by Aaron Hoover
Total number of single-family homes, mobile homes, and apartments destroyed by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita: 355,889
American Red Cross, Katrina and Rita Disaster Assessment (10/30/05)
Total number of damaged dwelling units: 538,007
American Red Cross, Katrina and Rita Disaster Assessment (10/30/05)
Number of occupied emergency trailers and mobile homes as of early December: 38,440
The New York Times, Op-Chart, “Rebuilding Progress” (12/7/05)
Number of evacuated families in hotels: 41,953
The New York Times, Op-Chart, “Rebuilding Progress” (12/7/05)
Number of temporary “blue roofs” installed on damaged homes by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Louisiana as of mid-November: 70,000
New Orleans CityBusiness, “Blue Roof Program Coming to a Close in 34 Louisiana Parishes” (11/14/05)
Cost per average 1,500-square-foot roof: $2,500
JLC, “Top-Dollar Tarps” (12/05)
Estimated tons of debris in Southeast Louisiana following Katrina: 22 million
The Times-Picayune, “Three Decades Worth of Trash” (11/16/05)
Estimated tons in New Orleans alone: 12 million
The Times-Picayune, “Three Decades Worth of Trash” (11/16/05)
Tons of garbage generated in New Orleans in an average year: 350,000
The Times-Picayune, “Three Decades Worth of Trash” (11/16/05)
Total number of ruined refrigerators processed for recycling in New Orleans as of mid-November: 131,925
The Times-Picayune, “Ruined Refrigerators Have Become a Familiar, Even Evocative Sight” (11/27/05)
Estimated number of vehicles damaged by Katrina floodwaters: 350,000
The Times-Picayune, “Three Decades Worth of Trash” (11/16/05)
Number of open public schools in New Orleans before Katrina: 116
The New York Times, Op-Chart, “Rebuilding Progress” (12/7/05)
Number of open public schools after Katrina as of early December:
The New York Times, Op-Chart, “Rebuilding Progress” (12/7/05)
Number of construction jobs lost in Louisiana and Mississippi from August through September: 27,000
Houston Chronicle, “Five Questions with Ken Simonson” (11/16/05)
Unemployment rate in New Orleans before Katrina: 5.8%
The New York Times, Op-Chart, “Rebuilding Progress” (12/7/05)
Unemployment rate after Katrina: 15.5%
The New York Times, Op-Chart, “Rebuilding Progress” (12/7/05)
Number of mold spores per cubic meter measured in some flooded New Orleans homes: 3 million
The Times-Picayune, “The Same Old Same Mold” (10/29/05)
“Very high” levels of outdoor mold spores per cubic meter as defined by the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology: 50,000 http://www.aaaai.org
Amount charged by professional mold remediators: $10 to $12 per square foot
The Times-Picayune, “The Same Old Same Mold” (10/29/05)
Number of days it took for the National Flood Insurance Program to empty its coffers following Hurricane Wilma’s U.S. landfall on October 24: 18
The Times-Picayune, “Congress OKs Adding Flood-Insurance Dollars” (11/19/05)
Total number of flood claims filed following the three hurricanes as of mid-November: 230,000
The Times-Picayune, “Congress OKs Adding Flood-Insurance Dollars” (11/19/05)
Percentage increase in price of diesel fuel October 2004 to October 2005: 59
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, “Contractors Brace for Higher Prices” (11/29/05)
Post-Katrina and -Rita percentage increases in the price of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipe depending on geographic region: 20 to 100
St. Petersburg Times, “Builders Declare Hardship” (11/26/05)
Increase in the price for a square (10 feet by 10 feet) of architectural shingles in Louisiana after Katrina: $10
The Times-Picayune, “No Quick Fixes” (11/19/05)
Rise in Entergy Corp.’s third-quarter earnings despite extensive damage to its New Orleans unit from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita: 24%Associated Press, “Entergy Profits Rise Despite Hurricane Damage” (11/1/05)
Rise in Harrah’s Entertainment Inc.’s third-quarter profits despite destruction of its casinos in Biloxi and Gulfport and serious damage to its Lake Charles casino: 42%
Associated Press, “Harrah’s Posts Profit Rise with Caesars Buy, Despite Hurricanes” (11/3/05)
Total Louisiana state budget deficit following Katrina: $959 million
Associated Press, “Notes from the Louisiana Legislature’s Special Session” (11/9/05)
Total estimated cost of a major hurricane hitting Miami in 2020 if current construction and property value trends continue: $500 billion
The New York Times, “In Study, a History Lesson on the Costs of Hurricanes” (12/8/05)