U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Skip Header


Facts for Features: Hurricane Katrina 10th Anniversary: Aug. 29, 2015

Press Release Number CB15-FF.16

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.

New Orleans Graphic [PDF <1.0 MB]
Mississippi Graphic [PDF <1.0 MB]

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

Race/Ethnicity 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

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

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

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


Economic characteristics:

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

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

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


Housing characteristics:

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

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

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

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

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


Economic characteristics:

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

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

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


Housing characteristics:

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

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

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

Related links

Hurricane Katrina special reports:
www.census.gov/topics/preparedness/events/hurricanes/katrina.html

Forced to Move: An Analysis of Hurricane Katrina Movers
www.census.gov/library/working-papers/2011/demo/SEHSD-WP2011-17.html

Hurricane Katrina resource maps:
www.census.gov/geo/maps-data/maps/katrina_resource_maps.html

Migration flows:
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.
onthemap.ces.census.gov/em.html

Storms and Jobs: The Effect of Hurricanes on Individuals' Employment and Earnings over the Long Term
ideas.repec.org/p/cen/wpaper/15-21.html

Taken By Storm: Business Survival In The Aftermath Of Hurricane Katrina
by Emek Basker (Census Bureau) and Javier Miranda (Census Bureau)
ideas.repec.org/p/cen/wpaper/14-20.html

The Impact of Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma on Business Establishments: A GIS Approach
by Ron S. Jarmin (Census Bureau) and Javier Miranda (Census Bureau)
ideas.repec.org/p/cen/wpaper/06-23.html

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

Black (African American) History Month (February)
Super Bowl
Valentine's Day (Feb. 14)
Women's History Month (March)
Irish-American Heritage Month (March)/
      St. Patrick's Day (March 17)
Earth Day (April 22)
Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month (May)
Older Americans Month (May)
Mother's Day
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)
Labor Day
Grandparents Day
Hispanic Heritage Month (Sept. 15-Oct. 15)
Unmarried and Single Americans Week
Halloween (Oct. 31)
American Indian/Alaska Native Heritage Month (November)
Veterans Day (Nov. 11)
Thanksgiving Day
The Holiday Season (December)

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. Questions or comments should be directed to the Census Bureau’s Public Information Office: telephone: 301-763-3030; or e-mail: pio@census.gov.

Page Last Revised - December 16, 2021
Is this page helpful?
Thumbs Up Image Yes Thumbs Down Image No
NO THANKS
255 characters maximum 255 characters maximum reached
Thank you for your feedback.
Comments or suggestions?

Top

Back to Header