Katrina blows them all away

By Chris Sweigart

Published: July 13, 2007

When ranking the top-five U.S. natural disasters of all-time, Katrina wins by a wide margin. I can’t think of another disaster that had as many far-reaching effects as this hurricane. It’s not necessarily the death toll or reconstruction costs, but the effect it had on the lives of those who live in New Orleans and the Mississippi Gulf Coast. The area hasn’t been the same since.
Here’s my list:

1) Katrina—This 2005 Gulf hurricane cost an estimated $84 billion, left thousands homeless (many still are), and opened up a can of worms and confusion and distrust among our government response teams and the population. FEMA is still scratching its heads over trailers and ice. Storm preparedness was botched all the way from the City of New Orleans government all the way to Washington.

2. Galveston Flood—It’s called the Galveston Flood, but waters around this coastal Texas city didn’t rise in 1900 because of heavy rains or dams breaking—it was a full-scale hurricane with massive storm surge. Flooding and storm surge are two different things to me. Flooding seems gradual. Storm surge is powerful. Regardless, about 10,000 people perished.

3. Mount St. Helen’s—Its 1980 eruption killed only 57 in Washington state, but when this mountain blew its top, ash was spread over 11 states. Much of the area around the mountain was destroyed by fast-moving mudslides. The landscape hasn’t been the same since.

4. Andrew—The insurance business in Florida hasn’t been the same since this 1992 hurricane swept south of Miami and destroyed Homestead. You would think a nuclear weapon was detonated here after Andrew’s arrival. Andrew, caused $26.5 billion in damages and is the second-most destructive hurricane in U.S. history.

5. San Francisco earthquake—An estimated 5,000 were killed when the Bay Area suffered a massive earthquake in 1906. Some recorded this ground-shaker with an 8.3 on the Richter scale. Another quake struck the area in 1989 with similar force, killing 57. Thousands, however, were injured.

Honorable mentions: The Johnstown flood, tornado outbreaks (pick one), the 1928 Okeechobee hurricane, and 1980 heat wave.

Next week’s top five: Best television shows.