Hurricane Katrina made landfall near New Orleans and overwhelmed levees with heavy rain and massive storm surges, causing catastrophic flooding. The storm killed nearly 1,400 people across the Gulf Coast and remains the costliest on record. Recovery proceeded unevenly, leaving entire neighborhoods decimated and long-lasting scars. In New Orleans' Ninth Ward, many residents felt deep attachment to place and returned to rebuild, while others could not return. Federal recovery programs like Road Home allocated funds based on property value, disadvantaging low-income areas and contributing to displacement and unequal recovery outcomes.
20 years ago last week, Hurricane Katrina made landfall in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, about 50 miles southeast of New Orleans. Thousands of people had evacuated in advance of the monster storm. But many stayed behind. And even before the storm made landfall, the levees protecting New Orleans began to fail, overwhelmed by heavy rain and massive storm surges.The flooding was catastrophic and the scars from Katrina, which killed nearly 1,400 people across the Gulf Coast, are still evident today.
"Sometimes it's hard to remember that people were kept away from their houses for a year," Green said. "If you had a job and lost it, you had to get one somewhere else. A lot of people also lost their homes because the Road Home Program gave money based on property value. In low-income areas, you couldn't get as much money. So many people couldn't return."
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