Katrina 7th 'worst' disaster in US history?
That's what some are saying.
Here's the list:
1. Galveston (Texas) Hurricane, 1900, estimated 8,000 deaths
2. Great Okeechobee Hurricane in Florida, 1928, estimated 2,500-plus
3. Johnstown, Pa., Flood, 1889, estimated 2,200-plus
4. Louisiana Hurricane, 1893, 2,000-plus
5. South Carolina-Georgia Hurricane, 1893, 1,000-2,000
6. Great New England Hurricane, 1938, 720
7. Hurricane Katrina, with the latest toll at 710.
8. San Francisco Earthquake, 1906, 700
9. Georgia-South Carolina Hurricane, 1881, 700
10. Tri-State Tornado in Missouri, Illinois and Indiana, 1925, 695
First, all of these disasters occured much earlier, only one, the Greater New England Hurricane, which occured in 1938, happened in the last 70 years. Two others happened last century (the 1900s). The rest happened in the 19th century (1800s).
Second, this death toll does not tell the whole tale. Death tolls have been steadily falling because of improvements in planning, health care, and forecasting. More important, is how many lives the disaster upended. I don't know how many homes Katrina destroyed, but I am guessing 300,000. That's alot of people.80% of New Orleans was flooded, and most of those homes, while structurally intact, will have to be raised. Then there is the economic cost, which will be probably $200 billion in federal funds. When you aggregate these three factors, Katrina is by far the worst disaster in US history.
Third, as of 9/27, the toll was 885 people, which bumps it to #6 in the top 10 in terms of body count.
Anyway this is all by way of looking at the fact vs fiction account at Gateway Pundit. Most of the accertations I believe in. Where were the 10,000 victims? Where were the rape babys? Lots of things happened; looting, murder, etc. But not the most henious of crimes that were floated by a media in a black hole of information during those dark days. As usual, the media didn't do their job and attribute sources, and fact check. And the major of NOLA and the police chief made grandious statements, which later turned out not to be true.
Here's the list:
1. Galveston (Texas) Hurricane, 1900, estimated 8,000 deaths
2. Great Okeechobee Hurricane in Florida, 1928, estimated 2,500-plus
3. Johnstown, Pa., Flood, 1889, estimated 2,200-plus
4. Louisiana Hurricane, 1893, 2,000-plus
5. South Carolina-Georgia Hurricane, 1893, 1,000-2,000
6. Great New England Hurricane, 1938, 720
7. Hurricane Katrina, with the latest toll at 710.
8. San Francisco Earthquake, 1906, 700
9. Georgia-South Carolina Hurricane, 1881, 700
10. Tri-State Tornado in Missouri, Illinois and Indiana, 1925, 695
First, all of these disasters occured much earlier, only one, the Greater New England Hurricane, which occured in 1938, happened in the last 70 years. Two others happened last century (the 1900s). The rest happened in the 19th century (1800s).
Second, this death toll does not tell the whole tale. Death tolls have been steadily falling because of improvements in planning, health care, and forecasting. More important, is how many lives the disaster upended. I don't know how many homes Katrina destroyed, but I am guessing 300,000. That's alot of people.80% of New Orleans was flooded, and most of those homes, while structurally intact, will have to be raised. Then there is the economic cost, which will be probably $200 billion in federal funds. When you aggregate these three factors, Katrina is by far the worst disaster in US history.
Third, as of 9/27, the toll was 885 people, which bumps it to #6 in the top 10 in terms of body count.
Anyway this is all by way of looking at the fact vs fiction account at Gateway Pundit. Most of the accertations I believe in. Where were the 10,000 victims? Where were the rape babys? Lots of things happened; looting, murder, etc. But not the most henious of crimes that were floated by a media in a black hole of information during those dark days. As usual, the media didn't do their job and attribute sources, and fact check. And the major of NOLA and the police chief made grandious statements, which later turned out not to be true.
Any comments welcome, and may be edited/removed at any time without notification.