Sept. 15, 2005, 7:50 AM PDT. "There was a period of days when we weren't sure who was directing the federal response and were all the actions being taken. First categorized as a tropical storm, Katrina hit New Orleans, flattening buildings, breaking levees, and flooding the city with terrifying 125 mph winds. Over 1,800 people lost their lives in the hurricane and an estimated 1 million people were displaced from their homes. "We'd heard the story of a man killing himself, falling . And why it wasnt stopped sooner. Several thousand National Guard troops start reaching the thousands of evacuees at the Convention Center and elsewhere. Hurricane Katrina Superdome. It regained strength as its path turned northwest. More than 1 million more in the Gulf region were displaced. And when I saw it then, and watching it again now, I think that Trouble the Water is an amazing accomplishment, and something everyone should see about the people who had to live through what we all went through here in New Orleans. Hurricane Katrina, tropical cyclone that struck the southeastern United States in late August 2005. The majority of industrial buildings will become non functional. 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. Having largely emptied the cavernous Superdome, which had become a squalid pit of misery and violence, officials turned their attention to the Convention Center, where people waited to be evacuated as corpses rotted in the streets. Flooding grows as water surges over levee breaks from Lake Ponchartrain; the 9th Ward is almost entirely submerged. New Orleans's flood-protection system was improved by increasing in the heights of earthen berms and upgrading floodwalls and floodgates. These defenses held for Hurricane Ida, a category 4 storm, in August 2021. 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. In downtown New Orleans, some streets were merely wet rather than swamped. A final, official tally of those killed in the disaster is still not in. In the decade since Katrina, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) which came under harsh criticism for its response to the storm says it has improved its preparedness for future natural disasters. At daybreak, rescuers set out on boats to help others still stranded. We talked about it. Its just rawits a look at the poorest people of the Ninth Ward, and those who couldnt afford to leave, and if you have a heart in your body, you will feel this film 100 percent. Mayor, we had a good meeting. And then somebody came and called me and said, 'The president would like to see you.' The Times-Picayune reports that the breaches in the 17th Street and Florida Avenue Canals have been repaired and power is restored to the Warehouse and Central Business Districts. Reports put the population there in the tens of thousands. The film features 15 minutes of live hurricane video shot by Kimberly Roberts, an aspiring rapper whose family was too poor to leave New Orleans, and follows Kim's family and others through the . "We're all looking at each other like, 'Why aren't we getting orders to move on this? - Severe flooding damage to cities along the Gulf Coast, from New Orleans to . With a death toll of more than 1,800, Katrina was the third-deadliest hurricane in US history after Galveston in 1900 (which killed 8,000 to . "We know about all the other things that happened, all the thefts, all the robberies. With camera lenses and lights abounding, the . We could either go with your suggestion' -- which, my suggestion was, if you don't give me the final authority give it to Gen. [Russel] Honor. Watch it: To learn about questionable police shootings and cover-ups in Katrinas wake. Michael Brown, FEMA director: Thats just one of the chain of catastrophes at the local, state and national level brought to vivid life in FRONTLINEs Emmy Award-winning 2005 documentaryThe Storm. Heres What the Claims Say and Where They Stand. He escaped the chaotic shelter a few days later with a truckload of people and video documentation of history.Check out exclusive HISTORY content:Website - http://www.history.com?cmpid=Social_YouTube_HistHomeTwitter - https://twitter.com/history/postsFacebook - https://www.facebook.com/HistoryHISTORY, now reaching more than 98 million homes, is the leading destination for award-winning original series and specials that connect viewers with history in an informative, immersive, and entertaining manner across all platforms. People begin arriving at the Ernest M. Morial Convention Center seeking shelter, food, and water. Trachelle Addison cuddles her 2-week-old son, Jirra-e, in the stands of the Superdome, where some 25,000 refugees took shelter after Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans. Abandoned cars remain on Interstate 10 in front of the heavily damaged Superdome September 14, 2005 in New Orleans, Louisiana. 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. Experts say it was the perfect environment to commit a crime, and the worst environment to report a crime. The following year, during an interview with Tom Brokaw at Columbia Journalism School, Williams said, "We watched, all of us watched . And the impression given in those four days is basically indelible. More than four days after the storm hit, the caravan of at least three-dozen camouflage-green troop vehicles and supply trucks arrived along with dozens of air-conditioned buses to take refugees out of the city. Producer Martin Smith: So we're just eating sandwiches and making nice while people are stranded on rooftops? By Chris Edwards. Here's the things I think we need to focus on. I wasnt poor before Katrina, and Im certainly not poor afterward, but Trouble the Water pisses me off all over again, in a good way. Michael Brown, FEMA director: Reports stream in from people needing rescue. to support FEMA disaster relief efforts, but it will be two days before the troops arrive in the city. I gave the governor two options. "They didn't have no food. "I at least wanted a mandatory evacuation of New Orleans and the surrounding parishes [on Saturday]. During Hurricane Katrina, then known as the Louisiana Superdome, the arena was used as . Here's all these thousands of people that don't have any way to get out of the city. Within five hours I start to get reports from my staff members, who are out doing assessments, the water's rising. When Hurricane Katrina forced New Orleans poet Shelton Alexander to evacuate his home, he took his truck and video camera to the Superdome. Benelli says his team investigated two attempted rapes inside the Superdome, and two additional reports of rapes that happened in the city, one of which was the 25-year-old hairdresser. 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 Katrina images we see in the film -- people on rooftops, the Superdome being shredded by hurricane winds, dogs stranded in attics -- are ones that once would have been guaranteed to put lumps . I'm just not going to go on, on public television and bash in the middle of a disaster what I think people should or should not be doing. Issues of race, class, government response and . Nobody cared.". At a press conference in Baton Rouge, 80 miles away, Gov. And we said, "Plan your route carefully. Nature Documentary hosted by Helen Baxandale, published by Channel 4 in 2010 - English narration Cover Information . Henry Glover was last seen alive in the backseat of a white Chevy Malibu on Sept. 2, 2005, days after Katrina hit. I think the American Red Cross already had shelters and was already feeding people. The Army Corps of Engineers projects it could take 80 days to pump the water out of the city. Around this time 17 years ago, Hurricane Katrina bore down on New Orleans, and . FEMA was doing what it's supposed to be doing. "Most of the area will be uninhabitable for weeks perhaps longer. And the guard unitspent most of the next 24 hours saving itself. He escaped the chaotic shelter a few days . Go up there, face to face and say, "What is happening here? Watch it: To understand what went wrong in the governments response to Katrina. Kathleen Blanco: In fact, at the headquarters of the Louisiana National Guard, located in the Lower NinthWard, soldiers were not yet aware that the levees were giving way. When we didn't get any assistance from the state or from FEMA in the time period that we thought was appropriate, I got someone in an automobile and said, 'Go to Baton Rouge, go find out. But they're designed for short hauls.". If you would like to customise your choices, click 'Manage privacy settings'. For my part, I am still going out into the streets every day to talk to people about their experiencesI call it getting phyllisophical. Other people call me the Dr. Phil of the streets. On August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast, causing catastrophic flooding as numerous levees failed around New Orleans. FEMA Situation Update: Katrina Cop in the Superdome. They were finally able to leave the city on Saturday. There was nobody there to protect you," Lewis says. ". New Orleans, Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina, as seen in the new documentary Katrina Babies. Issues of race, class, government response and responsibility, and political rivalries interweave with personal stories of challenges faced and decisions made. At 1:30 in the morning, Denise Thornton walked with her group up to the helipad, out in the open air, and there it was. [Secretary of Homeland Security Michael] Chertoff is there. About 2,000 medical evacuees remain at Louis Armstrong Airport, which has become a staging area for responders and injured refugees. In Louisiana, New Orleans is of particular concern because much of that city lies below sea level. Hurricane Katrina made landfall off the coast of Louisiana on August 29, 2005. The city's buses have been positioned around the city in locations that have never been flooded. The Convention Center becomes a destination for walk-in refugees seeking evacuation. In his speech, he calls on all federal, state and local agencies to review their performance. His death came nearly two years to the day after his wifes passing. And it is injurious to the president. New Orleans, Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina, as seen in the new documentary Katrina Babies. And at that time I took some liberties I probably shouldn't take. Nicola Mann and Victoria Pass. He didn't care where the help came from, he just wanted it to be there. WGBH educational foundation, "A close eye will be kept this system could strengthen ", "Media reports attribute Katrina with four fatalities [in Florida], more than a million customers were without electricity", "Katrina will regenerate on Friday over Gulf of Mexico, head west-northwest then turn northward. She gripped my arm at the store, and she told me, the way you shared with everybody so openly, you helped me to heal. Expressed my concerns, my frustration He needed to really get us resources to save people. And that was that.". The storm flooded New Orleans, killed more than 1,800 people, and caused . New Orleans, Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina, as seen in the new documentary Katrina Babies. The groups went in shifts, sneaking down over to the. The Times-Picayune reports that 4,600 active duty troops under the command of Gen. Russel Honor arrive in New Orleans. And I said [to the president], 'Look, we talked about that option, and then we also talked about another option, that we would federalize, and the governor said she needed time to think about it. Sept. 27, 2005, 12:58 PM PDT / Source: The Associated Press. 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. 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. The storm traveled the Gulf of Mexico and then made landfall on the Gulf Coast in southeast Louisiana near the town of Buras, on Aug. 29, 2005. But prosecutors have struggled to hold officers accountable. An estimated 25,000 angry and exhausted people are still at the Convention Center; buses begin arriving to evacuate them. Find out in the 2015 documentary Outbreak, newly available to stream on FRONTLINEs YouTube channel. 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. Four were wounded, and 17-year-old James Brisette and 40-year-old Ronald Madison were killed. He co-wrote the novel,"The Spencer Haywood Rule," and he was co-producer of the "Katrina Cop in the Superdome," a 2010 documentary about the experiences of a black New Orleans police officer and other citizens as they sheltered in the Louisiana Superdome during the Hurricane Katrina disaster of 2005.