will be widespread and may include heavy items such as household appliances and even light vehicles. August 27, 2015, 2:18 PM. Virtually all communication systems are out. 'Katrina Babies' documentary explores the childhood impact of Hurricane Hurricane Katrina Superdome Photos and Premium High Res Pictures In September 2006, the New Orleans Saints marched into the Superdome for their first game since Hurricane Katrina, providing the spark for a revival. ", "Coastal residents jammed freeways and gas stations as they rushed to get out A direct hit could wind up submerging New Orleans in several feet of water At least 100,000 people in the city lack transportation to get out Louisiana and Mississippi make all lanes northbound on interstate highways", Note: In the last hours before Katrina made landfall, dozens of copies of the, "To cries of 'Thank you, Jesus!' Oh, absolutely not. Another group, Witness Justice, a Maryland-based non-profit that assists victims of violent crimes, claims to have received 156 reports of post-Katrina violent crimes; about a third of those involved sexual assaults. At the peak of the Katrina recovery effort, 51,039 National Guard soldiers from all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and three territories worked in Louisiana and Mississippi, making Katrina by far . Mississippi and Louisiana governors declare states of emergency. He co-wrote the novel,"The Spencer Haywood Rule," and he was co-producer of the "Katrina Cop in the Superdome," a 2010 documentary about the experiences of a black New Orleans police officer and other citizens as they sheltered in the Louisiana Superdome during the Hurricane Katrina disaster of 2005. Find out in the 2015 documentary Outbreak, newly available to stream on FRONTLINEs YouTube channel. Around this time 17 years ago, Hurricane Katrina bore down on New Orleans, and permanently changed life for thousands of people across the country. August 28, 2005. "I was told that they could mobilize immediately 2,500 National Guards members. FRONTLINE is a registered trademark of WGBH Educational Foundation. On that first night after the storm, the city had lost power, and she was sleeping in a dark hallway, trying to catch a breeze. "I know more sexual assaults took place. Get It Published. Civil order had completely broken down. 'I didn't understand my trauma': how Hurricane Katrina marked New The only person I saw from FEMA was basically this guy named Marty [Bahamonde]. I think we both should have asked sooner.". And Michael Brown was there listening. In all, more than 1,500 died either duringthe storm or inthe famouslybungled aftermath which saw local, state, and federal officials uncoordinated and overwhelmed. I said, 'We need to do this.' Refuge of last resort: Five days inside the Superdome for Hurricane Katrina HBO. According to the New Orleans Data Center, racial disparities in income and employment are more pronounced in the city than they are nationally; the poverty rate is 11 points higher than the national average; and the incarceration rate is approximately three times the national average. There is a belief that the city has avoided a direct hit.