Inside the slow-motion disaster of Hurricane Katrina, 20 years later

Hurricane Katrina Overview - Hurricane Katrina made its first landfall in southeast Florida as a category 1 storm on August 24th, 2005 [1] - By August 28th, Katrina intensified into a category 5 storm with maximum sustained winds of 175 mph (approximately 282 km/h) [2] - On August 29th, Katrina made landfall near Beerus, Louisiana as a weakened category 3 hurricane [3] Impact and Aftermath - Levee failures led to flooding with water reaching almost 20 feet (approximately 6 meters) high in some areas [5] - Over 1,300 people were killed, and more than 1 million people were displaced from the Gulf Coast [11] - The event is considered the costliest hurricane in American history [12] Response and Relief Efforts - The Superdome was opened as a refuge, housing roughly 15,000 people [3] - The National Guard Relief Mission arrived with food on September 1st [10] - Evacuation efforts ramped up on September 3rd, dispersing survivors across the country [11]