hurricane katrina: superdome documentary

The line to get in was already a quarter-mile long. Thousands of displaced residents take cover from Hurricane Katrina at the Superdome in New . We had pre-positioned supplies, medical teams, Meals Ready To Eat, and food in the Superdome. And then he was gone after a while.". "All I know is on Wednesday night I was convinced that there were no FEMA buses. 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. Nobody cared.". In Louisiana, New Orleans is of particular concern because much of that city lies below sea level. Gallery. The situation begins to improve. With camera lenses and lights abounding, the . "They didn't have no food. 49 But it was the subsequent flooding of New Orleans that imposed catastrophic public health conditions on the people of southern . She made a report to a local sheriff's office; it has not yet passed the report on to the New Orleans police. 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. Rentals include 30 days to start watching this video and 48 hours to finish once started. President Bush flies over the area on his way back to Washington. Watch it: To learn about questionable police shootings and cover-ups in Katrinas wake. Katrina first made landfall in South Florida. "I think that that was probably over-reported," he says. Under the best of circumstances, rape is one of the hardest crimes to solve. As Katrina hit, Alexander found himself in a desperate situation. producer's chat+tapes & transcript+press reaction+credits+privacy policy "We're not downsizing anything," Benelli says. Very shortly, he said, Cars are beginning to float out of the parking lot. Surviving the Superdome. Chef Al Brown's nationwide dinner party to raise funds for Cyclone Gabrielle relief, Dubai, Hamilton and a hurricane named Hazel, VIPCs Public Safety Innovation Center hosts technology exhibit at Virginia Fire and Rescue Conference in Virginia Beach, REVEALED: Huge sonic boom felt by thousands across the country was caused by RAF Typhoon jets scrambling to intercept plane when pilot stopped responding 1.9k shares, Vanuatu Left Strewn With Debris After Tropical Cyclone Kevin, Cyclone Kevin leaves trail of destruction in Vanuatu, Even more homes at risk of hurricane damage: Report, Hurricane Katrina New Orleans French Quarter. Most residents have evacuated the city and those left behind do not have transportation or have special needs. A timeline of the warnings, some of the decisions leading up to the disaster, and what went wrong with the government's response. New Orleans, Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina, as seen in the new documentary Katrina Babies. Over 1,800 people lost their lives in the hurricane and an estimated 1 million people were displaced from their homes. Around this time 17 years ago, Hurricane Katrina bore down on New . But one man then-82-year-old Herbert Gettridge was determined to rebuild the house he had built more than 50 years earlier in the Lower Ninth Ward, with or without government support. In downtown New Orleans, some streets were merely wet rather than swamped. According to a New York Times article of September 29, "During six days when the Superdome was used as a shelter, the head of the New Orleans Police Department's sex crimes unit, Lt. David . There was nobody there to protect you," Lewis says. About 16,000 people . FEMA Situation Update: 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. Law-enforcement authorities dismissed early reports of widespread rapes in New Orleans during the lawless days following Hurricane Katrina. Walter Maestri, Jefferson Parish emergency manager: Phone service and electricity to some 770,000 people in the area is cut off. On August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast, causing catastrophic flooding as numerous levees failed around New Orleans. That's the attitude I would take if I was operating in the dark too. 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. And why it wasnt stopped sooner. But a growing body of evidence suggests there were more storm-related sexual assaults than previously known. "[Michael] Brown I did not see the first couple of days. And that is unacceptable. And then somebody came and called me and said, 'The president would like to see you.' And you need to order mandatory evacuation. You have responded to my calls." Several parishes and the city of New Orleans announce emergency responders will stop venturing out once the wind exceeds 45 mph. She gripped my arm at the store, and she told me, the way you shared with everybody so openly, you helped me to heal. ", "Coastal residents jammed freeways and gas stations as they rushed to get out A direct hit could wind up submerging New Orleans in several feet of water At least 100,000 people in the city lack transportation to get out Louisiana and Mississippi make all lanes northbound on interstate highways", Note: In the last hours before Katrina made landfall, dozens of copies of the, "To cries of 'Thank you, Jesus!' I aint about to leave, Gettridge said. I gave people clues on how to pack. And we need to get these people out of the Superdome because it's a shelter of last resort, and they only have a limited amount of resources.". FRONTLINE home+WGBH+PBS, FRONTLINE is a registered trademark of wgbh educational foundation. By the end of the day, the projected storm surge is 18 to 22 feet, locally as high as 28 feet. 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. More than 1 million more in the Gulf region were displaced. Walter Maestri, Jefferson Parish emergency manager: Richard Falkenrath, Homeland Security Adviser (2001-2004): In Fight Against ISIS, a Lose-Lose Scenario Poses Challenge for West. And the mayor began to tell us some of the things that he needed. It was called "Hurricane Pam" and the exercise was conducted with state and local emergency managers. I said, 'We need to do this.' On June 4, 2006, Pamela Mahogany was interviewed for her personal experience involving the events following Hurricane Katrina. By Chris Edwards. The storm initially formed as a tropical depression southeast of the Bahamas on August 23. On August 28, 2005, at 6 am, New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin announced that the Superdome would be used as a public shelter. Evacuating hospitals is a top priority: Patients and staff are stranded and supplies and power are dwindling. Around 8 a.m. the storm's eye passes eastern New Orleans. 11.1.2005. But the problem was that because of the fear that resulted from the civil unrest, the bus drivers said, 'We're not going in there to pick these people up unless you put a law enforcement official on every one of the buses, because we're afraid. New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin says he'll follow the state evacuation plan and will not call for mandatory evacuation until 30 hours before projected landfall. So I finally just walked up to Danny and said, Mr. Oh, absolutely not. The groups went in shifts, sneaking down over to the garage, up the stairs and to the helipad. " from my view sitting inside a windowless room at FEMA headquarters during my nightshift we are working to coordinate with our federal partners, to get water out. I talk to her every other day, and thats her main question How long is it going to be? We have so much intelligence down here in New Orleans, and yet, even four years after the hurricane, we cant rely on the school system. Interstate 10 is shut down with damage to 40 percent of its Twin Span Bridge over Lake Ponchartrain. But I am happy to help, even if it takes me an extra two hours at the grocery store. 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. I think the American Red Cross already had shelters and was already feeding people. ', So they went into another section of the plane, had a meeting. One of the victims is Ms. Lewis, a 46-year-old home health-care worker from New Orleans East, who asked that her first name not be used. About 2,000 medical evacuees remain at Louis Armstrong Airport, which has become a staging area for responders and injured refugees. Glover, you dont know me, but Im Phyllis, and I was in another Katrina documentary and I have to see this film! He grabbed onto me and I wouldnt let go until I got a seat insidethats the way I am. Web Site Copyright 1995-2023 WGBH Educational Foundation. And Mayor Nagin expressed his concerns. By the end of the day, there are 30,000 people at the Superdome. Anastasia says thugs were still wandering the streets of her neighborhood more than a week after the flood. Katrina anniversary: Inside the Superdome during Katrina. 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. National Hurricane Center director Max Mayfield tells the Times-Picayune newspaper, "This is scary this is the real thing." Michael Brown, FEMA director: But there were also profane jeers from many in the crowd of nearly 20,000 outside the Convention Center, which a day earlier seemed on the verge of a riot, with desperate people seething with anger over the lack of anything to eat or drink. Mahogany describes her actions before deciding to evacuate her home, her trip to the New Orleans Saints' Superdome, her horrific time at the Superdome, and finally her decision to leave New Orleans. Katrina caused more than $160 billion in damage. This escapism was part of the gift the Saints gave the city following Hurricane Katrina. The police department -- reeling from desertions, flooding and the immensity of the disaster -- was in a survival mode itself. He estimates 5,000 to 10,000 people are still in the city, with many of them still waiting to be rescued. They cast a wide net over this important event and She requests President Bush to declare a state of emergency in Louisiana. ' Gettridge told FRONTLINE. HBO. ', And we left and had a press conference. Just last week, a federal court ordered a new trial for five officers convicted of the Danziger Bridge shootings. Katrina becomes a Category 3 with 115 mph maximum sustained winds. In New Orleans chaos . I just expressed to her my concern about the lack of unified command, and the need to have more of a structure of what was going on. The mistake that I made was not doing that sooner and not giving them the orders that we needed them to do all of that immediately. Phyllis Montana-Leblanc is a Hurricane Katrina survivor. His goal: To make it possible for his wife of 65 years, Lydia who had gone to live with one of their nine children in Wisconsin after Katrina to return home. I laid that out for him. But prosecutors have struggled to hold officers accountable. Looting becomes more widespread; hotels begin turning out guests. Theres a river of water moving into this area.'. A Tropical Depression with 35 mph maximum sustained winds is located 250 miles east-southeast of southeast Florida. ', And the president was a little stunned, and he kind of stepped back, and he recovered. Get as many people out as possible. Where is all the things that we need to get out of here?"' Plus, if you lived in a FEMA trailer for three years like I did, the last thing you want to do is go to a trailer for medical care. And New Orleans itself has worked to rebuild. Because of the ensuing . August 28, 2015, 2:21 PM. Some parishes order mandatory evacuations. And Michael Brown tells FRONTLINE that in order to quell panic, he misled the public in saying that everything was going fine at the local level. Sept. 27, 2005, 12:58 PM PDT / Source: The Associated Press. And I think 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. Five officers were ultimately indicted: one for the shooting, and four additional officers on charges related to burning Glovers body and obstructing a federal investigation. I mentally moved on from the storm after I wrote the last page of my book, but this documentary has opened some old wounds and moves me to action, and I can only hope it does the same for others. Rescue efforts are delayed because of the inability of rescuers to communicate with each other. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration warning: The Army Corps of Engineers attempts to plug breaches in the 17th Street Canal and Industrial Canal levees. Civil order had completely broken down. Watch it: To understand what went wrong in the governments response to Katrina. ', We immediately did turn to the military and mission-assigned them to start doing airlifts, start bringing things in. Floodwaters keep rising. ", President Bush arrives in Louisiana. FRONTLINE reports from Iraq on the miscalculations and mistakes behind the brutal rise of ISIS. The numbers are not dramatic, but they are significant when seen in light of the official number of post-Katrina rapes and attempted rapes: four. "At that stage, we had mission-assigned the Department of Defense to start giving us everything they could in terms of air-lift capability. "We did meet with [Mayor Nagin] Tuesday morning. He also announces that the Superdome will be "a shelter of last resort for evacuees with special needs." "The fact that something wasn't reported to the police doesn't mean it didn't happen," Benitez says. Your email address will not be published. ", Mayor Ray Nagin: And there seems to be this dance about who has ultimate authority. Documenting evidence of potential war crimes in Ukraine. Flew into the city. The networks all-original programming slate features a roster of hit series, epic miniseries, and scripted event programming. And they hadn't. Marty Bahamonde/FEMA. So I went to the premiere, knowing Danny Glover was hosting it, and I couldnt get into the screeningso I texted Spike Lee, who directed When the Levees Broke, the documentary I was in, and asked him to pull some strings, but he didnt have Dannys number. She is at work on her next memoir, No More Wire Hangers, about domestic abuse in teenage relationships. HBO. To get medical teams and search teams out the door and get 'em down there. My sense now is there are victims out there whose stories haven't been heard.". A Louisiana State University computer model of a 115 mph storm strike shows the overtopping of levees protecting New Orleans and nearby areas. At least 1,800 lives were lost in Hurricane Katrina, often considered one of the worst hurricanes in US history. "The police was stressed out themselves," Lewis says. [He] came on site, I think it was Monday after the event. 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. FEMA National Situation Update: 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. '", Mayor Ray Nagin I was able to get Governor Blanco to sit with me several times in the office that she had and talk about what needed to be done. And he said: 'Mr. Mississippi and Louisiana governors declare states of emergency. ", Richard Falkenrath, Homeland Security Adviser (2001-2004): "And so now I think it's swung the other direction and it's underreported. On Sept. 1, with desperate Hurricane Katrina evacuees crammed into the convention center, Police Chief Eddie Compass reported: "We . Around this time 17 years ago, Hurricane Katrina bore down on New Orleans, and permanently changed life for thousands of people across the country. Judy Benitez, of the Louisiana rape crisis group, says the non-report rate would be far higher given the nightmare of Katrina. After the genocide in Rwanda and atrocities in Srebrenica, Bosnia, in the 1990s, the world vowed never again. Then came the conflict in Darfur, Sudan, which began 20 years ago. It is 250 miles south-southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River. Expressed my concerns, my frustration He needed to really get us resources to save people. Phyllis Montana-LeBlancthe breakout star of Spike Lees When the Levees Broke documentary and author of Not Just the Levees Broke: My Story During and After Katrina (and a consultant on David Simons new post-Katrina HBO drama)writes below about why viewers should still care about New Orleans four years later, and why Trouble the Water just may be the wakeup call we need. "I got a call, I think Saturday afternoon [from] Max Mayfield, the hurricane director. Then we kind of figure out ways that we could coordinate. "There was a period of days when we weren't sure who was directing the federal response and were all the actions being taken. Explore FRONTLINEs collected and ongoing reporting on Russia's war on Ukraine. And I knew it wasn't true, because 8:00 or 10:00 that morning, I received a report from one of my staffers that either a levee had been topped or had actually broken. In the first few hours after Katrina hit, many people believed that New Orleans had dodged a bullet. "I know more sexual assaults took place. Recalling her attack, she sobs, "They just left us to die. Note: The Earlier Warnings -- In 2001, FEMA identified the three most likely disasters facing the U.S.: an earthquake in California, a hurricane in New Orleans and a terrorist attack in New York City. I've never seen a hurricane like this in my 33-year career. Ten years ago this Saturday, Hurricane Katrina made landfall on the Gulf Coast. Blanco tours the area Tuesday evening and announces that the Superdome should be evacuated. They lost 15 high-water trucks with mobile communications packages. They didn't have water. Gettridge,a fifth generation New Orleanian, would go on to die from a heart attack in 2014 at the age of 91 at the home he had successfully rebuilt. It hit land as a Category 3 storm with winds reaching speeds as high as 120 miles per hour. The Army Corps of Engineers projects it could take 80 days to pump the water out of the city. He escaped the chaotic shelter a few days . 7:577-Minute Listen. Airborne debris will be widespread and may include heavy items such as household appliances and even light vehicles. 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. "All I could do was pray, pray for rescue, pray that I didn't have any type of transmitted disease," she says. He says his team only saw a fraction of the desperate people who sought assistance. Reports stream in from people needing rescue. Her husband [Raymond Blanco] is there. The storm has ripped a hole in the Superdome where the power has gone out. ", Leo Bosner, FEMA watch officer: ISIS' growing foothold in Afghanistan is captured on film. "With the evacuee situation stabilizing somewhat, and increasing numbers of armed soldiers and police on the streets, officials said Saturday they would start aggressively dealing with the bands of armed looters who pushed the city to the brink of complete breakdown. The two of us are going to leave. I had all the police, the firefighters in rescue mode, so the looting thing started to rear its head. By afternoon, officials issue a citywide call for more boats to help. 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 . But problems persist. As of Nov. 22, 2005, more than 900 people are known to have died in New Orleans. There's this lunch. FEMA Situation Update: Instead, officers at the compound arrested Glover. The National Weather Service writes that Hurricane Katrina is "one of the five deadliest hurricanes to ever strike the United States." Hurricane Katrina caused up to $161 billion worth of damage, largely due to the fact that the breached levees led to flooding in 80% of New Orleans. These three documentaries and nearly 190 more are all streaming online at pbs.org/frontline. Mayor Mitch Landrieu last week hailedNew Orleans as Americas comeback city,citing efforts to reduce crime, decrease homelessness and improve educational outcomes for area students. There was all kinds of crime taking place on a much higher level than usual. Persons, pets, and livestock exposed to the winds will face certain death if struck. It doesn't make any sense.". Before Hurricane Katrina hit, New Orleans residents gathered to ride out the storm in what seemed like a pretty safe place, the Superdome, the city's football stadium . Katrina Babies is an assertion of presence, a proclamation that the devastating hurricane is not simply a past story, but a present one too. The following year, during an interview with Tom Brokaw at Columbia Journalism School, Williams said, "We watched, all of us watched . The city's buses have been positioned around the city in locations that have never been flooded. Exacerbated by the recent BP oil spill in the region, the storm and its aftermath remains an open wound for local residents and others affected . Directed by New Orleans native Edward Buckles Jr., who was a teenager when Katrina struck, the documentary, which premieres Thursday on HBO, reminds us of the storm's real-life ramifications. Half of telephone service is back. William E. Brown Jr. -. Driving in from the popular suburb of Metairie, it's the first building you pass. The outer ends of the hurricane also produced tornados . Winds continue to damage or destroy buildings and blow out windows. Required fields are marked *. In the 2005 documentary "In His Own Words: Brian Williams on Hurricane Katrina," Williams indicated that he wasn't a witness to the suicide. President Bush declares Louisiana and Mississippi major disaster areas. Rapid Transit Authority buses pick up citizens and bring them to the Superdome, where the Louisiana National Guard has stocked enough MREs to feed 15,000 people for three days. Go up there, face to face and say, "What is happening here? Patrice Taddonio. Katrina becomes a Category 1 hurricane with 75 mph maximum sustained winds. Inside the four triage tents, medical personnel tended to people who had gone for days without their medication. A hurricane warning is issued for the Southeast Florida coast. They spend the next 24 hours trying to save themselves. ", Gov. The Department of Defense's "Joint Task Force Katrina" -- 4,600 active-duty military headed by Army Lt. Gen. Russel Honor -- sets up at Camp Shelby, Miss. Per this CNN Money report, a Brian Williams' Katrina tale appears to have evolved somewhat dramatically over the course of just one year.In 2005, Williams reported in a documentary that he had "heard the story" of a man killing himself in the Superdome. Experts say it was the perfect environment to commit a crime, and the worst environment to report a crime. Hurricane Katrina Superdome. According to the New Orleans Data Center, racial disparities in income and employment are more pronounced in the city than they are nationally; the poverty rate is 11 points higher than the national average; and the incarceration rate is approximately three times the national average. New Orleans, Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina, as seen in the new documentary Katrina Babies . Do You Have News to Share? Neville says she was sexually assaulted early the morning of Aug. 31st, while she was sleeping on the roof of Drew Elementary School in the Bywater Neighborhood, where she and others had taken refuge. And based upon that ["Hurricane Pam" planning exercise], I knew they needed to evacuate. Hurricane Katrina: Caught on Camera Over three days in August 2005, a cataclysmic storm brought flooding and disaster to the Gulf Coast of America, leaving over 1,800 people dead in Louisiana and Mississippi. '", 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. We have got to start getting people out.' hurricane katrina ripped through the Gulf Coast, claiming 1,800 lives. In all, more than 1,500 died either duringthe storm or inthe famouslybungled aftermath which saw local, state, and federal officials uncoordinated and overwhelmed. After being damaged by. There are still gangs of armed criminals roaming the city; police and National Guard, now numbered at 16,000, have a better handle on the situation than earlier in the week. Hundreds of people already have been rescued. Kathleen Blanco. At a press conference in Baton Rouge, 80 miles away, Gov. If you do not want us and our partners to use cookies and personal data for these additional purposes, click 'Reject all'. Ms. Blanco, she left and walked out. I gave the governor two options. As a shocking New Orleans documentary airs on HBO tonight, Phyllis Montana-LeBlancbestselling author and gutsy survivorexplains why the city is still drowning. No, they weren't. Refuge of last resort: Five days inside the Superdome for Hurricane Katrina. The Times-Picayune reports the Convention Center evacuees are still being loaded onto buses and evacuated and search-and-rescue operations continue. Power outages will last for weeks water shortages will make human suffering incredible by modern standards.". Exclusive: A Former MPD Lieutenant Reported Another Cop. We, Yahoo, are part of the Yahoo family of brands. Michael Brown, FEMA director: There are still areas that look like Katrina hit yesterday. 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. Copyright All rights reserved. Within five hours I start to get reports from my staff members, who are out doing assessments, the water's rising. ", Leo Bosner, FEMA watch officer: 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. And he said: 'No, you don't have to leave. The spot urges victims to report their assault by calling 1-800-656-HOPE. The interviews done as part of this project reflect the disaster's painful, chaotic, and murky aftermath. Ten years ago this Saturday, Hurricane Katrina made landfall on the Gulf Coast. I've heard some terrible stories since that the stuff wasn't getting there. And I had a piece of paper where I wrote down like a five-point plan of the things that we needed to do. A decade later . so you had a very dynamic situation.". Gov. The Convention Center becomes a destination for walk-in refugees seeking evacuation. Photo. 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.

Jcpenney Valances Clearance, Merchant Solutions Group Debt Collection, Articles H