How the devastation of Hurricane Harvey compares with Hurricane Katrina
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August 29 marks the 12th anniversary of when Hurricane Katrina pummeled New Orleans in 2005. Now Hurricane Harvey is advancing through Louisiana,
Katrina, one of five of the deadliest storms in United States history, killed over 1,800 people as flood walls and levees failed. The hurricane started over the Bahamas on August 23. It then headed westward toward Mississippi, Florida, the Gulf of Mexico, and southeast Louisiana.
Over a decade later, Katrina has cost the country at least $100 billion, making it the most expensive natural disaster ever in the US. Harvey is also expected to cause millions in damages.
On the anniversary, President Donald Trump will also visit Corpus Christi and Austin, Texas to assess the ongoing damage from Harvey. The now-tropical storm is evoking images of Katrina for many who are now evacuating and waiting to be rescued in Louisiana and Texas.
Here's what we know so far about the similarities and differences between the two disasters.
On August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina began to rip through New Orleans, a city of about 455,000 people (at the time) who come from a mix of Creole-Acadian-French-Haitian-Vietnamese heritages.
Getty ImagesSource: The Data Center
Hurricane Harvey made landfall on sprawling Houston, Texas on August 25, 2017. The racially diverse city has more than two million residents.
REUTERS/Richard CarsonSource: US Population
Katrina was the largest and third strongest hurricane ever in the US. Winds topped 175 mph, and an estimated 80% of New Orleans was plunged underwater — up to 20 feet deep in some areas.
Getty ImagesSource: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
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