A Red Cross worker, left, greets a woman carrying a baby in San Diego, CA. The woman was one of 80 people moved to San Diego after the hurricane. (AP Photo/Lenny Ignelzi)
	Rescuers use a boat to go door to door looking for survivors after Hurricane Katrina struck. In many places, the water was so high, boats were the only way to travel. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus)

Worst Hurricane in U.S. History Rips Through Gulf States
The worst storm to hit the United States has killed nearly 1,000 people. Hurricane Katrina claimed at least 970 lives.

Most of the deaths were in the southern states of Louisiana and Mississippi. The greatest loss of life happened in the Louisiana city of New Orleans. The storm also caused damage to property that was estimated at $200 billion.

Another result of the storm was a drop in President George Bush’s popularity. Polls showed many people felt Bush was slow to offer the help of the federal government.

Bush later became heavily involved in efforts to aid victims. He made five trips to the region in the weeks after the storm.

City of New Orleans hit the hardest
The hurricane struck August 29. But the worst devastation happened when waters flooded New Orleans on August 30.

About 80 percent of New Orleans was flooded. Government officials said water broke through tall walls that surround the city. The walls are called levees.

A hurricane is a tropical storm. It has high winds and heavy rain. Katrina was a Category 4 storm when it hit Louisiana and Mississippi. The most dangerous hurricane is Category 5. Only three of the most dangerous hurricanes have reached land in the United States since records were first kept.

Hurricanes in Category 4 have winds of 131 miles per hour up to 155 miles per hour. Category 5 has winds greater than 155 miles per hour.

Each category also includes a measure for the height of waves of water that surge after a storm. The levees protecting New Orleans were built to withstand wave surges for Category 3 hurricanes.

New Orleans is one of the oldest cities in the nation. It also is a popular place for tourists to visit.

Many had no way to leave the city
Many of the people who died in New Orleans were not able to leave the city before the storm or didn’t have any place to go. Many of them lived in the poorest part of the city.

New Orleans has about 500,000 people. But officials said 100,000 may not have followed an order to leave the city. The order was issued the day before the hurricane struck.

Many of the poorest people who stayed lived in parts of the city that were below the level of nearby waters. Many of the poorest people in New Orleans also are African-Americans.

Some of the people who stayed could not afford cars to flee the city. State and city officials also were blamed for not sending enough buses into the area to pick up people.

Hundreds of unused city school buses were destroyed in the flood waters. Amtrak railroad officials said they offered to get people out of the city when the railroad took its trains out. They claim city leaders refused the offer. The trains left New Orleans empty.

Officials think the hurricane may have caused waves to surge on Lake Pontchartrain. The lake borders the city on one side. The Mississippi River also flows through the city.

Death toll and property loss not known
The final death toll and cost of property damage will not be known for a long time. But the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has called it the most destructive hurricane to ever hit the United States.

The death toll in Mississippi was 218. The death toll in Florida, Georgia, Alabama and Tennessee combined was 19.

In the weeks after the hurricane, the director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) resigned. The director was blamed for the slow response by the federal government.

President Bush eventually ordered the Army, Navy and Coast Guard to take part in rescue and cleanup operations. Critics said there were not enough troops to do the job. People also complained that the city and state were not prepared to deal with the storm.

Bush makes promises to rebuild
Bush addressed the nation on September 15. He promised that the states hit by the storm would be rebuilt. He did not explain how the nation would pay for the cost of re-construction.

Bush also said “There is no way to imagine America without New Orleans, and this great city will rise again.”
Note to our readers: Another major hurricane was developing in the south while this article was being written. Hurricane Rita was expected to hit New Orleans and the Houston area of Texas.

Those who had gone back to their homes in New Orleans were being asked to leave again.