What is a disaster? “Crushing misfortune; a calamity; a terrible accident”—according to Webster’s College Dictionary.1 On August 28, 2005, the Gulf Coast was hit hard by a stage 5 hurricane, Katrina—a natural disaster that has never been seen before by the citizens of the United States. The residents of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama had warnings from the US Weather Service to evacuate. Some responded to this warning, many did not. Interstate 10 was jam packed with motorists who were trying to get out of harms way. The average speed was a “slow crawl” to “a dead stop.” People were desperate, some 9000 fled to the Super Dome. Then the storm hit. Everyone in the country was glued to their televisions, and every channel showed the wind, rain, and water damage (from the broken levy). No one could have been prepared for the extent of the damage Katrina would...

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