Special Edition Profile America Facts for Features: Hurricane Katrina 10th Anniversary: Aug. 29, 2015

PROFILE AMERICA FACTS FOR FEATURES: CB15-FF.16

Special Edition

 Hurricane Katrina 10th Anniversary:

Aug. 29, 2015

 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.

 Louisiana

 

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.

Population

1.252 million

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

2005 population

2006 population

2014 population

1.386 million

1.040 million

1.252 million

 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 50th 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

 

2005

2006

2014

Black

67.3%

58.8%

59.8%

White, non-Hispanic

26.5%

33.1%

31.2%

Hispanic

3.5%

4.8%

5.5%

Asian

2.4%

3.0%

3.0%

American Indian Alaska Native

0.3%

0.4%

0.4%

Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander

0.03%

0.1%

0.1%

 Housing

553,627

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

2005 housing units

2006 housing units

2014 housing units

592,800

438,278

553,627

Source: Housing Unit Estimates and Intercensal Housing Unit Estimates

Business Establishments and Employment

29,794

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

 

2005

2006

2013

Business establishments

31,401

29,002

29,794

Employment

517,194

427,373

475,098

Source for statements in this section: County Business Patterns

The Economy (New Orleans metro area)

Selection of establishments

Retail Trade

 

2005

2006

2013

Grocery stores

573

430

461

Gasoline stations

447

407

481

Pharmacies and drug stores

221

165

194

Accommodations and Food Services

 

2005

2006

2013

Hotels (except casino hotels)

259

227

269

Restaurants and eating places

2,138

1,860

2,375

 Construction

 

2005

2006

2013

Residential building construction establishments

535

652

396

Nonresidential building construction establishments

189

220

220

Highway, street and bridge construction establishments

28

26

41

 Source for statements in this section: County Business Patterns

Mississippi

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

Population

386,144

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

2005 population

2006 population

2014 population

383,412

347,253

386,144

Source: Population Estimates and Intercensal Population Estimates

 Race and Hispanic Origin

 

2005

2006

2014

White, non-Hispanic

73.1%

72.6%

68.8%

Black

19.7%

19.9%

21.4%

Hispanic

3.4%

3.6%

5.2%

Asian

2.2%

2.3%

2.5%

American Indian Alaska Native

0.5%

0.5%

0.5%

Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander

0.1%

0.1%

0.1%

Source: Population Estimates and Intercensal Population Estimates

Housing

174,468 Number of housing units in the Mississippi coastline counties as of July 1, 2014.

2005 housing units

2006 housing units

2014 housing units

169,949

146,434

174,468

Source: Housing Unit Estimates and Intercensal Housing Unit Estimates

Business Establishments and Employment

7,041 Number of business establishments with employees in the Mississippi coastline counties in 2013. These businesses employed 125,157 people.

 

2005

2006

2014

Business establishments

7,515

7,149

7,041

Employment

125,933

109,886

125,157

 Source for statements in this section: County Business Patterns

 The Economy (Mississippi coastline counties)

 Retail Trade

 

2005

2006

2013

Grocery stores

71

62

63

Gasoline stations

194

164

190

Accommodations and Food Services

 

2005

2006

2013

Hotels (except casino hotels)

105

72

84

Restaurants and eating places

547

471

590

 Construction

 

2005

2006

2013

Residential building construction establishments

156

201

71

Nonresidential building construction establishments

38

48

57

Highway, street and bridge construction establishments

16

21

16

 Source for statements in this section: County Business Patterns

 Gulf Coast Towns: Bay Saint Louis, Pass Christian and Waveland, Miss.

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

Population

 

2005

2006

2014

Bay Saint Louis, Miss.

11,388

9,280

11,287

Pass Christian, Miss.

5,845

4,969

5,308

Waveland, Miss.

7,849

6,436

6,419

Number of Businesses

 

2005

2006

2013

Bay Saint Louis, Miss. (ZIP code 39520)

353

283

265

Pass Christian, Miss. (ZIP code 39571)

215

187

189

Waveland, Miss. (ZIP code 39576)

136

114

120

 Additional Resources

American Community Survey statistics

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

Social characteristics:

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

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

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

Economic characteristics:

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

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

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

Housing characteristics:

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

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

2013: http://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: http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/05_EST/DP2/3100000US25060

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

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

Economic characteristics:

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

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

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

Housing characteristics:

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

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

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

Related links

Hurricane Katrina special reports: http://www.census.gov/newsroom/emergencies/hurricane_katrina.html

Forced to Move: An Analysis of Hurricane Katrina Movers

http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/hlthins/publications/HK_Movers-FINAL.pdf

Hurricane Katrina resource maps:

http://www.census.gov/geo/maps-data/maps/katrina_resource_maps.html

Migration flows:

http://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. http://onthemap.ces.census.gov/em.html

Following is a list of observances typically covered by the Census Bureau’s Facts for Features series:

African-American History Month (February)             Labor Day

Super Bowl                                                                        Grandparents Day

Valentine’s Day (Feb. 14)                                               Hispanic Heritage Month (Sept. 15-Oct. 15)

Women’s History Month (March)                                Unmarried and Single Americans Week

Irish-American Heritage Month (March)/                   Halloween (Oct. 31)

St. Patrick’s Day (March 17)                                          American Indian/Alaska Native Heritage Month

Earth Day (April 22)                                                           (November)

Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month (May)           Veterans Day (Nov. 11)

Older Americans Month (May)                                    Thanksgiving Day                                 

Mother’s Day                                                              The Holiday Season (December)

Hurricane Season Begins (June 1)                                                                   

Father’s Day                                                                                       

The Fourth of July (July 4)

Anniversary of Americans with Disabilities Act (July 26)

Back to School (August)                                                                                                                   

 

Editor’s note: The preceding data were collected from a variety of sources and may be subject to sampling variability and other sources of error. Facts for Features are customarily released about two months before an observance in order to accommodate magazine production timelines.

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