hurricane katrina: superdome documentary

During Hurricane Katrina, then known as the Louisiana Superdome, the arena was used as . He escaped the chaotic shelter a few days . All I can tell you is that in the city of New Orleans we had maybe 250 guardsmen that we could account for. Heres What the Claims Say and Where They Stand. And then he was gone after a while.". hurricane katrina anniversary: 40 powerful photos of New Orleans after the storm. At landfall, Katrina's maximum winds were about 125 miles per hour (mph) to the east of its center. and catcalls of 'What took you so long?,' a National Guard convoy packed with food, water and medicine rolled through axle-deep floodwaters Friday into what remained of New Orleans and descended into a maelstrom of fires and floating corpses. The population of New Orleans was about 400,000 by 2020, some 20 percent below its population in 2000. In all, more than 1,500 died either duringthe storm or inthe famouslybungled aftermath which saw local, state, and federal officials uncoordinated and overwhelmed. Twenty-five thousand miserable people - many of whom lost their homes to Hurricane Katrina - hunkered down with little food and little water, overflowing toilets, stifling heat and the . When Hurricane Katrina forced New Orleans poet Shelton Alexander to evacuate his home, he took his truck and video camera to the Superdome. . [Note: The information in this timeline is drawn from the news and government agencies' reports, as published daily during the crisis, and from FRONTLINE's research and reporting.]. I probably should have asked sooner. Ms. Blanco, she left and walked out. About 16,000 people . "I went into New Orleans and stood beside Mayor Nagin and emphasized the need to leave. 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. "Some bad things happened, you know. 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. And the impression given in those four days is basically indelible. 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.". Michael Ainsworth/The Dallas Morning News/epa/Corbis. A New Orleans house submerged in floodwaters. Gov. On Sept. 15, 2005, in an address to the nation, President Bush declares, "It is now clear that a challenge on this scale requires greater federal authority and a broader role for the armed forces -- the institution of our government most capable of massive logistical operations on a moment's notice.". Hurricane Katrina made landfall off the coast of Louisiana on August 29, 2005. She made a report to a local sheriff's office; it has not yet passed the report on to the New Orleans police. 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Around this time 17 years ago, Hurricane Katrina bore down on New Orleans, and permanently . Find out more about how we use your personal data in our privacy policy and cookie policy. The only person I saw from FEMA was basically this guy named Marty [Bahamonde]. But they're designed for short hauls.". Panels blew off and the roof was severely damaged, but it was the only shelter . New Orleans, Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina, as seen in the new documentary Katrina Babies. After being damaged by. I've heard some terrible stories since that the stuff wasn't getting there. August 28, 2015, 2:21 PM. At 7 pm it makes landfall north of Miami. Interstate 10 is shut down with damage to 40 percent of its Twin Span Bridge over Lake Ponchartrain. August 27, 2015, 2:18 PM. Blanco tours the area Tuesday evening and announces that the Superdome should be evacuated. Around 9:30 a.m. Mayor Ray Nagin issues a mandatory evacuation. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip). Watch it: For a powerful story of resilience and determination in the face of tragedy. On June 4, 2006, Pamela Mahogany was interviewed for her personal experience involving the events following Hurricane Katrina. "I know more sexual assaults took place. I don't think that's the proper thing to do. hurricane katrina ripped through the Gulf Coast, claiming 1,800 lives. Mayor Ray Nagin orders the total evacuation of New Orleans due to the dangers posed by the contaminated standing water. Floodwaters keep rising. Hurricane Katrina Superdome. Pack carefully. Theme Foto Blog by, Hundreds Evacuated as Vanuatu Braces for Second Cyclone in 2 Days. In September 2006, the New Orleans Saints marched into the Superdome for their first game since Hurricane Katrina, providing the spark for a revival. But we need something really big, like a hospital, that shows where the $25 billion in recovery money is going. Some parts of the city already showed slipping floodwaters as the repair neared completion, with the low-lying Ninth Ward dropping more than a foot. You have responded to my calls." A scene from 2006s 'When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts' (Photo: Everett Collection) This week marks a . "We did meet with [Mayor Nagin] Tuesday morning. The interviews done as part of this project reflect the disaster's painful, chaotic, and murky aftermath. "What we did -- under Louisiana law the parish presidents, the head of the counties, have the authority to use private resources. Michael Ainsworth/The Dallas Morning News/epa/Corbis Thousands more were unable to evacuate, including the nearly 25,000 who sheltered in the Superdome. ', So they went into another section of the plane, had a meeting. And in my opinion, it was this whole 'who has ultimate authority' and whether the federal government is going to come in and impinge upon the state's authority. The Superdome is an intrinsic part of the city of New Orleans. With camera lenses and lights abounding, the . FEMA National Situation Update: Required fields are marked *. A Louisiana State University computer model of a 115 mph storm strike shows the overtopping of levees protecting New Orleans and nearby areas. If we arent talking about what we still need, how can we be sure people wont forget?. "[I] got to the president. We all did. Looting becomes more widespread; hotels begin turning out guests. They lost power. 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. In New Orleans chaos . Officers were walking off the job by the dozens. And [FEMA Director] Michael Brown was with me at that time. 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. "I admit that rapes are underreported," Benelli says. He also announces that the Superdome will be "a shelter of last resort for evacuees with special needs." My old high school, Joseph S. Clark, shut down, and we dont even have parks yet for kids to hang out inthats what we did in the 70s, at leastIm still trying to petition for these things, to organize our community, and these fool ass people have not yet gotten down here to rebuild. The choice was either run the risk of becoming stranded or take a detour to wait the storm out for a day or two in the Superdome. In what looked like a scene from a Third World country, some people threw their arms heavenward and others nearly fainted with joy as the trucks and hundreds of soldiers arrived in the punishing midday heat. New Orleans residents are still trapped by the floodwaters, and dispatchers receive about 1,000 emergency phone calls from people needing to be rescued. The groups went in shifts, sneaking down over to the. Watch it: To understand what went wrong in the governments response to Katrina. I talk to her every other day, and thats her main question How long is it going to be? It was there, she says, that an unknown man with a handgun sexually assaulted her. Its efforts fail. Other people call me the Dr. Phil of the streets.. 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. Explore FRONTLINEs collected and ongoing reporting on Russia's war on Ukraine. HBO. [He] came on site, I think it was Monday after the event. "We'd heard the story of a man killing himself, falling . 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 . In the first few hours after Katrina hit, many people believed that New Orleans had dodged a bullet. I mentally moved on from the storm after I wrote the last page of my book, but this documentary has opened some old wounds and moves me to action, and I can only hope it does the same for others. 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. The police department -- reeling from desertions, flooding and the immensity of the disaster -- was in a survival mode itself. The vast majority of them were elderly. When Hurricane Katrina forced New Orleans poet Shelton Alexander to evacuate his home, he took his truck and video camera to the Superdome. Believing the authorities abandoned her after the storm, she wonders why they would care about her now. Power outages will last for weeks water shortages will make human suffering incredible by modern standards.". As the 10-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina approaches, explore three different FRONTLINE documentaries about the disaster, its lingering aftermath and the lessons learned. They spend the next 24 hours trying to save themselves. One woman told me she was going to commit suicide after Katrina, and that she saw Spike Lees documentary, and I saved her life. We had pre-positioned supplies, medical teams, Meals Ready To Eat, and food in the Superdome. FRONTLINE home+WGBH+PBS, FRONTLINE is a registered trademark of wgbh educational foundation. He didn't even know what efforts had been made on his behalf because he had no lines of communications open to him. Buckles' intimate connection to the people he interviews many of them family members, friends, and former . "I remember reading [that New Orleans had dodged a bullet]. In an effort to get victims to come forward, the Louisiana Foundation Against Sexual Assault asked Charmaine Neville, a popular New Orleans jazz singer, to tape a public service announcement for national airplay. People can say that writing a check doesnt mean anything, but honey, it does. In Louisiana, New Orleans is of particular concern because much of that city lies below sea level. Web Site Copyright 1995-2023 WGBH Educational Foundation. Ten years ago this week, Hurricane Katrina made landfall on the Gulf Coast and generated a huge disaster. Walter Maestri, Jefferson Parish emergency manager: Richard Falkenrath, Homeland Security Adviser (2001-2004): In Fight Against ISIS, a Lose-Lose Scenario Poses Challenge for West. And they both shook their heads and said, 'Yes, you're right.' And the bosses say, 'Oh, okay. Thousands of displaced residents take cover from Hurricane Katrina at the Superdome in New . A decade later . Floodwaters from Hurricane Katrina fill the streets near downtown New Orleans, La., on Aug. 30, 2005. Producer Martin Smith: So we're just eating sandwiches and making nice while people are stranded on rooftops? 1. On August 28, 2005, at 6 am, New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin announced that the Superdome would be used as a public shelter. National surveys show that half of all sexual assaults are never reported. I think we both should have asked sooner.". by JOHN DORN. She requests President Bush to declare a state of emergency in Louisiana. Where is water? And it was a very good meeting, I thought. She insists other women were raped in the same apartment building over the next four nights, but her claim could not be checked out. It was late August, and some of the staff of the NREMT and I were attending the combined NAEMT conference and EMS Expo in New . Thousands of troops poured into the city September. Katrina becomes a Category 3 with 115 mph maximum sustained winds. ", President Bush arrives in Louisiana. At 10 a.m., the Thorntons headed together to the Superdome. ", Richard Falkenrath, Homeland Security Adviser (2001-2004): The groups went in shifts, sneaking down over to the garage, up the stairs and to the helipad. Blanco announces New Orleans must be evacuated because of the still- rising water and uninhabitable conditions. Female victims, now displaced from New Orleans, are slowly coming forward with a different story than the official one. FEMA Situation Update: By Chris Edwards. And the president comes, and we have this meeting. She says she tried to report the assault at the time, but authorities weren't listening. So I finally just walked up to Danny and said, Mr. At daybreak, rescuers set out on boats to help others still stranded. I was able to get Governor Blanco to sit with me several times in the office that she had and talk about what needed to be done. By midday, water levels between the city and Lake Ponchartrain have equalized. On Sept. 1, with desperate Hurricane Katrina evacuees crammed into the convention center, Police Chief Eddie Compass reported: "We . "I didn't see any police officers -- I could have gotten away with murder," she says. 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. Pack as though you're going on a camping trip. Most residents have evacuated the city and those left behind do not have transportation or have special needs. And you need to order mandatory evacuation. Your email address will not be published. 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 . The Louisiana Superdome, once a mighty testament to architecture and ingenuity, became the biggest storm shelter in New Orleans the day before Katrina's arrival Monday. That's the attitude I would take if I was operating in the dark too. Several thousand National Guard troops start reaching the thousands of evacuees at the Convention Center and elsewhere. , "Law and order all but broke down in New Orleans over the past few days. Crime is at an all-time high. " After Katrina passed, we thought we're pretty much out of the woods. "And so now I think it's swung the other direction and it's underreported. "I'm telling you the number of reported rapes we had.". 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. Just last week, a federal court ordered a new trial for five officers convicted of the Danziger Bridge shootings. Judy Benitez is executive director of the Louisiana Foundation Against Sexual Assault, a statewide coalition of rape crisis centers. In the 2005 documentary "In His Own Words: Brian Williams on Hurricane Katrina," Williams indicated that he wasn't a witness to the suicide. That's where Katrina Babies comes in. There was all kinds of crime taking place on a much higher level than usual. And that is unacceptable. The hurricane and its aftermath claimed more than 1,800 lives, and it ranked as the costliest natural disaster in U.S. history. Copyright All rights reserved. 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". Anastasia says thugs were still wandering the streets of her neighborhood more than a week after the flood. Here's all these thousands of people that don't have any way to get out of the city. "We know about all the other things that happened, all the thefts, all the robberies. FEMA organizes 475 buses to be sent in to transport many of the estimated 23,000 people from the Superdome to the Houston Astrodome. He came right back and he said, I dont know why, but theres probably a foot of water on Claiborne Street, Landreneau said. Another group, Witness Justice, a Maryland-based non-profit that assists victims of violent crimes, claims to have received 156 reports of post-Katrina violent crimes; about a third of those involved sexual assaults. We talked about it. Get as many people out as possible. Ten years ago this Saturday, Hurricane Katrina made landfall on the Gulf Coast. to support FEMA disaster relief efforts, but it will be two days before the troops arrive in the city. In a documentary aired in October 2005 on the Sundance Channel, "In His Own Words: Brian Williams on Hurricane Katrina," Williams said, . Mayor Mitch Landrieu last week hailedNew Orleans as Americas comeback city,citing efforts to reduce crime, decrease homelessness and improve educational outcomes for area students. Hurricane Katrina first made landfall on Aug. 25, 2005, in Florida, weakening to a tropical storm as it briefly passed over land. A shaft of light falls throught an opening in the fully evacuated Superdome on Sept. 5, 2005 in New Orleans, La. Stranded victims of Hurricane Katrina rest inside the Superdome September 2, 2005 in New Orleans. Mississippi and Louisiana governors declare states of emergency. Exploring the experiences of a black member of the New Orleans Police Department and assorted other New Orleans residents during their stay in the Louisiana Superdome during and after Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans in 2005. In downtown New Orleans, some streets were merely wet rather than swamped. Additional funding is provided by the Abrams Foundation; the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation; Park Foundation; the Heising-Simons Foundation; and the FRONTLINE Journalism Fund with major support from Jon and Jo Ann Hagler on behalf of the Jon L. Hagler Foundation, and additional support from Koo and Patricia Yuen. Producer Martin Smith: So, although you said that, you didn't feel that way at that time? August 28, 2005. Lewis says she was raped on Monday, Aug. 29, the day of the storm. New Orleans, Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina, as seen in the new documentary Katrina Babies. First categorized as a tropical storm, Katrina hit New Orleans, flattening buildings, breaking levees, and flooding the city with terrifying 125 mph winds. And that rap song she sings at the end of the film about growing up so poor, with her mother on drugs and being forced to stealit just shows that she is a strong woman, and so honest, real, determined, courageous, and intelligent. Mayor, what do you need?' Around 8 a.m. the storm's eye passes eastern New Orleans. There's this lunch. The following year, during an interview with Tom Brokaw at Columbia Journalism School, Williams said, "We watched, all of us watched . And I think thats whats going to help us rebuild the mosttalking about what happened and how we can move onand why documentaries like Trouble the Water are still so relevant. The Convention Center becomes a destination for walk-in refugees seeking evacuation. '", Mayor Ray Nagin My sense now is there are victims out there whose stories haven't been heard.". 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. The skies darkened, and the wind started to pick up. "A week after Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans state officials and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers say once the canal level is drawn down two feet, Pumping Station 6 can begin pumping water out of the bowl-shaped city. Blanco and said, 'We've got to move National Guard troops in there. Kathleen Blanco: The account of her rape was verified by a trained forensic nurse at Earl K. Long Hospital in Baton Rouge, where Lewis sought treatment. Officials said the complete evacuation of New Orleans two days earlier was necessary, citing the prospect of diseases caused by rotting bodies and polluted waters as well as other risks caused by Hurricane Katrina. Military and Coast Guard helicopters flew a steady stream of evacuees from hospitals and rooftops to the airport southwest of downtown. Around this time 17 years ago, Hurricane Katrina bore down on New Orleans, and permanently changed life for thousands of people across the country. Then we kind of figure out ways that we could coordinate. The storm flooded New Orleans, killed more than 1,800 people, and caused . Some parts of the city already showed slipping floodwaters as the repair neared completion, with the low-lying Ninth Ward dropping more than a foot. At a press conference in Baton Rouge, 80 miles away, Gov. ", Leo Bosner, FEMA watch officer: "The police was stressed out themselves," Lewis says. The eye of Hurricane Katrina made landfall near Buras in Plaquemines Parish at approximately 6:00 a.m. on August 29 as a Category 3 hurricane. Your email address will not be published. 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. 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.

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