Hurricane Katrina 5 years later Mississippi

[greywolf2]

It has now been 5 yrs after Hurricane Katrina hit the Mississippi Gulf Coast.  I am not taking anything away from New orleans (which captured all the nations spotlight) but what hit New orleans is nothing Compared to the Destruction of the Cat 3 winds and the Cat 5 storm surge that hit the Mississipi Coast Where "Storm surge levels reached from 20+ - 30+ feet high. Waveland Ms was ground zero with Pass Christian/Long Beach/Gulfport/And Biloxi getting hit worse than New Orleans.

"The worst property damage occurred in coastal areas, such as all Mississippi beachfront towns, which were flooded over 90% in hours, as boats and casino barges rammed buildings, pushing cars and houses inland, with waters reaching 6–12 miles (10–19 km) from the beach."

 

Costliest U.S. Atlantic hurricanes Cost refers to total estimated property damage. Rank Hurricane Season Damages 2010 USD 1 Katrina 2005 $81 billion $90.3 billion [69] 2 Andrew 1992 $26.5 billion $41.1 billion [69] 3 Ike 2008 $29.6 billion $29.9 billion [70] 4 Wilma 2005 $20.6 billion $23 billion [69] 5 Charley 2004 $18.6 billion $17.3 billion [69] Main article: List of costliest Atlantic hurricanes

 

 

The Gulf coast of Mississippi suffered massive damage from the impact of Hurricane Katrina on August 29, leaving 238 people dead, 67 missing, and billions of dollars in damage: bridges, barges, boats, piers, houses and cars were washed inland.^[55] Katrina traveled up the entire state, and afterwards, all 82 counties in Mississippi were declared disaster areas for federal assistance, 47 for full assistance.^[55]

After making a brief initial landfall in Louisiana, Katrina had made its final landfall near the state line, and the eyewall passed over the cities of Bay St. Louis and Waveland as a Category 3 hurricane with sustained winds of 120 mph (195 km/h).^[2] Katrina's powerful right-front quadrant passed over the west and central Mississippi coast, causing a powerful 27-foot (8.2 m) storm surge, which penetrated 6 miles (10 km) inland in many areas and up to 12 miles (20 km) inland along bays and rivers; in some areas, the surge crossed Interstate 10 for several miles.^[2] Hurricane Katrina brought strong winds to Mississippi, which caused significant tree damage throughout the state. The highest unofficial reported wind gust recorded from Katrina was one of 135 mph (217 km/h) in Poplarville, in Pearl River County.^[2]

Damage to Long Beach, Mississippi following Hurricane Katrina

The storm also brought heavy rains with 8 – 10 inches (200 – 250 mm) falling in southwestern Mississippi and rain in excess of 4 inches (100 mm) falling throughout the majority of the state. Katrina caused eleven tornadoes in Mississippi on August 29, some of which damaged trees and power lines.^[2]

Battered by wind, rain and storm surge, some beachfront neighborhoods were completely leveled. Preliminary estimates by Mississippi officials calculated that 90% of the structures within half a mile of the coastline were completely destroyed,^[56] and that storm surges traveled as much as six miles (10 km) inland in portions of the state's coast.^[35] One apartment complex with approximately thirty residents seeking shelter inside collapsed. More than half of the 13 casinos in the state, which were floated on barges to comply with Mississippi land-based gambling laws, were washed hundreds of yards inland by waves.^[56]

Storm surge damage along Highway 90 on the Mississippi Gulf Coast (early September, 2005).

A number of streets and bridges were washed away. On U.S. Highway 90 along the Mississippi Gulf Coast, two major bridges were completely destroyed: the Bay St. Louis — Pass Christian^[2] bridge, and the Biloxi - Ocean Springs bridge. In addition, the eastbound span of the I-10 bridge over the Pascagoula River estuary was damaged. In the weeks after the storm, with the connectivity of the coastal U.S. Highway 90 shattered, traffic traveling parallel to the coast was reduced first to State Road 11 (parallel to I-10) then to two lanes on the remaining I-10 span when it was opened.

Surge damage in Pascagoula, Mississippi

All three coastal counties of the state were severely affected by the storm. Katrina's surge was the most extensive, as well as the highest, in the documented history of the United States; large portions of both Hancock, Harrison, and Jackson Counties were inundated by the storm surge, in all three cases affecting most of the populated areas.^[57] Surge covered almost the entire lower half of Hancock County, destroying the coastal communities of Clermont Harbor and Waveland, much of Bay St. Louis, and flowed up the Jourdan River, flooding Diamondhead and Kiln. In Harrison County, Pass Christian was completely inundated, along with a narrow strip of land to the east along the coast, which includes the cities of Long Beach and Gulfport; the flooding was more extensive in communities such as D'Iberville, which borders Back Bay. Biloxi, on a peninsula between the Back Bay and the coast, was particularly hard hit, especially the low-lying Point Cadet area. In Jackson County, storm surge flowed up the wide river estuary, with the combined surge and freshwater flooding cutting the county in half. Remarkably, over 90% of Pascagoula, the easternmost coastal city in Mississippi, and about 75 miles (121 km) east of Katrina's landfall near the Louisiana-Mississippi border, was flooded from surge at the height of the storm. Other large Jackson County neighborhoods such as Porteaux Bay and Gulf Hills were severely damaged with large portions being completely destroyed, and St. Martin was hard hit; Ocean Springs, Moss Point, Gautier, and Escatawpa also suffered major surge damage.

Mississippi Emergency Management Agency officials also recorded deaths in Forrest, Hinds, Warren, and Leake counties. Over 900,000 people throughout the state experienced power outages.^[42]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

*********** I live in Gulfport, MS    and because of mine and the wifes line of work we had to stay there.  We were only 2 miles off the beach and it was like nothing you have seen************

[Sun Tzu]

I know what ya mean grey even tho I wasnt that close to it we got it and was without power for 2 weeks water for 1 week it was just horrible.

Was lucky to have camping gear.