Hurricane Katrina affected several states.  Several families were left without a home and without flood insurance to repair their home.  Do not let this happen to you!

Click Here to request a quote!

The economic effects of Hurricane Katrina, which hit Louisiana and Mississippi in late August 2005, were far-reaching. As of April 2006, the Bush Administration has sought $10.5 billion for repairs and reconstruction in the region, making it the costliest natural disaster in US history.  And this does not account for damage to the economy caused by potential interruption of the oil supply and exports of commodities such as grain. Also, before Hurricane Katrina, the region supported approximately one million non-farm jobs, with 600,000 of them in New Orleans. As such, the total economic impact to Louisiana and Mississippi may exceed $150 billion.

The effects of Hurricane Katrina, in August 2005, were catastrophic and widespread. It was one of the deadliest natural disasters in U.S. history. The storm was large and had an effect on several different areas of North America.

Katrina's first landfall was in South Florida, where it hit as a Category 1 hurricane. The damage was fairly minimal, and 11 fatalities were reported.  More than 1 million customers were left without electricity, and damage in Florida was estimated at between $1 and $2 Billion (with most of the damage coming from flooding and overturned trees).

Hurricane Katrina made its second landfall on August 29, 2005, as a Category 3 hurricane with sustained winds of 125 mph (205 km/h) near Buras-Triumph, Louisiana. As such, the primary areas that were affected were southeastern Louisiana and southern Mississippi, including the cities of New Orleans, Louisiana, and the parishes of St. Tammany, Jefferson, Terrebonne, Plaquemines, Lafourche, and St. Bernard.

By August 31, eighty percent (80%) of the city of New Orleans was flooded by Hurricane Katrina, with some parts of the city under 20 feet (6.1 meters) of water. Over 50 breaches in region's levee system were catalogued, five of which resulted in massive flooding of New Orleans.

Hurricane Katrina floods destroyed 4,652 St. Tammany houses and caused major flood damage to 9,353 houses in the parish.

The breach on the 17th Street Canal levee caused mostly insevere street flooding within Jefferson Parish. But some lower lying areas did receive significant water damage from flooding, especially on the East Bank.

In Terrebonne Parish, signs, trees, roofs and utility poles suffered the brunt of Hurricane Katrina's fury when the storm roared across Terrebonne and Lafourche and flooded everything in its path.

Hurricane Katrina made a direct landfall in the "lower" (southern/down river) portion of Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana. There was extensive flooding the majority of the Parish, and the southern part was temporarily "reclaimed" by the Mississippi River. All of the East Bank of the Parish was flooded, as was the downriver portio nof the West Bank. Belle Chase mostly escaped with only moderate wind damage but some flooding.  The Belle Chasse Tunnel was flooded as well.

St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana, which lies to the East of New Orleans and thus was closer to the path of the storm and the more exposed to the storm surge from the Gulf of Mexico, was rapidly and completely flooded. A large portion of the flooding was apparently the result of extensive levee failures along the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet Canal, a 76 mile (122 km) long shipping channel, which had been dredged to provide access for about 650 deep draft ships per year. The levees were sized to hold back up to 17.5 feet (5.3 meters) of water. It is reported that up to 90% of these levees were damaged and that the failures may be measured in miles.

Washington Parish, Louisiana is located north of New Orleans. The parish received significant damage due to wind damage and local flooding. The Parish is home to many pine forest which thousands, possibly millions, of pine trees snapped or completely uprooted. The eye of Katrina could be seen from the eastern part of the parish, in Bogalusa. Much of Bogalusa was without power for weeks. Many major roads were covered by trees and were not cleared for many days. Schools did not open until October. As gasoline was in short supply even for emergency workers, the parish banned gas to the public for several days, arousing ire of many locals.

Hurricane Katrina's devastating impact on the state of Mississippi caused a complete re-evaluation of hurricane command centers, safety, and offshore gambling. Because landfall was during daylight, many people survived by swimming to higher buildings and trees within sight. Afterward, all Mississippi counties were declared disaster areas (see map).

The Gulf Coast of Mississippi suffered massive damage from the impact of Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005, leaving 236 people dead, 67 missing, and an estimated $125 billion in damages.  Since Katrina made its third and final landfall on the Louisiana/Mississippi state line, the storm's powerful northeastern quadrant made hammered areas of Mississippi, as well as Alabama, causing extensive wind and flood damage. According to MSNBC, a 30 foot (9.1 meter) storm surge came ashore wiping out 90% of the buildings along the Biloxi-Gulfport coastline. The bridge between Bay St. Louis and Pass Christian was also damaged by the storm.

The three counties most affected by the storm were the coastal counties, Hancock County, Harrison County, and Jackson County. Emergency command centers in the 3 coastal counties were partially disabled, prompting a re-evaluation of general hurricane emergency-center design nationwide: in Hancock county, the emergency-command headquarters were swamped by a 32-foot (11-m) storm tide flooding into the building, which had been considered flood-proof at 30 feet (10 m) above sea level.

Hancock County was the scene of the final landfall of the eye of Hurricane Katrina, and its communities and infrastructure suffered some of the most intense damage inflicted by that storm. Devastation occurred in many communities, including Waveland, Bay St. Louis, Pearlington, and Clermont Harbor.

Widespread damage was reported in the city of Biloxi as several of the city's attractions were destroyed. Many restaurants have been destroyed and several casino barges were pulled out of the water and onto land. Residents that recalled Hurricane Camille observed that Katrina was, "much worse," with a storm surge reportedly reaching further inland. Katrina's wind estimates were lighter than Camille's, and the central air pressure was slightly higher, but Camille was also a much smaller storm so the greater impact of the storm surge may be due to the size.

The Biloxi-Ocean Springs Bridge was totally destroyed, and US 90 had heavy debris and severe damage to the roadbed.

Jackson County, Mississippi had a coastal storm tide of, at least, 22 feet, with Hurricane Katrina coming ashore during the morning high tide. Reports stated that 90% of Pascagoula was flooded by the storm surge, and the storm was so intense that 3 US Navy ships were damaged. Moss Point and Escatawpa were also affected.

Hurricane Katrina was the 4th recent storm to hit Alabama (following Hurricane Ivan (2004), Hurricane Cindy plus Hurricane Dennis), and Alabama suffered widespread, moderate to heavy damage caused by hurricane-force winds, flooding by a storm tide of 14-18 feet, and tornadoes. Massive damage occurred along coastal areas, pushing small ships and oil rigs ashore, flooding fishing areas with dozens of shrimp boats, destroying marinas plus hundreds of boardwalks, and swamping beachfront homes or hotels, with widespread tree damage and roofs or shingles torn off. Afterward, 22 counties in Alabama were declared disaster areas for Federal assistance, spanning a 400-mile region.  Many coastal homes south of the Point Clear area were severely damaged, flooded, or swept away.

Western Georgia was hit with the outer bands of Hurricane Katrina, resulting in heavy rains, damaging winds and several reports of tornadoes in Polk, Heard, and Carroll counties. In Polk County, three homes were reported damaged by a tornado. A fatal tornado in Carroll County resulted in the death of one person in a vehicle collision and caused damage to as many as 30 homes, and one additional fatality was reported.

Severe weather was also reported in northeastern Georgia, including tornadoes in White and Hall counties. In White County, a tornado struck the tourist town of Helen, ripping the top floor from an Econolodge hotel and damaging businesses at a nearby outlet mall. Thirty people were displaced by the storm, but no injuries were reported. In Hall County, several homes were reported damaged by a possible tornado in Lula.  A tornado in a feeder band moved through Decatur County to the west of Bainbridge in southwestern Georgia during the evening of August 29.

Western Kentucky was already suffering flooding from storms that had passed through during the weekend prior to Katrina's arrival. Part of Christian County High School, located just outside Hopkinsville, collapsed during the weekend. Significant flooding has been reported in the Hopkinsville area, and many homes were flooded. One person was also killed in flood waters during Katrina that had already been high from the previous storm.

Governor Ernie Fletcher, declared Christian, Todd and Trigg counties disaster areas due to flooding, and declared a statewide state of emergency.

Western New York had many reports of flooding, as well as damage caused by fallen trees as a result of Katrina. At least 4,500 customers were left without power in the Buffalo and Rochester areas.

Damage (primarily to trees which knocked into some neighborhoods) and flooding was also reported in the northern part of the state, near the Ontario border. About 1,100 customers lost power in that area.

In Ohio, some flooding and power outages were reported (including about 2,500 in the easternmost part of the state alone), and several areas were evacuated throughout the state. One hospital had to be evacuated as it lost power and its generator failed in Dennison, but it was restored later in the day. Two deaths were blamed on the storm in Ohio, both indirect deaths from an accident caused by Katrina's rains in the Monroeville area.