2+Natural+Disasters

On August 29, 2005, one of the “deadliest and most expensive storms to strike the United States” (“Hurricane Katrina”) occurred, momentarily silencing the nation. Although striking major cities in Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama, this category three storm, Hurricane Katrina, is most infamous for its flooding of over 80 percent of New Orleans, Louisiana. The rain and heavy winds combined with the breaks in the levees surrounding the city led to this flooding. The entire city had to be evacuated, yet the destruction and rampage caused over 1,600 deaths and left thousands of families displaced. While the city grieved, the federal, state, and local governments cooperated in an attempt to recover the once lively area. However, the efforts of these governments were questioned, especially Bush’s role, when many victims remained without food, water, shelter, and order throughout the weeks following the storm. Many took this disaster as a call to action, leading to the huge deluge of volunteers to the city. The city gained fame and recognition through media support. These were some of the few good things that came out of this terrifying natural disaster.

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Another natural disaster, although not as close to home as Hurricane Katrina (and therefore not as monumental an event in America’s perspective), was an earthquake in Haiti that happened in January of 2010.





This magnitude seven earthquake rattled Haiti near its capital, Port-au-Prince. The major damage to historical buildings and millions of homes, as well as the hundreds of thousands left dead, injured, or missing sparked a worldwide response to this crisis. A large amount of countries sent immediate help to Haiti, providing food, shelter, money, clothing, hospital treatments, and more.

A large number of celebrities made it their personal mission to promote awareness about Haiti and raise funds to increase the help being sent to the country. Social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter played a role in this same way. The American Red Cross opened texting lines, where anyone who texted would be donating ten dollars to aid relief. Over seven million dollars was donated with this method, the largest amount the Red Cross has ever raised in this kind of situation. The United States and Canada also offered to allow Haitians to live within our borders for up to 18 months, allowing time to regain health and stability.