Hurricane Katrina: America's Unnatural Disaster - Research Paper Example

Strengths

Weaknesses

Opportunities

Threats

Areas of Marigny or Bywater have repopulated since Katrina

Lack of green space within this area

Highly denser residential blessed with views to the downtown and river

Perception and crime of safety

Very strong and involved residential associations

Lack of ways connecting the residential with the Mississippi Riverfront

Job creation and economic development

Storm events

More than a thousand parking spaces at the site of the project

Lack of grocery stores/retail area

Park for technology research and training

Storm damage and perceptions related to the vulnerability of storms

Intensive community diversification

Public education system

Mixed consumption development

Blighted housing in this area

Proximity to substantial areas such as the Mississippi River and Linear Park

The available office space is mostly class B and C

Transitional and homeless housing

Overall diminished or deteriorated economic development within this region/city

People’s ability to change Roch Fire into a community center around the project area

There is a need for environmental remediation for future reuse

Mixed-income housing

Initiation of beneficial programs such as the St. Claude Main Street Program

Viewshed opportunities

Assisted living and retirement living uses

Creation of new linkages to CBD and employment centers through the improved proposed transit services

Adequate support for cruise terminal proposal

Cause and Effect of Katrina Health

Cause

Effect

Scientists partially blame global warming for its power and endurance

Damaged properties in places like Mississippi and Louisiana among others

Overheated tropical waters in the ocean

Led to fatalities in Florida, Alabama, and Georgia

Interaction between tropical waves and Tropical Depression Ten remains

Led to the evacuation of over one million people from their places of residence

The damage caused by Katrina amounted to an astonishing $81 billion

Created massive flooding

Led to the collapse of canals among other water bodies

Force Field

Saturday, August 20, 2010- Five years after Katrina (New Orleans)

-moved to New York City fourteen days before the shaking 9/11

-had shifted to Madrid sixty days prior the 3/11

-never experienced the first-hand effects of Katrina but sat helplessly and watched the city of New Orleans drown in floods and decided to move to that city fourteen days after the visit profoundly not knowing what fate had brewed at the Gulf

-was August 2005 and had just returned home from all-around a country trip with my best friend who had graduated from college and had not landed a job yet        

-my dada offered to go with me to New Orleans as I didn’t have a job at the moment

-whilst my father spent lots of hours at the basement of our hotel, I spent much of my time making acquaintance with the environment and strangers around me

-the rest of the time I was listening, reflecting, and wandering

-as I walked down the street, I passed by a studio with a sticker outside written “Help wanted”

-I took one of their business cards and vowed to myself that if I did not find myself a job within the following two weeks after returning home, I would shift and start a new life in New Orleans

-surprisingly, I spent those two following weeks horrified by what was being covered by the media of the same city vanishing and drowning in floods

-once again, my heart was broken as I watched people being at the wrong place and at an off beam time

Analysis shows that the effects of Katrina were too many and as such, big cities flooded with large numbers of people suffered and encountered uncountable losses. In the city of New Orleans, there were huge numbers of casualties. Many people lost their loved ones and others had to face very challenging situations in their life. Additionally, people had to go for days without safe water for drinking, as there was a lack of drinkable water. The data indicate that floods broke the walls that held canals and other water reservoirs making it hard to find any clean and safe water drinking. Apart from that, there was severe property damage (Brunsma, 2007). The floods carried away buildings and vehicles as well as many other properties leading to severe damage to property. Due to heavy and strong winds, there were increased electrical outages since the winds knocked down many electrical posts. Ideally, the Katrina hurricane resulted in the insurmountable destruction of essential things in life.