2005 — Aug 25-31, Hurricane Katrina, AL/FL/GA/LA, esp. NOLA & MS [1]–1,833-1,836
–~1,900 Katrina Connection. “Lest We Forget: Where have all the missing gone?” 8-29-2008.[2]
— 1,836 Burt and Stroud. Extreme Weather: A Guide & Record Book. 2007, p. 205.
— 1,836 DoSomething.org. “11 Facts About Hurricane Katrina.” No date.[3]
—>1,836 Gautam et al. “Effect of Hurricane Katrina on the Incidence of…” Oct 2009, p. 144.[4]
— 1,836 Wikipedia. “Hurricane Katrina Effects by Region.”[5]
— 1,836 Zimmermann. “Hurricane Katrina: Facts, Damage…” LiveScience. 8-20-2012.[6]
— 1,833 Bedient and Sebastian. “An Introduction to Gulf Coast Severe Storms…” 2012, p. 8.
— 1,833 Beven, et al. Annual Summary: Atlantic Hurricane Season of 2005. March, 2008, 1140
— 1,833 Blanchard tally from State and locality breakouts below.
–>1,833 Curtis (Ed.). Hurricane Katrina Damage Assessment. ASCE, 2007. iii
— 1,833 Knabb, et al. Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Katrina…. 9-14-2011 update, 11.[7]
–~1,833 NCDC, NOAA. Billion-Dollar Weather/Climate Disasters. July 2008.
— 1,833 (Confirmed). Wikipedia. “Hurricane Katrina.” 2-1-2014 modification.[8]
–>1,800 Discovery.com. “Isaac vs. Katrina: How Do They Compare?” 8-28-2012.[9]
–>1,800 Lansford, et al. Fostering Community Resilience: Homeland Security…” 2010, p. 25
–>1,800 Webley and Holmes (USGS). “Top 10 Historic U.S. Floods.” Time. 5-11-2011.
— 1,723 Lindsay, Robert. “Final Katrina Death Toll at 4,081,” Beyond Highbrow, 5-30-2009.[10]
–>1,700 FEMA. Mitigation Assess. Team Report: Hurricane Katrina… Gulf Coast. 2006. 1-4.
–>1,600 Evans and Bohrer. “Promises: Obama Wins Praise for Katrina. AP, Aug 27, 2009.
–<1,600 GAO 2008. Actions Taken to Implement the Post-Katrina EM Reform Act of 2006
–~1,570 Kates, et al., “Reconstruction of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina…” 2006.
–~1,500 (Direct deaths). Beven, et al. Annual Summary: Atlantic Hurricane…2005. 2008, 1109.
–~1,500 Blake, et al. The Deadliest, Costliest, and Most Intense US Cyclones…, April 2007.
— 1,500 Jervis, Rick. “43 Katrina Victims Still a Mystery,” USA Today, January 21, 2009.
–~1,500 (Direct) Knabb, et al. Tropical Cyclone Report…Katrina…. 9-14-2011 update, p. 11.
— 1,500 National Hurricane Center, Tropical Weather Summary – 2005 Web Final, 2007.
— 1,330 Gunn. Encyclopedia of Disasters: Environmental Catastrophes… (V2). 2007, p. 694.
— 1,330 Townsend. The Federal Response to Hurricane Katrina: Lessons Learned. 2-23-2006.[11]
–~1,200 National Hurricane Center, NWS. Hurricanes in History. “Hurricane Katrina 2005.”
— 1,132 Heidorn, Keith C. Weather Events. “Louisiana’s Great Hurricane of 1722.” 10-1-2005.
— 1,123 Nat. Hurricane Center. Hurricane Katrina & The Gulf Coast. Accessed 6-6-2013.[12]
–~1,100 Direct. Rappaport. “Fatalities in the [US] from Atlantic tropical cyclones…” 2013, 5.[13]
— 1,079 Commercial Appeal, Memphis, TN. “A gruesome find.” 9-24-2005.
— 1,033 CNN. “Katrina’s official death toll tops 1,000.” 9-21-2005.
–>1,011 Heirdorn, Keith (The Weather Doctor). Weather Almanac for October 2005. 10-1-2005.
— 800 Epic Disasters. The Ten Deadliest US Hurricanes.
Fatality Breakout by States
Alabama ( 2)
— 2 Beven, et al. Annual Summary: Atlantic Hurricane Season of 2005. March, 2008, 1140.
— 2 Commercial Appeal, Memphis, TN. “A gruesome find.” 9-24-2005.
— 2 Car accident. Knabb, et al. Tropical Cyclone Report…Katrina…. 9-14-2011 update, p. 11.
— 2 National Hurricane Center. Hurricane Katrina & The Gulf Coast. Accessed 6-6-2013.
Florida ( 14)
— 14 Beven, et al. Annual Summary: Atlantic Hurricane Season of 2005. March, 2008, 1140.
— 14 Commercial Appeal, Memphis, TN. “A gruesome find.” 9-24-2005.
— 14 Knabb, et al. Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Katrina…. 9-14-2011 update, p. 11.
— 14 National Hurricane Center. Hurricane Katrina & The Gulf Coast. Accessed 6-6-2013.
— 14 Nelson, et al. “Mortality Associated with Hurricane Katrina–Florida…” MMWR, 2006.[14]
–>12 NCDC. Storm Events Database.
— 11 CNN. “Katrina’s official death toll tops 1,000.” 9-21-2005.
— 11 National Climatic Data Center, NOAA. Hurricane Katrina. 12-29-2005 update.
— 8 (Indirect deaths). Beven. “Annual Summary…Hurricane Season of 2005.” 2008, 1140.
— 6 (Direct deaths). Beven. “Annual Summary…Hurricane Season of 2005.” 2008, 1140.
— 6 (Direct). Knabb, et al. Tropical Cyclone Report…Katrina…. 9-14-2011 update, p. 11.
County Breakouts: (14)
Broward County ( 6)
— 2 Davie, Broward Co. CO poisoning, generator in home; couple, 43 and 65, before Aug 30.[15]
— 3 Broward County. Downed trees, Knabb, et al. Tropical…Katrina…. 9-14-2011 update, 11.
— 1 Davie, Broward County. Elderly woman hit by a falling tree.[16]
— 1 Fort Lauderdale. Man, 20s, crushed in his car near a high school by falling tree.[17]
— 1 Plantation, Fort Lauderdale vic., Broward Co. Pedestrian, 54, struck by falling tree.[18]
— 1 Cooper City, Broward County. Vehicular; man, 79, car hits tree.[19]
Holmes County ( 1)
— 1 Holmes County, Ponce de Leon vicinity. Aug 29. Van hydroplanes off I-10 into trees.
Miami-Dade County ( 7)
— 1 Coastal Dade, Aug 25. Boating, male, 45. NCDC, NOAA. Storm Events Database.
— 1 Coastal Dade, Aug 25. Boating, male, 61. NCDC, NOAA. Storm Events Database.
— 1 Blunt force trauma. Male boater; injuries sustained as storm buffeted his boat.[20]
— 1 Miami-Dade Co., Drowning; male boater when his houseboat capsized.[21]
— 1 Miami-Dade Co., Florida City. Drowning; man, 49 “found floating…in his front yard.”[22]
— 1 Coastal Dade. “In Water,” male, 49. NCDC, NOAA. Storm Events Database.
— 1 Plantation, Fort Lauderdale vic., Broward Co. Pedestrian, 54, struck by falling tree.[23]
— 1 Coastal Dade. “Outside/Open Areas,” male, 54. NCDC. Storm Events Database.
— 1 Coastal Dade. “Outside/Open Areas,” female, 69. NCDC, NOAA. Storm Events Database.
— 1 Coastal Dade. Vehicle, male, 25. NCDC, NOAA. Storm Events Database.
— 1 Miami-Dade Co., northwest. Suspected carbon monoxide poisoning, man, 27.[24]
— 2? Walton County. Vehicle accident, associated with 2nd landfall weather conditions.[25]
— 2? Vehicle accident, Walton Co. Wikipedia. “Effects of Hurricane Katrina in Florida.”[26]
Florida Cause of Death Breakout: (15)
— 1 Blunt force trauma. Miami-Dade Co., male boater, injuries from storm buffeting his boat.[27]
— 4 Carbon monoxide poisoning. Blanchard tally from breakouts below.
— 3 Carbon monoxide poisoning caused by generators. NCDC, Storm Events Database.
— 2 Nelson, et al. “Mortality Associated with Hurricane Katrina…” MMWR, 2006.[28]
— 2 Davie, Broward Co. CO poison, home generator; couple, 43 and 65, before Aug 30[29]
— 1 Pensacola, Escambia County, found Sep 2. CO poisoning; Kai Paul Perry, 49.[30]
— 1 Miami-Dade Co., northwest. Suspected carbon monoxide poisoning, man, 27.[31]
— 1 Debris cleanup. NCDC, NOAA. Storm Events Database.
— 2 Drownings. Blanchard estimate.[32]
— 3 Drownings, Miami-Dade Co. Knabb. Tropical…Katrina…. 9-14-2011 update, 11.[33]
— 3 Drownings. Nelson. “Mortality Associated with Hurricane Katrina–Florida…” 2006.[34]
— 1 Miami-Dade Co., Drowning; male boater when his houseboat capsized.[35]
— 1 Miami-Dade Co., Florida City. Drowning; man “found floating…in his front yard.”[36]
— 1 Fall from ladder. Nelson. “Mortality Associated with…Katrina–Florida…” 2006.[37]
— 1 Lack of electricity related. NCDC, NOAA. Storm Events Database.
— 3 Tree Falls. Blanchard tally based on locality breakouts below – all in Broward County.
— 4? Tree Falls. Nelson, et al. “Mortality Associated with Hurricane Katrina–Florida…” 2006.[38]
— 3 Tree Falls, Broward County. Knabb, et al. Tropical…Katrina…. 9-14-2011 update, 11.
— 1 Davie, Broward County. Elderly woman hit by a falling tree.[39]
— 1 Fort Lauderdale, Broward County. Man, 20s, crushed in his car by falling tree.[40]
— 1 Plantation, Fort Lauderdale vic., Broward Co. Pedestrian, 54, struck by falling tree.[41]
— 3 Vehicular accidents. Blanchard tally of Holmes and Broward County road accidents.[42]
— 1 Vehicle accident. NCDC, NOAA. Storm Events Database.[43]
— 2? Walton County. Vehicle accident, associated with 2nd landfall weather conditions.[44]
— 2? Vehicle accident, Walton Co. Wikipedia. “Effects of Hurricane Katrina in Florida.”[45]
— 2 Vehicular. Ponce de Leon vic., Holmes Co., I-10, Aug 29, van hydroplanes into trees.[46]
— 1 Cooper City, Broward County. Vehicular; man, 79, car hits tree.[47]
— 1 Undetermined. Nelson, et al. “Mortality Associated with Hurricane Katrina…” 2006.[48]
Georgia ( 2)
— 2 Beven, et al. Annual Summary: Atlantic Hurricane Season of 2005. March, 2008, 1140.[49]
— 2 Commercial Appeal, Memphis, TN. “A gruesome find.” 9-24-2005.
— 2 Knabb, et al. Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Katrina…. 9-14-2011 update, p. 11.
— 2 National Hurricane Center. Hurricane Katrina & The Gulf Coast. Accessed 6-6-2013.
— 1 Car accident. Knabb, et al. Tropical Cyclone Report…Katrina…. 9-14-2011 update, p. 11.
— 1 Tornado. Knabb, et al. Tropical Cyclone Report…Katrina…. 9-14-2011 update, p. 11.
Kentucky ( ?)
— 1 Flooding. Wikipedia. “Hurricane Katrina Effects by Region.” 2-11-2014 modification.[50]
Louisiana ( 1,577)
— 1,577 Beven, et al. Annual Summary: Atlantic Hurricane Season of 2005. March, 2008, 1140
— 1,577 DoSomething.org. “11 Facts About Hurricane Katrina.” No date.[51]
— 1,577 Gautam et al. “Effect of Hurricane Katrina on the Incidence of…” Oct 2009, p. 144.[52]
— 1,577 Knabb, et al. Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Katrina…. 9-14-2011 update, p. 11.
— 1,577 Wikipedia. “Hurricane Katrina Effects by Region.” 2-11-2014 modification.[53]
–~1,500 Boyd. Preliminary…Report of Hurricane Katrina Deceased… 10-13-2006, 1.[54]
–>1,500 FEMA. Mitigation Assess. Team Rpt.: Hurricane Katrina… Gulf Coast. 2006. 1-4.
— 1,464 Boyd. Preliminary…Report of Hurricane Katrina Deceased… 10-13-2006, p. 2.[55]
— 1,464 Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals. Hurricane Katrina. 8-2-2006.
— 1,464 Olsen, L. “5 years after Katrina…death toll…mystery.” Houston Chronicle, 8-30-2010
–~1,300 (Direct deaths). Beven. “Annual Summary…Hurricane Season of 2005.” 2008, 1140.
–~1,300 (Direct). Knabb, et al. Tropical Cyclone Report…Katrina…. 9-14-2011 update, p. 11.
— 1,100 Jonkman, et al. “Loss of Life Caused by Flooding…” Risk Analysis, 2009.
— 1,077 National Hurricane Center. Hurricane Katrina & The Gulf Coast. Accessed 6-6-2013.
— 971 Brunkard, et al. “Hurricane Katrina deaths, Louisiana, 2005.” Dis. Med. 2008, 215-23.
— 841 Commercial Appeal, Memphis, TN. “A gruesome find.” 9-24-2005.
— 799 CNN. “Katrina’s official death toll tops 1,000.” 9-21-2005.
— ~277 Indirect deaths. Beven. “Annual Summary…Hurricane Season of 2005.” 2008, 1140.
— 5 CO poisoning. Hampson/Stock. “Storm-related Carbon Monoxide Poisoning…” p. 261.[56]
New Orleans: (1,300-1,400)
— 1,400 Schleifstein. “Study of Hurricane Katrina’s Dead…” Times-Picayune, 27 Aug 2009.
–>1,300 Gunn. Encyclopedia of Disasters: Environmental Catastrophes… (V2). 2007, p.687.[57]
— >100 Hospitals and nursing home. Fink. “The New Katrina Flood…” NYT, 1-1-2010.
— 1 Pendleton Memorial Methodist Hosp. Life-support machine power loss, female, 73.[58]
Mississippi ( 238)
— 238 Beven, et al. Annual Summary: Atlantic Hurricane Season of 2005. March, 2008, 1140.
— 238 DoSomething.org. “11 Facts About Hurricane Katrina.” No date.[59]
— 238 Knabb, et al. Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Katrina…. 9-14-2011 update, p. 11.
— 238 Wikipedia. “Hurricane Katrina Effects by Region.”
–>235 Wikipedia. “Effects of Hurricane Katrina in Mississippi.” 2-19-2014 modification.[60]
— 230 FEMA. Mitigation Assess. Team Rpt.: Hurricane Katrina… Gulf Coast. 2006. 1-4.
— 228 National Hurricane Center. Hurricane Katrina & The Gulf Coast. Accessed 6-6-2013.
— 220 Commercial Appeal, Memphis, TN. “Rita evacuees die in Miss. Crash.” 9-24-2005.
— 219 CNN. “Katrina’s official death toll tops 1,000.” 9-21-2005.
–~200 (Direct deaths). Beven. “Annual Summary…Hurricane Season of 2005.” 2008, 1140.
–~200 (Direct) Knabb, et al. Tropical Cyclone Report…Katrina…. 9-14-2011 update, p. 11.
— 200 (Direct deaths). National Hurricane Center. Hurricane History, Katrina.
— 126 Korosec, Thomas. “Coastal Crises; 126 dead….” Houston Chronicle, 9-1-2005.
— ~38 (Indirect deaths). Beven. “Annual Summary…Hurricane Season of 2005.” 2008, 1140.
Mississippi County and Locality Breakouts:
—>100 Harrison Co. USA Today. “New Orleans outlook bleak; 100 dead in Miss.” 8-30-2005.[61]
>30 Biloxi, Quiet Water Beach apartments. Copeland and Parker. USA Today, 8-31-2005.
— >10 Jackson Co. USA Today. “New Orleans outlook bleak; 100 dead in Miss.” 8-30-2005.[62]
— 1 Gulfport, Harrison County, body found Sep 22. Drowning, woman.[63]
Ohio ( ?)
— 2 Monroeville vic. Automobile accident. Wikipedia. “Hurricane Katrina…by Region.”[64]
General Narrative
Brunkard, et al.: “…. We assessed Hurricane Katrina mortality data sources received in 2007, including Louisiana and out-of-state death certificates for deaths occurring from August 27 to October 31, 2005, and the Disaster Mortuary Operational Response Team’s confirmed victims’ database. We calculated age-, race-, and sex-specific mortality rates for Orleans, St Bernard, and Jefferson Parishes, where 95% of Katrina victims resided and conducted stratified analyses by parish of residence to compare differences between observed proportions of victim demographic characteristics and expected values based on 2000 US Census data, using Pearson chi square and Fisher exact tests.
“Results: We identified 971 Katrina-related deaths in Louisiana and 15 deaths among Katrina evacuees in other states. Drowning (40%), injury and trauma (25%), and heart conditions (11%) were the major causes of death among Louisiana victims. Forty-nine percent of victims were people 75 years old and older. Fifty-three percent of victims were men; 51% were black; and 42% were white. In Orleans Parish, the mortality rate among blacks was 1.7 to 4 times higher than that among whites for all people 18 years old and older. People 75 years old and older were significantly more likely to be storm victims (P < .0001).
“Conclusions: Hurricane Katrina was the deadliest hurricane to strike the US Gulf Coast since 1928. Drowning was the major cause of death and people 75 years old and older were the most affected population cohort. Future disaster preparedness efforts must focus on evacuating and caring for vulnerable populations, including those in hospitals, long-term care facilities, and personal residences. Improving mortality reporting timeliness will enable response teams to provide appropriate interventions to these populations and to prepare and implement preventive measures before the next disaster.” (Brunkard, J., et al. “Hurricane Katrina deaths, Louisiana, 2005.” Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness, Vol. 2, No. 4, Dec 2008, 215-223.)
Katrina Connection: “New Orleans (August 29, 2008) — The final death toll from Hurricane Katrina may forever remain unclear, because the trauma of the storm caused many people fatal medical conditions, because so many hurricane victims are still missing, and also because official government and law enforcement counts often have not included many who died after Katrina….
“Almost 1900 people are dead or missing from Hurricane Katrina, and all the victims were not in or from New Orleans and the Gulf Coast.
“Most of the 595 people who were still classified as missing a year after Hurricane Katrina were not from New Orleans. In August, 2006, the Louisiana Department of Health & Hospitals (DHH) released a list of 135 people considered missing in the aftermath of hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Of those names, 115 were of New Orleans area residents – New Orleans, 96; Jefferson Parish, 8; St. Bernard Parish, 6; Kenner, 1; Slidell, 4. According to state sources, between 4-10 people may have been located since that list was released. Also there were 13 other names of people from unknown municipalities, and one each from Franklinton, New Iberia, Port Sulphur, Port Eads, Lake Charles, Empire, and Morgan City….” (Katrina Connection. “Lest We Forget: Where Have All the Missing Gone?” 8-29-2008.)
National Hurricane Center: “Katrina was one of the most devastating natural disasters in United States History… producing catastrophic damage and many casualties in the New Orleans area and along the Mississippi Gulf Coast… and additional casualties in Florida…Georgia and Alabama. Katrina was directly responsible for an estimated 1500 deaths in the United States…making it the deadliest U.S. hurricane since the Palm Beach-Lake Okeechobee hurricane of September 1928. Katrina also caused an estimated $81 billion dollars in damage…making it the costliest U.S. hurricane on record….
“This disastrous tropical cyclone formed from a tropical wave…becoming a depression about 200 miles southeast of Nassau in the Bahamas on 23 August. It became a tropical storm the following day. Katrina moved northwestward through the Bahamas…and then turned westward toward south Florida and gradually strengthened. Katrina became a category one hurricane and made landfall near the Miami-Dade/Broward County line during the evening of 25 August. Katrina moved southwestward across South Florida…dumping over a foot of rain… toppling trees and power lines…and damaging some homes and businesses. Katrina also brought heavy rains and sustained tropical storm-force winds to portions of the Florida Keys. After entering the Gulf of Mexico…Katrina strengthened significantly…reaching category five intensity on 28 August about 250 miles south-southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River. Later that day… Katrina’s winds reached a peak intensity of 175 mph…. Katrina turned to the northwest and then north…making landfall in Plaquemines Parish Louisiana just south of Buras with estimated 125 mph maximum winds…category three…at 610 am CDT on 29 August. Continuing northward…Katrina made a second landfall near the Louisiana/Mississippi Border at 945 AM CDT…with maximum winds estimated at 120 mph…also category three.
“Katrina produced a storm surge of 24-28 ft along the Mississippi coast across a swath about 20 miles wide…with significant surge elsewhere along the Mississippi coast…Alabama coast…and across southeastern Louisiana. Levees and floodwalls surrounding the New Orleans area were breached and/or overtopped…and about 80 percent of the city flooded.
“Katrina weakened as it moved inland to the north-northeast but was still a hurricane about 100 miles inland near Laurel Mississippi. Katrina continued to weaken and became a tropical depression near Clarksville Tennessee on 30 August. It became extratropical on 31 August over the Ohio Valley and was absorbed by a frontal system later that day.” (National Hurricane Center, Tropical Weather Summary – 2005, 2007)
Louisiana
Jonkman: “In this article a preliminary analysis of the loss of life caused by Hurricane Katrina in the New Orleans metropolitan area is presented. The hurricane caused more than 1,100 fatalities in the state of Louisiana. A preliminary data set that gives information on the recovery locations and individual characteristics for 771 fatalities has been analyzed. One-third of the analyzed fatalities occurred outside the flooded areas or in hospitals and shelters in the flooded area. These fatalities were due to the adverse public health situation that developed after the floods. Two-thirds of the analyzed fatalities were most likely associated with the direct physical impacts of the flood and mostly caused by drowning. The majority of victims were elderly: nearly 60% of fatalities were over 65 years old. Similar to historical flood events, mortality rates were highest in areas near severe breaches and in areas with large water depths. An empirical relationship has been derived between the water depth and mortality and this has been compared with similar mortality functions proposed based on data for other flood events. The overall mortality among the exposed population for this event was approximately 1%, which is similar to findings for historical flood events. Despite the fact that the presented results are preliminary they give important insights into the determinants of loss of life and the relationship between mortality and flood characteristics.” (Jonkman, et al. “Loss of Life Caused by the Flooding of New Orleans After Hurricane Katrina,” Risk Analysis, V. 29, Issue 5, pp. 676-698, 1-31-2009.)
Schleifstein: “Four years later, researchers still count New Orleans’ Katrina dead, parsing them into categories, puzzling over exactly how each of the more than 1,400 victims perished — and what might be done to protect them the next time a big one rolls in off the Gulf. Their findings, though incomplete, jibe with common sense. The dead were overwhelmingly old. Most lived near the levee breaches in the 9th Ward and Lakeview. About two-thirds either drowned or died from illness or injury brought on by being trapped in houses surrounded by water. The rest died from maladies or injuries suffered in or exacerbated by an arduous evacuation — or an inability to evacuate quickly enough, including many who died in local hospitals that lost power and other life-sustaining services. Neither race nor gender made anyone more likely to die, only a failure to evacuate and a location near a levee breach.” (Schleifstein, Mark. “Study of Hurricane Katrina’s dead show most were old, lived near levee breaches.” Times-Picayune, New Orleans, 8-27-2009, updated 10-8-2009.)
Olsen: “Even five years after Hurricane Katrina, the names of hundreds of the dead remain a mystery and the death toll is mired in dispute. Of an estimated 1,464 victims officially recognized by the state of Louisiana, more than 500 names have not been publicly released. And Louisiana’s once-ambitious efforts to tackle dozens of related cases of missing persons and unidentified bodies ran out of money in 2006 and has never been revived. “We didn’t complete the mission,” former Acting State Medical Examiner Dr. Lewis Cataldie, a Baton Rouge-based physician who once ran the state’s efforts told the Chronicle this week. “I’m very angry about it.”
“DNA, X-rays and other technology mean that identification remains possible years from now if additional remains get found or family members of the missing submit evidence that gets linked to the nameless. Yet no state or federal agency today keeps track of those who remain missing from Katrina — or have since been confirmed dead. There is no central place for scattered surviving families to call.
“In New Orleans, 31 unidentified victims’ bodies were buried in a $1.5 million monument in 2008. None has been identified since then, officials from the New Orleans Coroner’s Office said this week.
“John Mutter, a Columbia University professor, has been gathering personal testimonials and public records of those killed in Katrina for an effort he calls Katrinalist. Mutter estimates the true death toll will top 3,500 if those killed by the storm and by its many after-effects are accurately tallied. And yet other counts put the toll at an estimated 1,800….
“Hundreds of other victims of the nation’s most deadly modern natural disaster remain anonymous for unknown reasons. Many were elderly and poor. Around 64 percent of the storm victims were older than 65, based on a study by Louisiana State University pathologists who oversaw a massive temporary morgue in Baton Rouge that processed more than 900 cases from 2005-06. Most came from New Orleans Parish.
“The dead were racially diverse: 56 percent black; 40 percent white; 4 percent Asian; 4 percent Native American and 2 percent Hispanic.
“”We present that a lesson learned is about those left behind due to lack of physical or financial means,” said Dr. Dana Troxclair when the LSU research was presented in August 2007. “Furthermore, based on the remarkable success of the autopsy as a means of human identification, we emphasize its paramount importance as a component of a nation’s response to mass disasters. However, with 135 Louisiana residents still categorized as missing, and 23 (ultimately more) human remains yet to be identified, the final impact of the storm remains uncertain.” She told the Chronicle this week she has no further information. Similarly, the list of 135 missing persons released by the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals in August 2006 has never been updated.
“Wayne Filmore, a storm survivor from Metairie and editor of the website Katrina Connection, said his efforts to update information on storm-related missing-persons cases — he believes the true number is closer to 500 — often get no response. “My conclusion is that they’re not concerned and that they’re not doing anything,” said Filmore, who volunteered after Katrina to help find missing persons….” (Olsen, Lise. “5 years after Katrina, storm’s death toll remains a mystery.” Houston Chronicle, 8-30-2010.)
Popular Mechanics: “No one should have been surprised. Not the federal agencies tasked with preparing for catastrophes. Not the local officials responsible for aging levees and vulnerable populations. Least of all the residents themselves, who had been warned for decades that they lived on vulnerable terrain. But when Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast on Aug. 29, 2005, it seemed as though the whole country was caught unawares. Accusations began to fly even before floodwaters receded. But facts take longer to surface. In the months since the storm, many of the first impressions conveyed by the media have turned out to be mistaken. And many of the most important lessons of Katrina have yet to be absorbed. But one thing is certain: More hurricanes will come. To cope with them we need to understand what really happened during modern America’s worst natural disaster. Popular Mechanics editors and reporters spent more than four months interviewing officials, scientists, first responders and victims. This is our report.
“Katrina Wasn’t a Superstorm.
“Myth: ‘This is a once-in-a-lifetime event.’ New Orleans Mayor C. Ray Nagin, press conference, Aug. 28, 2005.
“Reality: Though many accounts portray Katrina as a storm of unprecedented magnitude, it was in fact a large, but otherwise typical, hurricane. On the 1-to-5 Saffir-Simpson scale, Katrina was a midlevel Category 3 hurricane at landfall. Its barometric pressure was 902 millibars (mb), the sixth lowest ever recorded, but higher than Wilma (882mb) and Rita (897mb), the storms that followed it. Katrina’s peak sustained wind speed at landfall 55 miles south of New Orleans was 125 mph; winds in the city barely reached hurricane strength.
“By contrast, when Hurricane Andrew struck the Florida coast in 1992, its sustained winds were measured at 142 mph. And meteorologists estimate that 1969’s Category 5 Hurricane Camille, which followed a path close to Katrina’s, packed winds as high as 200 mph. Two factors made Katrina so devastating. Its radius (the distance from the center of the storm to the point of its maximum winds, usually at the inner eye wall) was 30 miles–three times wider than Camille’s. In addition, Katrina approached over the Gulf of Mexico’s shallow northern shelf, generating a more powerful storm surge–the water pushed ashore by hurricanes–than systems that move across deeper waters. In Plaquemines Parish, south of New Orleans, the surge topped out at 30 ft.; in New Orleans the surge was 25 ft.–enough to overtop some of the city’s floodwalls….
“Policymakers–and coastal residents–need to start seeing hurricanes as routine weather events, not once-in-a-lifetime anomalies….” (Popular Mechanics Editors. “Debunking the Myths of Hurricane Katrina: Special Report.” March 2006.)
Contemporary Press
Sep 24, 2005: “Gulfport, Miss. — Visiting emergency responders taking pictures of a storm-battered Biloxi casino spotted a woman’s body floating near the shore, bringing Mississippi’s death toll from Hurricane Katrina to 220, the Harrison County coroner said Friday. A squall generated by Hurricane Rita on Thursday afternoon likely freed the body from floating debris, allowing it to surface near the wreckage of the pirate-themed Treasure Bay Casino Resort, Gary T. Hargrove said. The body found early Thursday evening marked the first recovery of a Katrina victim’s remains in a week. Hargrove said the condition of the woman’s body indicated she had died around the time of the Aug. 29 storm.
“Of the 220 killed in Mississippi, 165 were in the six southernmost Mississippi counties — Hancock, Harrison, Jackson, Pearl River, Stone, and George — for which Hargrove is keeping records. He said nearly all drowned. He said 92 of the bodies recovered in the six counties have been identified and 85 have been returned to their families.” (Commercial Appeal, Memphis, TN. “A gruesome find.” 9-24-2005.)
Sources
Associated Press. “Florida Developments from Hurricane Katrina.” WTLV, Jacksonville, FL, 8-30-2005. At: http://archive.firstcoastnews.com/weather/news-article.aspx?storyid=43278
Barton, Jill (AP). “Four dead, five missing after Hurricane Katrina dumps heavy rain on southern Florida.” Daily Republican-Register, Mt. Carmel, IL, 8-26-2005, p. 6. Accessed at:
http://newspaperarchive.com/fullpagepdfviewer?img=188068264&sterm
Barton, Jill (AP). “Hurricane Katrina Hits Florida, Sets Off Floods.” Daily Sitka Sentinel, AK, 8-26-2005, p. 2. At: http://newspaperarchive.com/fullpagepdfviewer?img=91572712&sterm
Barton, Jill (AP). “Katrina roars ashore.” News Herald, Panama City, FL, 8-26-2005, p. 1. Accessed at: http://newspaperarchive.com/fullpagepdfviewer?img=182096266&sterm
Bedient, Philip B. and Antonia Sebastian. “An Introduction to Gulf Coast Severe Storms and Hurricanes,” pp. 1-15 in: Bedient, Philip B. (Ed.) Lessons From Hurricane Ike. Texas A&M University Press, 2012. Google preview accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://books.google.com/books?id=gelBBDRUjCcC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false
Beven, John L. II, et al. “Annual Summary: Atlantic Hurricane Season of 2005.” Monthly Weather Review, Vol. 136, March 2008, pp. 1109-1173. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/hrd/hurdat/mwr_pdf/2005.pdf
Blake, Eric S., Edward N. Rappaport, and Christopher W. Landsea. The Deadliest, Costliest, and Most Intense United States Cyclones From 1851 to 2006. Miami, FL: National Weather Service, National Hurricane Center, April 15, 2007 update, 45 pages. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/pdf/NWS-TPC-5.pdf
Boyd, Ezra (Graduate Research Assistant, LSU Hurricane Public Health Center). Preliminary Summary Report of Hurricane Katrina Deceased Victim Recovery Locations in Louisiana. 10-13-2006, 19 pages. Accessed 6-5-2013 at: http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&ved=0CCsQFjAB&url=http%3A%2F%2F94.23.146.173%2Fficheros%2F2de8531e40a3ec345ea39b0a2ab658b6.pdf&ei=zSIFU_LcHYWR0QHv_YGQAQ&usg=AFQjCNHoWZwJNpkqdJ_R9ODcXgT-xPQWPQ&bvm=bv.61535280,d.dmQ
Brunkard, J., G. Namulanda, and R. Ratard (CDC). “Hurricane Katrina deaths, Louisiana, 2005.” Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness (AMA) Vol. 2, No. 4, Dec 2008, pp. 215-223. Abstract accessed 6-6-2013 at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18756175
Burt, Christopher C. and Mark Stroud. Extreme Weather: A Guide & Record Book. W. W. Norton & Co., 2007, 304. Google preview accessed 1-1-2014 at: http://books.google.com/books?id=NuP7ATq9nWgC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false
CNN. “Katrina’s official death toll tops 1,000.” 9-21-2005. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/09/21/katrina.impact/
Commercial Appeal, Memphis, TN. “Rita evacuees die in Miss. Crash.” 9-24-2005. Accessed 2-10-2014 at: http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2005/sep/24/in-brief/?print=1
Copeland, Larry. “Hurricane Katrina makes deadly landfall in South Florida,” USA Today, 8-24-2005. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/weather/stormcenter/2005-08-24-florida-storm_x.htm
Copeland, Larry and Laura Parker. “Search-and-Rescue effort continues in Miss.” USA Today, 8-31-2005. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-08-30-katrina-miss_x.htm
Curtis, Stephen A. (Ed.). Hurricane Katrina Damage Assessment: Louisiana, Alabama, and Mississippi Ports and Coasts. Reston, VA: American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), 2007. Google preview 5-25-2016 at: http://books.google.com/books?id=XD2UaKCQ_k0C&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_v2_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false
Dahlburg, John-Thor and Jenny Jarvie (Los Angeles Times). “Hurricane Katrina could hit Florida again.” The Baltimore Sun, 8-27-2005. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2005-08-27/news/0508270404_1_hurricane-katrina-hurricane-dennis-landfall
Discovery.com. “Isaac vs. Katrina: How Do They Compare?” 8-28-2012. Accessed 5-25-2016: http://news.discovery.com/earth/weather-extreme-events/isaac-katrina-comparison-120828.htm?_ga=1.30079163.565769400.1392833459
DoSomething.org. “11 Facts About Hurricane Katrina.” No date. Accessed 2-19-2014 at: http://www.dosomething.org/actnow/tipsandtools/11-facts-about-hurricane-katrina#
Evans, Ben and Becky Bohrer. “Promises, Promises: Obama Wins Praise for Katrina.” Associated Press, 8-27-2009. Accessed at: http://apnews.myway.com/article/20090827/D9ABG5H80.html
[Could not find this article when double-checking URLs 5-25-2016.]
Federal Emergency Management Agency. Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf Coast: Mitigation Assessment Team Report; Building Performance Observations, Recommendations, and Technical Guidance (FEMA 549). Washington, DC: FEMA July 2006. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://books.google.com/books?id=3hwpbpA-GfcC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_v2_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false
Fink, Sheri. “The New Katrina Flood: Hospital Liability.” New York Times, 1-1-2010. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/03/weekinreview/03fink.html?scp=1&sq=sheri%20fink%20katrina&st=cse&_r=1&
Gautam, Sandeep, Jonathan Menachem, Sudesh K. Srivastav, Patrice Delafontaine, and Anand Irimpen. “Effect of Hurricane Katrina on the Incidence of Acute Coronary Syndrome at a Primary Angioplasty Center in New Orleans.” Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness, Vol. 3, No. 3, Oct 2009, pp. 144-150. Abstract accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19713855
Government Accountability Office. Actions Taken to Implement the Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006. Washington, DC: GAO Letter Report, 11-21-2008, 129 pages. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d0959r.pdf
Gunn, Angus M. “Hurricane Katrina, August 29, 2005,” Chapter 181 in, Encyclopedia of Disasters: Environmental Catastrophes and Human Tragedies (Volume 2). Greenwood Press, 2007, pp. 686-695.
Hampson, N. B., Stock, A. L. “Storm-related Carbon Monoxide Poisoning: Lessons Learned from Recent Epidemics.” Undersea Hyperbaric Medicine, Vol. 33 No. 4, 2006. 257-263. At: http://archive.rubicon-foundation.org/dspace/bitstream/123456789/5054/1/17004412.pdf
Heirdorn, Keith C. (The Weather Doctor). Weather Almanac for October 2005. When Weather Goes Bad: Hurricane Katrina. 10-1-2005. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: https://www.islandnet.com/~see/weather/almanac/arc2005/alm05oct.htm
Heidorn, Keith C. (The Weather Doctor). Weather Events. “Louisiana’s Great Hurricane of 1722.” 10-1-2005. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://www.islandnet.com/~see/weather/events/lahurr1722.htm
Jervis, Rick. “43 Katrina Victims Still a Mystery,” USA Today, 1-21-2009. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2009-01-20-body-id_N.htm
Jonkman, et al. “Loss of Life Caused by the Flooding of New Orleans After Hurricane Katrina,” Risk Analysis, Vol. 29, Issue 5, pp. 676-698, 1-31-2009.
Kates, Robert W, C. E. Colten, Shirley Laska, and S. P. Leatherman. “Reconstruction of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina: A research perspective.” PNAS (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences) Vol. 103, No. 40, 10-3-2006, pp. 14653-14660. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://www.pnas.org/content/103/40/14653.full
Katrina Connection. “Lest We Forget: Where Have All the Missing Gone?” 8-29-2008. Accessed 6-6-2013 at: http://www.katrinaconnection.com/HurricaneKatrinaMissing.html
Knabb, Richard D., Jamie R. Rhome, and Daniel P. Brown (National Hurricane Center). Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Katrina, 23-30 August 2005. 12-20-2005, updated 8-10-2006 and 9-14-2011. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/data/tcr/AL122005_Katrina.pdf
Korosec, Thomas. “Coastal Crises. 126 dead; gas, hot meals in short supply. Lack of toilets, rotted food worries emergency official while bodies being found ‘everywhere’.” Houston Chronicle, 9-1-2005. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://www.chron.com/news/hurricanes/article/126-dead-in-Mississippi-gas-in-short-supply-1941640.php
Lansford, Tom, Jack Covarrubias, Brian Carriere, Justin Miller. Fostering Community Resilience: Homeland Security and Hurricane Katrina.” Ashgate, 2010. Google preview acceded 5-25-2016 at: http://books.google.com/books?id=9uIAUgZVtF8C&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false
Lindsay, Robert. “Final Katrina Death Toll at 4,081,” Beyond Highbrow, 5-30-2009. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://robertlindsay.wordpress.com/2009/05/30/final-katrina-death-toll-at-4081/
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National Climatic Data Center, NOAA. Billion-Dollar Weather/Climate Disasters. 11-17-2013 update. Accessed 2-18-2014 at: https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/billions/events
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NCDC (National Climatic Data Center), NOAA. Storm Events Database. (Coastal Dade…Begin Date 08/25/2005 12:00:00 EST, End Date 08/26/22005 08:00:00 EST.) Accessed 2-24-2014 at: http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=5470157
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Nelson, S. (Florida Medical Examiners Commission), et al. “Mortality Associated with Hurricane Katrina – Florida and Alabama, August-October 2005.” MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly), Vol. 55, No. 9, 3-10-2006, pp. 239-242. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5509a5.htm#tab
News Herald, Panama City, FL (Associated Press). “Pensacola man dies of apparent carbon monoxide poisoning,” 9-2-2005, p. 6B. Accessed at: http://newspaperarchive.com/fullpagepdfviewer?img=182096498&sterm
Olsen, Lise. “5 years after Katrina, storm’s death toll remains a mystery.” Houston Chronicle, 8-30-2010. Accessed 6-6-2013 at: http://www.chron.com/news/nation-world/article/5-years-after-Katrina-storm-s-death-toll-remains-1589464.php
Popular Mechanics Editors. “Debunking the Myths of Hurricane Katrina: Special Report.” March 2006. http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/environment/natural-disasters/2315076
[When double-checking this URL link on 5-25-2016 it could not be located.]
Rappaport, Edward N. “Fatalities in the United States from Atlantic tropical cyclones – new data and interpretation.” Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society (Early Online Releases). 8-16-2013. Accessed 3-5-2014 at: http://journals.ametsoc.org/toc/bams/0/0
Schleifstein, Mark. “Study of Hurricane Katrina’s Dead Show Most Were Old, Lived Near Levee Breaches.” Times-Picayune (New Orleans), 8-27-2009, updated 10-8-2009. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://www.nola.com/hurricane/index.ssf/2009/08/answers_are_scarce_in_study_of.html
Townsend, Francis Fragos (Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism). The Federal Response to Hurricane Katrina: Lessons Learned. Washington, DC: White House, 2-23-2006. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/reports/katrina-lessons-learned/index.html
USA Today. “New Orleans outlook bleak; 100 dead in Miss.” 8-30-2005. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/weather/stormcenter/2005-08-30-katrina_x.htm
Webley, Kayla and Robert Holmes (USGS). “Top 10 Historic U.S. Floods.” Time. 5-11-2011. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2070796_2070798,00.html?xid=rss-
Wikipedia. “Effects of Hurricane Katrina in Florida.” 12-20-2013 modification. Accessed 2-24-2014 at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Effects_of_Hurricane_Katrina_in_Florida
Wikipedia. “Effects of Hurricane Katrina in Mississippi.” Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Effects_of_Hurricane_Katrina_in_Mississippi
Wikipedia. “Hurricane Katrina Effects by Region.” Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Katrina_effects_by_region
WTVY.com, Dothan, AL. “Fatal Accident on I-10.” 8-30-2005. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://www.wtvy.com/home/headlines/1705326.html
Zimmermann, Kim Ann. “Hurricane Katrina: Facts, Damage & Aftermath.” LiveScience. 8-20-2012. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://www.livescience.com/22522-hurricane-katrina-facts.html
Additional Reading
Brinkley, Douglas. The Great Deluge: Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans, and the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Harper Perennial, 2006. Google preview accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://books.google.com/books?id=0a3PQ8oBriUC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false
Chan, Sewell and Gardiner Harris. “Death stalked the hospitals.” New York Times, 9-14-2005. At: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/14/world/14iht-hospital.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
[When double-checking URLs 5-25-2016 this URL could not be re-accessed.]
Chandra, Anita, and Joie Acosta. The Role of Nongovernmental Organizations in Long-Term Human Recovery After Disaster: Reflections From Louisiana Four Years After Hurricane Katrina (Occasional Paper). RAND, Gulf States Policy Institute. 2009. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/occasional_papers/2009/RAND_OP277.pdf
Farris, Meg (Medical Reporter). “Coroner: Deaths up since Katrina as stress takes toll.” WWLTV.com, New Orleans, LA, 3-15-2010. Accessed at: http://www.wwltv.com/news/health/Stress-87714322.html
[When double-checking URLs 5-25-2016 this URL could not be re-accessed.]
Mobile Register, AL. “No Mercy. Flood Crisis Worsens in New Orleans, Scores Dead in Mississippi as Terrible Impact of Katrina Unfolds.” 8-31-2005. Accessed 2-24-2014 at: http://www.al.com/mobileregister/pdf/register083105a.pdf
Nebraska Urban Search and Rescue Task Force One. Hurricane Katrina After Action. Lincoln, NE: Nebraska Task Force One, 8-22-2006 modification. Accessed 9-13-2015 at: http://www.lincoln.ne.gov/city/fire/usar/pic/response/katrina/aar1.pdf
Price, Scott (USCG Deputy Historian). A Bright Light on the Darkest of Days: The U.S. Coast Guard’s Response to Hurricane Katrina. 6-27-2012 modification. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://www.uscg.mil/history/katrina/docs/DarkestDay.pdf
U.S. House of Representatives, Select Bipartisan Committee to Investigate the Preparation for and Response to Hurricane Katrina (Tom Davis, Chairman). A Failure of Initiative: The Final Report of the Select Bipartisan Committee to Investigate the Preparation for and Response to Hurricane Katrina (House Report 109-377). Washington: GPO, 12-31-2005. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/search/pagedetails.action?browsePath=109/HRPT/[300%3B399]&granuleId=CRPT-109hrpt377&packageId=CRPT-109hrpt377
Wyndham Partners Consulting, Limited. Hurricane Katrina, 29th August 2005. Preliminary Damage Survey, 9-22-2005. Accessed 5-25-2016 at: http://www.renre.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/katrinaDamageSurvey.pdf
[1] The number of deaths we use reflect those generally reported today. We note “>” (at least) in that there are over 100 missing and presumed dead, as well as unreported health-related indirect deaths following the hurricane.
[2] Given (1) the large number if still missing, and presumably dead, measuring in the dozens, and (2) the unknown number of health-related indirect deaths in the weeks following Katrina that have gone unreported, this is not an unreasonable approximation. We do not use it, however, in that it appears to be a “guesstimate.”
[3] No specific source citation.
[4] Cites Beven et al. 2008. Bevin, though, on p. 1140, “Casualty and Damage Statistics” section, has 1833 deaths.
[5] Not counting 705 missing.
[6] No source citation.
[7] “Especially for Louisiana and Mississippi, the number of direct fatalities is highly uncertain and the true number will probably not ever be known. As of this writing, several hundred persons are still reported missing in association with Katrina, so it is possible the death toll could grow beyond current estimates.”
[8] Cites Knabb et al., National Hurricane Center. Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Katrina, 23-30 August 2005.
[9] No source citation.
[10] Direct deaths. 4,081 no. in title supposed to represent “excess deaths in the period after the hurricane was over.”
[11] Table 1.2 “Worst Natural Disasters in the United States, 1900-2005.” Cites: Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals, “Reports of Missing and Deceased” [“Louisiana Missing and Deceased”], February 17, 2006, http://www.dhh.louisiana.gov/offices/page.asp?ID=192&Detail=5248; and Katrina Tropical Cyclone Report.
[12] Described as edited from the National Hurricane Center’s report of 12-20-2005.
[13] Cites E. Blake 2012 personal communication.
[14] From Table “Number of deaths directly, indirectly, or possibly related to Hurricane Katrina, by cause of death – selected counties, Florida and Alabama, August-October 2005.”
[15] Associated Press. “Florida Developments from Hurricane Katrina.” WTLV, Jacksonville, FL, 8-30-2005; News Herald, Panama City (AP). “Pensacola man dies of apparent carbon monoxide poisoning,” 9-2-2005, p. 6B.
[16] Dahlburg/Jarvie (LA Times). “Hurricane Katrina could hit Florida again.” The Baltimore Sun, 8-27-2005.
[17] Jill Barton (AP). “Katrina roars ashore.” News Herald, Panama City, FL, 8-26-2005, p. 1.
[18] Barton. “Four dead…after Hurricane Katrina…” Daily Republican-Register, Mt. Carmel, IL, 8-26-2005, p. 6.
[19] Larry Copeland. “Hurricane Katrina makes deadly landfall in South Florida,” USA Today, 8-24-2005; Jill Barton (AP). “Hurricane Katrina Hits Florida, Sets Off Floods.” Daily Sitka Sentinel, AK, 8-26-2005, p. 2.
[20] Jill Barton (AP). “Hurricane Katrina Hits Florida, Sets Off Floods.” Daily Sitka Sentinel, AK, 8-26-2005, p. 2. Identification as a male is from: John-Thor Dahlburg and Jenny Jarvie (Los Angeles Times). “Hurricane Katrina could hit Florida again.” The Baltimore Sun, 8-27-2005. They note that the boat was a 25-footer.
[21] Jill Barton (AP). “Hurricane Katrina Hits Florida, Sets Off Floods.” Daily Sitka Sentinel, AK, 8-26-2005, p. 2; Dahlburg/Jarvie (Los Angeles Times). “Hurricane Katrina could hit Florida again.” The Baltimore Sun, 8-27-2005.
[22] Jill Barton (AP). “Hurricane Katrina Hits Florida, Sets Off Floods.” Daily Sitka Sentinel, AK, 8-26-2005, p. 2.
[23] Jill Barton. “Four dead…after Hurricane Katrina…” Daily Republican-Register, Mt. Carmel, IL, 8-26-2005, p.6.
[24] Associated Press. “Florida Developments from Hurricane Katrina.” WTLV, Jacksonville, FL, 8-30-2005.
[25] Table in: Nelson, S. (Florida Medical Examiners Commission), et al. “Mortality Associated with Hurricane Katrina – Florida and Alabama, August-October 2005.” MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly), Vol. 55, No. 9, 3-10-2006, pp. 239-242. There is no source citation and we have not been able to verify through Newspaperarchives.com, Internet search or other sources. It is conceivable that either this is copying from Wikipedia article (which we cannot verify), or vice versa. We do not include in that we cannot verify.
[26] Cites Knabb, et al., who, though, do not mention a vehicular accident in Walton County. Thus, we do not include.
[27] Jill Barton (AP). “Hurricane Katrina Hits Florida, Sets Off Floods.” Daily Sitka Sentinel, AK, 8-26-2005, p. 2. Identification as a male is from: John-Thor Dahlburg and Jenny Jarvie (Los Angeles Times). “Hurricane Katrina could hit Florida again.” The Baltimore Sun, 8-27-2005. They note that the boat was a 25-footer.
[28] From Table “Number of deaths directly, indirectly, or possibly related to Hurricane Katrina, by cause of death – selected counties, Florida and Alabama, August-October 2005.”
[29] Associated Press. “Florida Developments from Hurricane Katrina.” WTLV, Jacksonville, FL, 8-30-2005; News Herald, Panama City (AP). “Pensacola man dies of apparent carbon monoxide poisoning,” 9-2-2005, p. 6B.
[30] “Pensacola. A man died of apparent carbon monoxide poisoning from a generator operating inside his home, authorities said….Authorities were called to Perry’s house because no one had heard from him since the hurricane hit Monday [Aug 29]. Upon entering his home they found an empty generator and several full gasoline cans….” (News Herald, Panama City, FL (AP). “Pensacola man dies of apparent carbon monoxide poisoning,” 9-2-2005, 6B)
[31] Associated Press. “Florida Developments from Hurricane Katrina.” WTLV, Jacksonville, FL, 8-30-2005.
[32] We suspect that one of the two boating “drownings” is of a man in Miami-Dade County from injuries sustained from being thrown about by the buffeting of his boat during the hurricane, and that the “unknown circumstances” death is that of the Florida City, Miami-Dade County man “found floating in floodwaters in his front yard.”
[33] NCDC Storm Events Database, Coastal Dade, notes two drownings on boats and one “unknown circumstances.”
[34] No citation. We assume this reflects the same mistake that is in Knabb in counting as a drowning a man who died of injuries sustained on his boat as it was being buffeted about by the hurricane. We do not include in our count.
[35] Jill Barton (AP). “Hurricane Katrina Hits Florida, Sets Off Floods.” Daily Sitka Sentinel, AK, 8-26-2005, p. 2; Dahlburg/Jarvie (Los Angeles Times). “Hurricane Katrina could hit Florida again.” The Baltimore Sun, 8-27-2005.
[36] Jill Barton (AP). “Hurricane Katrina Hits Florida, Sets Off Floods.” Daily Sitka Sentinel, AK, 8-26-2005, p. 2.
[37] From Table “Number of deaths directly, indirectly, or possibly related to Hurricane Katrina, by cause of death – selected counties, Florida [all] and Alabama, August-October 2005.”
[38] From Table “Number of deaths directly, indirectly, or possibly related to Hurricane Katrina, by cause of death – selected counties, Florida [all] and Alabama, August-October 2005.” Notes 2 direct and 2 indirect deaths from “Hit by falling tree limb.” No citation. Cannot confirm four such fatalities. It is conceivable the Nelson, et al. fourth fatality refers to the Cooper City vehicular accident wherein a 79-year-old man hit a tree with his car.
[39] Dahlburg/Jarvie (Los Angeles Times). “Hurricane Katrina could hit Florida again.” Baltimore Sun, 8-27-2005.
[40] Jill Barton (AP). “Katrina roars ashore.” News Herald, Panama City, FL, 8-26-2005, p. 1.
[41] Jill Barton. “Four dead…after Hurricane Katrina…” Daily Republican-Register, Mt. Carmel, IL, 8-26-2005, p.6.
[42] We assume that the NCDC reference is to the Cooper City crash.
[43] We assume that the NCDC reference is to the Cooper City crash.
[44] Table in: Nelson, S. (Florida Medical Examiners Commission), et al. “Mortality Associated with Hurricane Katrina – Florida and Alabama, August-October 2005.” MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly), Vol. 55, No. 9, 3-10-2006, pp. 239-242. There is no source citation and we have not been able to verify through Newspaperarchives.com, Internet search or other sources. It is conceivable that either this is copying from Wikipedia article (which we cannot verify), or vice versa. We do not include in that we cannot verify.
[45] Cites Knabb, et al., who, though, do not mention a vehicular accident in Walton County. Thus, we do not include.
[46] WTVY.com, Dothan, AL. “Fatal Accident on I-10.” 8-30-2005: “[FL] Highway Patrol says poor road conditions caused by…Katrina may have played a part in the accident…just inside the Walton and Holmes County Line…”
[47] Larry Copeland. “Hurricane Katrina makes deadly landfall in South Florida,” USA Today, 8-24-2005; Jill Barton (AP). “Hurricane Katrina Hits Florida, Sets Off Floods.” Daily Sitka Sentinel, AK, 8-26-2005, p. 2.
[48] From Table “Number of deaths directly, indirectly, or possibly related to Hurricane Katrina, by cause of death – selected counties, Florida [all] and Alabama, August-October 2005.”
[49] Writes that one was direct (presumably the tornado fatality).
[50] No source citation. Have not been able to confirm; not including.
[51] No source citation.
[52] Cites Beven et al. 2008.
[53] Notes that this includes out-of-state evacuee deaths. However, so does the LA DHH data cited by Boyd, which reports 1,118 in-state deaths. Wikipedia does not provide a source citation.
[54] Notes that “the true loss-of-life of this disaster remains uncertain. One year later, the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals (DHH) reports nearly 130 missing and the New Orleans Fire Department continues to recover the remains of deceased victims from the rubble of destroyed houses.”
[55] Cites the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals and its “Katrina Missing” website and notes that “As of August 2, 2006 this site listed 1,464 deceased victims and notes that the cases of 135 missing have been turned over to law enforcement. Of the confirmed dead, 1,118 victims perished within Louisiana, while 346 victims perished outside of the state of Louisiana. Of the 1,118 in-state deaths, 875 victims were recovered and examined by the Medical Examiner’s Office. The remaining victims were handled by parish coroners: 20 by Orleans parish coroner and 223 by other parish coroners….At least five persons have been located alive.”
[56] Citing the CDC, write that “From August 29-September 24, 2005, a total of 51 cases of CO poisoning were reported by hyperbaric facilities in Alabama (24 nonfatal cases), Louisiana (16 nonfatal and 5 fatal cases), and Mississippi (6 nonfatal cases). Of the 46 nonfatal cases, 37 patients were treated with HBO [subscript “2”]. Among the total cases, 59% occurred on day 2 or 3 after the storm struck…Portable generators were the source of CO for 45 nonfatal and all 5 fatal cases. One nonfatal case was associated with use of a gasoline-powered pressure washer. During this same time period, the American Association of Poison Control Centers reported a total of 58 calls relating to possible CO exposures, 8 in Mississippi, 21 in Alabama and 29 in Louisiana. No calls relating to fatalities were received.”
[57] At least it is my impression that the fatality estimate relates to New Orleans: “It flooded the historic city of New Orleans, ultimately killing over 1,300 people…” Perhaps though, the reference is to overall fatalities.
[58] Althea LaCoste. (Fink, Sheri. “The New Katrina Flood: Hospital Liability.” New York Times, 1-1-2010.)
[59] No specific source citation.
[60] Cites: Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour. Information Relating to the Federal Appropriations for Katrina Recovery. Jackson, MS: Office of the Governor, 1-6-2006.
[61] Cited is Harrison County Civil Defense Directory, Joe Spraggins, who is quoted as stating that local officials were “very, very worried that this is going to go a lot higher.”
[62] Cited are Jackson County officials.
[63] Commercial Appeal, Memphis, TN. “Rita evacuees die in Miss. Crash.” 9-24-2005.
[64] No source citation. We have not been able to verify; do not include.