hurricane katrina: superdome documentary hurricane katrina: superdome documentary

She describes . There are still areas that look like Katrina hit yesterday. We could either go with your suggestion' -- which, my suggestion was, if you don't give me the final authority give it to Gen. [Russel] Honor. Newly rescued people are still being brought to the Superdome. The two of us are going to leave. We do our video conference calls before and during disasters. Lipin says when he arrived in Baton Rouge and turned on the TV, he was surprised by reports of rampant violence in New Orleans. We arent looking for a handout, but its hard to believe that the city that we love (and everyone lovesthe Mardi Gras, the jazz, the hospitality!) Gettridge,a fifth generation New Orleanian, would go on to die from a heart attack in 2014 at the age of 91 at the home he had successfully rebuilt. Having largely emptied the cavernous Superdome, which had become a squalid pit of misery and violence, officials turned their attention to the Convention Center, where people waited to be evacuated as corpses rotted in the streets. "We know about all the other things that happened, all the thefts, all the robberies. But by late morning, when FEMA director Michael Brown arrives in Baton Rouge, water is already coming over levees in the 9th Ward and there are reports of breaks in the Industrial Canal and 17th Street Canal levees. Around this time 17 years ago, Hurricane Katrina bore down on New Orleans, and . Michael Brown, FEMA director: But they're designed for short hauls.". The storm has ripped a hole in the Superdome where the power has gone out. [Congressman] Bobby Jindal is there, the senators Landrieu and [David] Vitter, and Congressman [William] Jefferson. Around this time 17 years ago, Hurricane Katrina bore down on New Orleans, and permanently changed life for thousands of people across the country. "I didn't see any police officers -- I could have gotten away with murder," she says. But problems persist. We can only deal with what we know.". Blanco says, "Mr. President, thank you thank you, thank you. Locals adopt it in their idea of the city. Flooding grows as water surges over levee breaks from Lake Ponchartrain; the 9th Ward is almost entirely submerged. Hurricane Katrina first made landfall on Aug. 25, 2005, in Florida, weakening to a tropical storm as it briefly passed over land. And there seems to be this dance about who has ultimate authority. New Orleans, Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina, as seen in the new documentary Katrina Babies. Web Site Copyright 1995-2023 WGBH Educational Foundation. By midday, water levels between the city and Lake Ponchartrain have equalized. Theme Foto Blog by, Hundreds Evacuated as Vanuatu Braces for Second Cyclone in 2 Days. It doesn't make any sense.". The hurricane and its aftermath claimed more than 1,800 lives, and it ranked as the costliest natural disaster in U.S. history. Four were wounded, and 17-year-old James Brisette and 40-year-old Ronald Madison were killed. Where is food? "[Michael] Brown I did not see the first couple of days. It has been nearly six years since Hurricane Katrina ripped through the Gulf of Mexico cutting a swathe of devastation and shock through the psyche of the American people. With all due respect, Mr. President, if you and the governor don't get on the same page, this event is going to continue to spiral down, and it's going to be a black eye on everybody -- federal, state and local.' Interstate 10 is shut down with damage to 40 percent of its Twin Span Bridge over Lake Ponchartrain. Marty Bahamonde/FEMA. The Army Corps of Engineers renews work to fix the breach in the 17th St. Canal. Note: In the last hours before Katrina made landfall, dozens of copies of the Hurricane Pam report are distributed to emergency planners. Some parishes order mandatory evacuations. Pack carefully. New Orleans residents are still trapped by the floodwaters, and dispatchers receive about 1,000 emergency phone calls from people needing to be rescued. ". Required fields are marked *. Heres What the Claims Say and Where They Stand. ISIS' growing foothold in Afghanistan is captured on film. The city's buses have been positioned around the city in locations that have never been flooded. And then he was gone after a while.". FEMA was doing what it's supposed to be doing. Get as many people out as possible. The Superdome is an intrinsic part of the city of New Orleans. "Some bad things happened, you know. We need you to take over logistics, distribution of commodities, etc. The National Weather Service writes that Hurricane Katrina is "one of the five deadliest hurricanes to ever strike the United States." Hurricane Katrina caused up to $161 billion worth of damage, largely due to the fact that the breached levees led to flooding in 80% of New Orleans. He escaped the chaotic shelter a few days . There's no question.". [2] Approximately 10,000 residents, along with about 150 National Guardsmen, sheltered in the Superdome anticipating Katrina's landfall. Since many New Orleans streets are still filled with stagnant, fetid waters smelling of garbage and raw sewage, the military was considering using planes to spray for mosquitoes.". At least one half of well constructed homes will have roof and wall failure. Around 6 a.m., Category 4 Hurricane Katrina strikes the Gulf Coast with 145 mph maximum sustained winds. New Orleans resident climbing through roof of house. As of Nov. 22, 2005, more than 900 people are known to have died in New Orleans. And the mayor began to tell us some of the things that he needed. Chef Al Brown's nationwide dinner party to raise funds for Cyclone Gabrielle relief, Dubai, Hamilton and a hurricane named Hazel, VIPCs Public Safety Innovation Center hosts technology exhibit at Virginia Fire and Rescue Conference in Virginia Beach, REVEALED: Huge sonic boom felt by thousands across the country was caused by RAF Typhoon jets scrambling to intercept plane when pilot stopped responding 1.9k shares, Vanuatu Left Strewn With Debris After Tropical Cyclone Kevin, Cyclone Kevin leaves trail of destruction in Vanuatu, Even more homes at risk of hurricane damage: Report, Hurricane Katrina New Orleans French Quarter. And he said definitively, "Mr. Mayor, the storm is headed right for you. Benitez and others interviewed for this report believe that police authorities -- who were anxious to discount initially exaggerated reports of mayhem -- are downplaying violent crimes that happened in the anarchy after the storm. Watch it: For a powerful story of resilience and determination in the face of tragedy. The film a raw and gripping investigation of the Katrina response, its tragic consequences and its political ramifications includes candid interviews with key Katrina decision-makers, including the first televised interview with former FEMA Director Michael Brown since his resignation two weeks after Katrina hit. We'd sent them all the information they needed. And he had flown in a helicopter. So I can assume what the criminals were thinking, and that's exactly what happened.". Very shortly, he said, Cars are beginning to float out of the parking lot. Michael Chertoff, secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, says he is "extremely pleased with the response of every element of the federal government and federal partners to this terrible tragedy." ', And we left and had a press conference. "We did meet with [Mayor Nagin] Tuesday morning. In fact, at the headquarters of the Louisiana National Guard, located in the Lower NinthWard, soldiers were not yet aware that the levees were giving way. A hurricane warning is issued for north central Gulf Coast including New Orleans. These three documentaries and nearly 190 more are all streaming online at pbs.org/frontline. But while the Superdome has been reclaimed, those stories of trauma remain, and some roil pretty close to . Rapid Transit Authority buses pick up citizens and bring them to the Superdome, where the Louisiana National Guard has stocked enough MREs to feed 15,000 people for three days. When Hurricane Katrina forced New Orleans poet Shelton Alexander to evacuate his home, he took his truck and video camera to the Superdome. Around this time 17 years ago, Hurricane Katrina bore down on New Orleans, and permanently . Mayor Ray Nagin orders the total evacuation of New Orleans due to the dangers posed by the contaminated standing water. so you had a very dynamic situation.". The interviews done as part of this project reflect the disaster's painful, chaotic, and murky aftermath. Concerned over unreported and underreported rapes, her organization, together with the National Sexual Violence Resource Center -- which is funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention -- created a national database to track sexual assaults that happened after Katrina. Over 1,800 people lost their lives in the hurricane and an estimated 1 million people were displaced from their homes. by JOHN DORN. Photo: Mario Tama/Getty. The death toll in the city is not known, but the dying continues as people succumb to illness, exhaustion and days without food and water. "I went into New Orleans and stood beside Mayor Nagin and emphasized the need to leave. Blanco announces New Orleans must be evacuated because of the still- rising water and uninhabitable conditions. The Department of Defense's "Joint Task Force Katrina" -- 4,600 active-duty military headed by Army Lt. Gen. Russel Honor -- sets up at Camp Shelby, Miss. "A close eye will be kept this system could strengthen ". By the end of the day, it is upgraded to Tropical Storm Katrina, with 50 mph maximum sustained winds. [He] came on site, I think it was Monday after the event. By the evening of August 25, when it made . I said, 'All of us are going to leave right now, and they're going to work this out right now. Katrina makes landfall near Grand Isle, Louisiana as a Category 3 storm with winds near 127 mph. But a growing body of evidence suggests there were more storm-related sexual assaults than previously known. Katrina Cop in the Superdome. I've expressed many times that we're willing to investigate any sexual assaults that happened in this city at any time. There are still gangs of armed criminals roaming the city; police and National Guard, now numbered at 16,000, have a better handle on the situation than earlier in the week. She gripped my arm at the store, and she told me, the way you shared with everybody so openly, you helped me to heal. "Most of the area will be uninhabitable for weeks perhaps longer. Driving in from the popular suburb of Metairie, it's the first building you pass. Blanco is there. 11.1.2005. Find out more about how we use your personal data in our privacy policy and cookie policy. According to a New York Times article of September 29, "During six days when the Superdome was used as a shelter, the head of the New Orleans Police Department's sex crimes unit, Lt. David . As Katrina hit, Alexander found himself in a desperate situation. A shaft of light falls throught an opening in the fully evacuated Superdome on Sept. 5, 2005 in New Orleans, La. Power outages will last for weeks water shortages will make human suffering incredible by modern standards.". " After Katrina passed, we thought we're pretty much out of the woods. Residents are bringing their belongings and lining up to get into the Superdome which has been opened as a hurricane shelter in advance of hurricane Katrina. Glover, you dont know me, but Im Phyllis, and I was in another Katrina documentary and I have to see this film! He grabbed onto me and I wouldnt let go until I got a seat insidethats the way I am. An Unfiltered View: Producers of Police on Trial on What the Documentary Reveals 2 Years After the Murder of George Floyd, From the Archives: How the World's Deadliest Ebola Outbreak Unfolded, Russias Invasion of Ukraine, One Year Later, War Crimes Watch Ukraine: More Than 650 Documented Events, From the Archives: How the U.N. & World Failed Darfur Amid "the 21st Century's First Genocide". In the decade since Katrina, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) which came under harsh criticism for its response to the storm says it has improved its preparedness for future natural disasters. I spoke to an airman [over the phone] he told me that it had rained very little and there was justexcept for just a few puddles of water in the parking lot, there just was no water, the guards commander, Maj. Gen. Bennett Landreneau, who was monitoring the situation from Baton Rouge, recalled in an interview with FRONTLINE. At 7 pm it makes landfall north of Miami. And that is unacceptable. To get medical teams and search teams out the door and get 'em down there. Inside the four triage tents, medical personnel tended to people who had gone for days without their medication. Airborne debris will be widespread and may include heavy items such as household appliances and even light vehicles. "I got a call, I think Saturday afternoon [from] Max Mayfield, the hurricane director. A scene from 2006s 'When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts' (Photo: Everett Collection) This week marks a . This escapism was part of the gift the Saints gave the city following Hurricane Katrina. August 28, 2005. On August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast, causing catastrophic flooding as numerous levees failed around New Orleans. Kathleen Blanco: I said, 'If you guys don't get together and work this out, this is going to get worse.' Stranded victims of Hurricane Katrina rest inside the Superdome September 2, 2005 in New Orleans. Their back-up generators flooded. "Louis Armstrong International Airport served as a massive clearing house for some of the storm's sickest victims Saturday. hurricane katrina ripped through the Gulf Coast, claiming 1,800 lives. Hurricane Katrina, tropical cyclone that struck the southeastern United States in late August 2005. They were finally able to leave the city on Saturday. Having largely emptied the cavernous Superdome, which had become a squalid pit of misery and violence, officials turned their attention to the Convention Center, where people waited to be evacuated as corpses rotted in the streets. The Times-Picayune reports that the breaches in the 17th Street and Florida Avenue Canals have been repaired and power is restored to the Warehouse and Central Business Districts. The film features 15 minutes of live hurricane video shot by Kimberly Roberts, an aspiring rapper whose family was too poor to leave New Orleans, and follows Kim's family and others through the . As a shocking New Orleans documentary airs on HBO tonight, Phyllis Montana-LeBlancbestselling author and gutsy survivorexplains why the city is still drowning. The death toll in the city is not known, but the dying continues as people succumb to illness, exhaustion and days without food and water. Dave Cohen was one of the few reporters to stay in New Orleans as Katrina bore down on the city, and continued broadcasting as the . Here in New Orleans East, we desperately need a hospital. Henry Glover was last seen alive in the backseat of a white Chevy Malibu on Sept. 2, 2005, days after Katrina hit. - Severe flooding damage to cities along the Gulf Coast, from New Orleans to . Orders volun-tary evacuation where residents in low-lying areas encouraged to evacuate Sunday, August 28, 2005: Hurricane Katrina becomes a Category 5 storm with 160 mph winds Superdome opens as a shelter of last resort Acadian personnel are deployed to the Superdome to help triage special needs patients and staff the rst aid station Nagin . According to the New Orleans Data Center, racial disparities in income and employment are more pronounced in the city than they are nationally; the poverty rate is 11 points higher than the national average; and the incarceration rate is approximately three times the national average. He escaped the chaotic shelter a few days later with a truckload of people and video documentation of history.Check out exclusive HISTORY content:Website - http://www.history.com?cmpid=Social_YouTube_HistHomeTwitter - https://twitter.com/history/postsFacebook - https://www.facebook.com/HistoryHISTORY, now reaching more than 98 million homes, is the leading destination for award-winning original series and specials that connect viewers with history in an informative, immersive, and entertaining manner across all platforms. Buckles, who wrote and directed the documentary . "At that stage, we had mission-assigned the Department of Defense to start giving us everything they could in terms of air-lift capability. "We're not downsizing anything," Benelli says. The Times-Picayune reports that an estimated 112,000 people do not own cars. Where is all the things that we need to get out of here?"' Conditions are deteriorating with bathrooms overflowing, no power for air conditioning and little food and water. And I knew it wasn't true, because 8:00 or 10:00 that morning, I received a report from one of my staffers that either a levee had been topped or had actually broken. After Hurricanes Katrina and Rita devastated the Gulf Coast, Congress appropriated an unprecedented $126.4 billion for relief, recovery and rebuilding efforts. We, Yahoo, are part of the Yahoo family of brands. And then they'd gone around the room, and everybody's talking to the president and giving their opinions. Plus, if you lived in a FEMA trailer for three years like I did, the last thing you want to do is go to a trailer for medical care. At 10 a.m., the Thorntons headed together to the Superdome. The account of her rape was verified by a trained forensic nurse at Earl K. Long Hospital in Baton Rouge, where Lewis sought treatment. He also announces that the Superdome will be "a shelter of last resort for evacuees with special needs." Explore FRONTLINEs collected and ongoing reporting on Russia's war on Ukraine. Mahogany describes her actions before deciding to evacuate her home, her trip to the New Orleans Saints' Superdome, her horrific time at the Superdome, and finally her decision to leave New Orleans. August 29, 2005. They spend the next 24 hours trying to save themselves. By the end of the day it is 335 miles from the mouth of the Mississippi River. But we need something really big, like a hospital, that shows where the $25 billion in recovery money is going. Reports stream in from people needing rescue. After being damaged by. And Mayor Nagin expressed his concerns. There was all kinds of crime taking place on a much higher level than usual. Katrina caused more than $160 billion in damage. The storm traveled the Gulf of Mexico and then made landfall on the Gulf Coast in southeast Louisiana near the town of Buras, on Aug. 29, 2005. FEMA National Situation Update: Follow a day-by-day account of Hurricane Katrina's wrath, from its birth in the Atlantic Ocean to its catastrophic effects: flooded streets, flattened homes, and horrific loss of life. Subscribe: http://bit.ly/NatGeoSubscribe#NationalGeographic #HurricaneKatrina #StormsAbout National Geographic:National Geographic is the world's premium destination for science, exploration, and adventure. New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin says he'll follow the state evacuation plan and will not call for mandatory evacuation until 30 hours before projected landfall. Phyllis Montana-LeBlancthe breakout star of Spike Lees When the Levees Broke documentary and author of Not Just the Levees Broke: My Story During and After Katrina (and a consultant on David Simons new post-Katrina HBO drama)writes below about why viewers should still care about New Orleans four years later, and why Trouble the Water just may be the wakeup call we need. Mayor Nagin estimates 50,000 to 100,000 people remain in the city. He announces FEMA is moving supplies and equipment into the hardest hit areas. Patrice Taddonio. I just expressed to her my concern about the lack of unified command, and the need to have more of a structure of what was going on. Katrina becomes a Category 3 with 115 mph maximum sustained winds. Around this time 17 years ago, Hurricane Katrina bore down on New . ', So they went into another section of the plane, had a meeting. ' Gettridge told FRONTLINE. "[On Air Force One] we gave the president a briefing on everything that had gone on. By. She sits on the edge of a bed in a dingy, dimly lit room in a motel in Baton Rouge. HBO. The Coast Guard mobilizes to respond after the storm hits. I'm just not going to go on, on public television and bash in the middle of a disaster what I think people should or should not be doing. I n the HBO documentary Katrina Babies, young teen Meisha Williams recollects her experience surviving the 2005 hurricane that displaced approximately 200,000 New Orleans residents. And then finally I just stopped and said: 'Excuse me, but time is of the essence. But I am happy to help, even if it takes me an extra two hours at the grocery store. Since many New Orleans streets are still filled with stagnant, fetid waters smelling of garbage and raw sewage, the military was considering using planes to spray for mosquitoes.". And they both shook their heads and said, 'Yes, you're right.' In New Orleans last year, there was a rape every other day on average. Mayor, we had a good meeting. And I forget whether it was on Saturday or Sunday, I told my staff that I was sick to my stomach because I could see that some things weren't looking quite right. It is 250 miles south-southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River. Later, his charred remains were discovered on the banks of the Mississippi River, inside a car that had apparently been set on fire. The Katrina images we see in the film -- people on rooftops, the Superdome being shredded by hurricane winds, dogs stranded in attics -- are ones that once would have been guaranteed to put lumps . Trapped on Airline Drive in a traffic jam in his gas-depleted pickup truck, he didn't think he would reach his destination of Baton Rouge. People begin arriving at the Ernest M. Morial Convention Center seeking shelter, food, and water. Law-enforcement authorities dismissed early reports of widespread rapes in New Orleans during the lawless days following Hurricane Katrina. After the genocide in Rwanda and atrocities in Srebrenica, Bosnia, in the 1990s, the world vowed never again. Then came the conflict in Darfur, Sudan, which began 20 years ago. Refuge of last resort: Five days inside the Superdome for Hurricane Katrina. "It was that terrible. Do You Have News to Share? Rentals include 30 days to start watching this video and 48 hours to finish once started. '", Michael Brown, FEMA director: (AP Photo/David J. Phillip). In the first few hours after Katrina hit, many people believed that New Orleans had dodged a bullet. Jon and Jo Ann Hagler on behalf of the Jon L. Hagler Foundation. Lewis says she was raped on Monday, Aug. 29, the day of the storm. We go to Sam's and Wal-Mart and Winn-Dixie and gather up food and water and start distributing it because we had 60 hours' worth of resources that we had stored, but now we're out of it. Gov. FRONTLINE reports from Iraq on the miscalculations and mistakes behind the brutal rise of ISIS. New Orleans, Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina, as seen in the new documentary Katrina Babies. Remembers Covering Katrina Preserving History After Hurricane Katrina Katrina's Affect on Charter schools quiz: 10 Questions on Katrina. "I'm not gonna go on television and publicly say that I think that the mayor and the governor are not doing their job, and that they don't have the sense of urgency. All I can tell you is that in the city of New Orleans we had maybe 250 guardsmen that we could account for. There is a belief that the city has avoided a direct hit. When Hurricane Katrina forced New Orleans poet Shelton Alexander to evacuate his home, he took his truck and video camera to the Superdome. I had all the police, the firefighters in rescue mode, so the looting thing started to rear its head. When Hurricane Katrina ripped the Superdome's rubber seal off, tore open the steel roof paneling and penetrated the stadium, it shed light on the conjoined problems of concentrated poverty, socialized and environmental racism, and America's ability to ignore the suffering of its own citizens. You can change your choices at any time by clicking on the 'Privacy dashboard' links on our sites and apps. Its just rawits a look at the poorest people of the Ninth Ward, and those who couldnt afford to leave, and if you have a heart in your body, you will feel this film 100 percent. ", "Coastal residents jammed freeways and gas stations as they rushed to get out A direct hit could wind up submerging New Orleans in several feet of water At least 100,000 people in the city lack transportation to get out Louisiana and Mississippi make all lanes northbound on interstate highways", Note: In the last hours before Katrina made landfall, dozens of copies of the, "To cries of 'Thank you, Jesus!' Directed by New Orleans native Edward Buckles Jr., who was a teenager when Katrina struck, the documentary, which premieres Thursday on HBO, reminds us of the storm's real-life ramifications. Other people call me the Dr. Phil of the streets.. In downtown New Orleans, some streets were merely wet rather than swamped. Then we kind of figure out ways that we could coordinate. Around this time 17 years ago, Hurricane Katrina bore down on New Orleans, and permanently changed life for thousands of people across the country. Gov. Military and Coast Guard helicopters flew a steady stream of evacuees from hospitals and rooftops to the airport southwest of downtown. By the end of the day, there are 30,000 people at the Superdome. The line to get in was already a quarter-mile long. Storm refugees reported being raped, shot and robbed, gangs of teenagers hijacked boats meant to rescue them, and frustrated hurricane victims menaced outmanned law officers. Katrina Cop in the Superdome. And based upon that ["Hurricane Pam" planning exercise], I knew they needed to evacuate. authenticate users, apply security measures, and prevent spam and abuse, and, display personalised ads and content based on interest profiles, measure the effectiveness of personalised ads and content, and, develop and improve our products and services. Some 11,000 National Guardsmen are now on duty in Louisiana and increased security begins to have an effect on lawlessness in New Orleans, although some violence continues. I just sent President Obama 10 letters the other day ( I remember Oprah saying persistence pays off) saying that since Katrina, we still only have two medical trailers in this part of town, and they arent equipped to handle emergencies or even basic lab work. Every little thing helps. Gov. Mississippi and Louisiana governors declare states of emergency. [Governor Blanco] probably should have asked sooner. ", Michael Brown, FEMA director: Meanwhile, Lewis, the 46-year-old home health-care worker, has still not reported her assault to the police, and she has no plans to. But one man then-82-year-old Herbert Gettridge was determined to rebuild the house he had built more than 50 years earlier in the Lower Ninth Ward, with or without government support. Ms. Blanco, she left and walked out. Top subscription boxes right to your door, 1996-2023, Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates. Note: The Earlier Warnings -- In 2001, FEMA identified the three most likely disasters facing the U.S.: an earthquake in California, a hurricane in New Orleans and a terrorist attack in New York City. ", President Bush arrives in Louisiana. Reports put the population there in the tens of thousands.