Building Damage 



Rogers found only a few structures that 

 survived the worst of the powerful storm surge 

 and waves. 



At one house, damage was only on the 

 lower floor. "However, the upper part of the 

 house survived because of a high foundation," 

 he says. "And, five rows behind this, every 

 house was destroyed." 



"The key to preventing flood damage 

 from hurricanes is to construct a building 

 on an open-pile foundation that is above the 

 wave height," he adds. "Walls that get hit by 

 breaking waves as small as 1.5 feet are usually 

 severely damaged or destroyed." 



Rogers was amazed that he could ride 

 down a highway near the beach. 



Humcane Katrina was one of the strongest storms 

 to hit the coast of the United States during the past 

 100 years. The catastrophic storm made landfall 

 in Louisiana and Mississippi with only Category 3 winds 

 but with a storm surge of a Category 5 hurricane. 



"There was no erosion or sand buildup 

 on Hwy. 90 in Pass Christian," he says. 

 "Usually, low-lying island beach roads are 

 impassable after hurricanes because of sand 

 buildup and erosion." 



Waves cause erosion and undermine 

 the pavement, moving sand from the beach 

 and burying the road, he explains. "The roads 

 are often blocked by construction debris and 

 floating buildings. In Mississippi, the roads 

 were mostly clear, and the debris was pushed 

 several thousand feet inland from the road and 

 shoreline." 



Hurricane Katrina was one of the strongest 

 storms to hit the coastal United States during 

 the past 100 years. The catastrophic storm made 

 landfall in Louisiana and Mississippi with only 

 Category 3 winds but with a storm surge of a 

 Category 5 hurricane. 



The record surge caused widespread 

 devastation in the coastal areas of Alabama, 

 Louisiana and Mississippi, including Bay 



Saint Louis, Pass Christian and 

 Long Beach. A few weeks after 

 Katrina, Hurricane Rita damaged 

 the western half of the Louisiana 

 coastline all the way into Texas. 



Although Katrina's hurricane 

 eye did not directly hit New 

 Orleans, catastrophic destruction 

 occurred throughout the southeast 

 portion of Louisiana. On Aug. 29, 



three major levees broke. Two days later, at 

 least 80 percent of New Orleans was flooded, 

 according to the FEMA MAT report. 



"Katrina significantly exceeded the 

 base flood elevations by as much as 15 feet 

 along parts of the Louisiana and Mississippi 

 Gulf Coast," the report says. Flooding 

 exceeded well beyond the inland limits of 

 the Special Flood Hazard Area, the floodplain 



affected by the base flood. 



"As of Feb. 15, 2006, the number of 

 flood insurance claims exceeded 210,000, 

 covering Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, 

 and Florida, with over 175,000 of these claims 

 coming from Louisiana," according to FEMA. 

 In Alabama, 363 dwellings were destroyed 

 compared to more than 68,000 in Mississippi 

 and more than 283,000 in Louisiana. 



8 Coastwatch I Autumn 2006 I www.ncseagrant.org 



