When The Levees Broke
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In August 2005, Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast, overwhelming vulnerable levees and inundating entire neighborhoods across New Orleans, coastal Mississippi, and Louisiana. More than 1,800 people lost their lives, hundreds of thousands were displaced, and homes, hospitals, and essential services were destroyed, leaving many stranded for days without adequate food, water, or medical care.
The disaster exposed more than the force of a powerful storm. Rising sea temperatures, the loss of Louisiana’s protective coastal wetlands, and decades of underinvestment in flood infrastructure intensified its impact, while a slow and inadequate government response laid bare profound social and racial inequities. Katrina became a defining example of how environmental change and political failure can combine to magnify human catastrophe.
