Hurricane Katrina was the costliest in U.S. history and left widespread economic impacts. Oil and gas industry operations were crippled after the storm and coastal communities that rely on tourism suffered from both loss of infrastructure and business and coastal erosion. An estimated 400,000 people were permanently displaced by the storm.

A powerful storm, which hurricane Katrina was, can b>break those levees, which in turn allowed the ocean to flood large parts of the city. The reason hurricane Katrina itself was so destructive, unlike any earlier hurricane, is because Katrina happened to be the first hurricane since New Orleans was built to hit the city.

Critics blamed an aging and neglected federal levee system and a slow state and local response following the disaster for the high loss of life and damage.

The largest loss of life in Hurricane Katrina was due to flooding caused by engineering flaws in the flood protection system, particularly the levee around the city of New Orleans. Eventually, 80% of the city, as well as large areas in neighboring parishes, were flooded for weeks.

Hurricane Katrina was one of the most destructive and deadly hurricanes in U.S. history. It caused immense damage and loss of life due to several factors: Engineering flaws in the flood protection system, particularly the levee around New Orleans, led to extensive flooding.