JULY 29, 2015 — Hurricane Katrina is the costliest U.S. hurricane on record, and the deadliest to strike our nation since 1928. After initially making U.S. landfall on Aug. 25, 2005, in South Florida as a Category 1, it moved into the Gulf of Mexico, rapidly intensified into a Category 5 and made its second landfall early the morning of Aug. 29 in Plaquemines Parish in Southeast Louisiana as a strong Category 3 with sustained winds of 125 mph. After briefly moving over water, it made a third landfall later that morning near the Louisiana-Mississippi border. Katrina  weakened as it moved north-northeastward over land but remained a hurricane as far inland as the vicinity of Meridian, Miss., a straight distance of more than 130 miles from the coast. Ultimately, Katrina was responsible for 1,833 deaths and damage estimated at $151 billion, including $75 billion in the New Orleans area and along the Mississippi coast. Federal disaster declarations issued in the hurricane’s wake covered not only all of the coastal counties of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, but extended well inland to include cities such as Baton Rouge, La.; Jackson, Miss.; and Tuscaloosa, Ala.

This edition of Facts for Features focuses on the two areas that received significant damage: the New Orleans metro area and coastal portions of Mississippi. It compares statistics from before the hurricane struck to a year later, and currently, using a variety of demographic and economic measures. One may use the sources listed below to look at change over the period in other counties and parishes affected by the storm. It should be noted that 2005 was the most active hurricane season ever recorded, with three other major hurricanes also striking the U.S.: Dennis, Rita and Wilma.

New Orleans Graphic [PDF <1.0 MB]
Mississippi Graphic [PDF <1.0 MB]

Note: The New Orleans-Metairie, La., Metropolitan Statistical Area currently consists of Jefferson, Orleans, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, St. Charles, St. James, St. John the Baptist and St. Tammany parishes. St. James Parish was not part of the metro area in 2005 and 2006, but is included for those years in the data below for comparability.

1.252 million

Population of the New Orleans metro area as of July 1, 2014.

Source: Population Estimates and Intercensal Population Estimates

50

For the first time since Hurricane Katrina struck, New Orleans returned in 2014 to the list of the nation’s 50 most populous cities, ranking 50^th at 384,320. The city’s population was 494,294 on July 1, 2005, before dropping to 230,172 one year later.

Source: Population Estimates and Intercensal Population Estimates

67.3%

Percentage of the city of New Orleans’ population that was single-race black as of July 1, 2005. The black population was the largest race or ethnic group in the city before Katrina hit, and at 58.8 percent remained the largest race or ethnic group in the city immediately after Katrina hit in 2006. In 2014, the black population remains the city’s largest race or ethnic group at 59.8 percent.

Source: Population Estimates and Intercensal Population Estimates

City of New Orleans

553,627

Number of housing units in the New Orleans metro area as of July 1, 2014.

Source: Housing Unit Estimates and Intercensal Housing Unit Estimates

29,794

Number of business establishments with employees in the New Orleans metro area in 2013. These businesses employed 475,098 people.

Source for statements in this section: County Business Patterns

Selection of establishments

Retail Trade

Accommodations and Food Services

Construction

Source for statements in this section: County Business Patterns

Note: The Mississippi coastline counties consist of the three that lie on the Gulf of Mexico: Hancock, Harrison and Jackson.

386,144

Population of the Mississippi coastline counties as of July 1, 2014.

Source: Population Estimates and Intercensal Population Estimates

Source: Population Estimates and Intercensal Population Estimates

174,468

Number of housing units in the Mississippi coastline counties as of July 1, 2014.

Source: Housing Unit Estimates and Intercensal Housing Unit Estimates

7,041

Number of business establishments with employees in the Mississippi coastline counties in 2013. These businesses employed 125,157 people.

Source for statements in this section: County Business Patterns

Retail Trade

Accommodations and Food Services

Construction

Source for statements in this section: County Business Patterns

These towns provide an example of how ZIP Code Business Patterns data can be used to provide statistics for local areas.

Population

Number of Businesses

American Community Survey statistics

New Orleans-Metairie-Kenner, La., metropolitan area (2013: New Orleans-Metairie)

Social characteristics:

2005: factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/05_EST/DP2/3100000US35380

2006: factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/06_EST/DP2/3100000US35380

2013: factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/13_1YR/DP02/310M200US35380

Economic characteristics:

2005: factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/05_EST/DP3/3100000US35380

2006: factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/06_EST/DP3/3100000US35380

2013: //factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/13_1YR/DP03/310M200US35380

Housing characteristics:

2005: factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/05_EST/DP4/3100000US35380

2006: factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/06_EST/DP4/3100000US35380

2013: factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/13_1YR/DP04/310M200US35380

>Gulfport-Biloxi, Miss., metropolitan area (2013: Gulfport-Biloxi-Pascagoula, Miss.)

Social characteristics:

2005: factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/05_EST/DP2/3100000US25060

2006: factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/06_EST/DP2/3100000US25060

2013: factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/13_1YR/DP02/310M200US25060

Economic characteristics:

2005: factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/05_EST/DP3/3100000US25060

2006: factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/06_EST/DP3/3100000US25060

2013: factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/13_1YR/DP03/310M200US25060

Housing characteristics:

2005: factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/05_EST/DP4/3100000US25060

2006: factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/06_EST/DP4/3100000US25060

2013: factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/13_1YR/DP04/310M200US25060

Related links

Hurricane Katrina special reports:
www.census.gov/topics/preparedness/events/hurricanes/katrina.html

Forced to Move: An Analysis of Hurricane Katrina Movers
www.census.gov/library/working-papers/2011/demo/SEHSD-WP2011-17.html

Hurricane Katrina resource maps:
www.census.gov/geo/maps-data/maps/katrina_resource_maps.html

Migration flows:
flowsmapper.geo.census.gov/flowsmapper/flowsmapper.html

OnTheMap for Emergency Management provides reports on the workforce and population for current natural hazard and emergency related events.
onthemap.ces.census.gov/em.html

Storms and Jobs: The Effect of Hurricanes on Individuals' Employment and Earnings over the Long Term
ideas.repec.org/p/cen/wpaper/15-21.html

Taken By Storm: Business Survival In The Aftermath Of Hurricane Katrina
by Emek Basker (Census Bureau) and Javier Miranda (Census Bureau)
ideas.repec.org/p/cen/wpaper/14-20.html

The Impact of Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma on Business Establishments: A GIS Approach
by Ron S. Jarmin (Census Bureau) and Javier Miranda (Census Bureau)
ideas.repec.org/p/cen/wpaper/06-23.html