Effect of Hurricane Katrina on Mississippi

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Hurricane Katrina

2005 Atlantic hurricane season


About 800,000 people suffered power outages in Mississippi according to the Clarion-Ledger. By September 10, Mississippi Power Company officials reported that power had been restored to 98 percent of its customers in South Mississippi [1].

Governor Haley Barbour called the damage he saw along the coast indescribable, saying "I can only imagine that this is what Hiroshima looked like 60 years ago." [2] According to MSNBC, a 30 ft. storm surge came ashore, wiping out 90% of buildings along the Biloxi-Gulfport coastline. Casino barges in the Biloxi-Gulfport area were washed ashore, across beachfront Highway 90. Residents in some coastal areas had to be rescued from rooftops [3].

US Navy officials announced that two Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyers under construction at Litton-Ingalls Shipbuilding in Pascagoula had been damaged by the storm, as well as the Amphibious assault ship USS Makin Island.

Along with countless others affected by the hurricane, US Senator Trent Lott has lost his Pascagoula home, and the boyhood home of Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre was also totally destroyed.

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Hancock County

Hancock County suffered severe damages in two communities, Waveland and Bay St. Louis. In Waveland, Mayor Tommy Longo said that the death toll was approaching 50. In Bay St. Louis, officials reported at least 14 storm-related deaths. [4]

Limited information is coming out of Hancock County. Sporadic reports from citizen journalists are posted at WLOX-TV [5].

The Clarion-Ledger reports the bridge between Bay St. Louis and Pass Christian is out. The roads in Pass Christian are filled with rubble. Casinos were ripped from their moorings and pushed inland. Destruction was heavy to residences and businesses. Some looting was reported. [6].

Southern Diamondhead (near Bay St. Louis) was devastated, but Northern Diamondhead seems to be in relatively good shape.

The Houston Chronicle reports Hurricane Katrina's ferocious eye passed directly over Bay St. Louis, causing catastrophic damage to homes, buildings and power lines. Nearly every residential street to the coast, about two blocks from the shore, was clogged with 8-foot piles of debris. [7].

Additonal photos of Ocean Springs, Mississippi can be found at: www.OceanSprings-MS.com

Harrison County

Damage to Gulfport, Mississippi following Katrina.
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Damage to Gulfport, Mississippi following Katrina.

Harrison County, Mississippi was hit particularly hard by the hurricane and the storm surge. Its two coastal cities, Biloxi and Gulfport, suffered severe damages and many casualties were reported. As of 8PM, 30 August, 100 people were confirmed dead. Joe Spraggins, civil defense director for Harrison County, added that the number of dead could eventually reach several hundred. [8] On September 1, county officials reported the death toll was 126. [9]

In the city of Biloxi, Mississippi widespread damage was reported as several of the city's attractions were destroyed. Many restaurants have been destroyed, and several casino barges had been pulled out of the water and onto land [10]. In addition, most of the currently reported deaths occurred in Biloxi. Residents that survived Hurricane Camille state that Katrina was "much worse," with a storm surge reportedly reaching further inland than the previous catastrophic storm.

Thirty of those confirmed deaths in Harrison County were at the St. Charles apartment complex, near the beach in casino resort town of Biloxi, said Kelly Jakubic with the county's Emergency Operations Center [11] [12]. The apartment complex was reported, by local news sources, to have collapsed with dozens of residents inside. Vincent Creel, a spokesman for the city, said that hundreds may have been killed when a 30-foot (9 metre) storm surge came ashore [13].

U.S. Air Force cargo planes unload several tons of supplies at Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, Mississippi.
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U.S. Air Force cargo planes unload several tons of supplies at Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, Mississippi.

Initial assessments at Keesler Air Force Base, located in Biloxi, indicate extensive damage, although there do not appear to be any fatalities of base personnel and their dependents who rode out the storm in shelters on base. As well, the pet shelter remained in good shape.

Interstate 10 between Gulfport and Biloxi is impassible due to debris in the vicinity of Biloxi River.

President Bush visits victims in Biloxi.
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President Bush visits victims in Biloxi.

As of 17:00 30 August, the following roads were closed awaiting clean-up [14]:

Air Force One photo and helicopter video from WLBT confirms the Biloxi-Ocean Springs bridge is totally gone.

Biloxi-Ocean Springs bridge.
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Biloxi-Ocean Springs bridge.

Mississippi newspapers are reporting that Beauvoir, the last home and Presidential Library of Confederate President Jefferson Davis, was totally destroyed. In addition to the home, the site also housed the Jefferson Davis Presidential Library and was a Biloxi tourist attraction.

Authorities in Gulfport, Mississippi told CNN that 10 feet of water cover downtown streets [15]. An Armed Forces Retirement Facility within two blocks of the coastline was flooded on Monday, forcing patients, staff, and equipment to the upper floors. Additionally, three fire stations in the city reported various degrees of structural damage.

Hardy Jackson

Hardy Jackson
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Hardy Jackson

Hardy Jackson1 is a resident of Biloxi, Mississippi who lost his wife of 29 years, Tonette Jackson, during Hurricane Katrina.

A short interview with him by Jennifer Mayerle, a local TV reporter for WKRG, was broadcast internationally, and Jackson's story was widely recorded in blogs, newspaper articles and TV reports.

Broadcasting a live feed, Mayerle had been describing the destruction to Biloxi caused by Hurricane Katrina when she encountered Jackson and his children. Jackson emotionally described how his house was split in two by the storm surge. He held onto his wife, but she told him "You can't hold me, take care of the kids," and slipped away. At the end of the report Mayerle as well was deeply affected.

The body of his wife was reportedly found September 1, 2005 in Gulfport, Mississippi. Jackson was ready to walk there but accepted a ride from WKRG the next morning to see the body of his wife at the makeshift morgue in Gulfport, but was then told she was more likely elsewhere in Biloxi. Jackson had found a photograph of her in the remains of their house, and was shown repeatedly saying, "I tried, why'd you let go?" When shown messages from well-wishers, he responded, "There's still good people in the world. Thank you."

Notes

Note 1: Hardy's first name was incorrectly given as "Harvey" in early reports.


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