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"The government's levees failed, and they near us."
It's been 20 years since Hurricane Katrina deed New Orleans, Louisiana, and Netflix's newest documentary — Katrina: Come Hell and High Water — commemorates the day by giving an intimate look astatine the experiences of New Orleanians before, during, and aft the storm.
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The three-episode bid features interviews with survivors, journalists, and authorities leaders who were connected the ground, offering an in-depth look astatine the interaction that systemic racism had connected rescue efforts for citizens trying to past some a Category 5 tempest and its aftermath.
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On the 20th day of Katrina, the state reflects connected "a exile situation similar the federation has ne'er known." Below are the 15 astir interesting facts I learned consecutive from the documentary:
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1. Many New Orleanians were skeptical of the severity of Katrina owed to the erstwhile year's warnings of Hurricane Ivan, which passed implicit the metropolis astatine the past minute.
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"They had a batch of radical that spent a batch of wealth connected hotels, connected food, each of this different stuff...It benignant of disrupted everybody's thought process for erstwhile Hurricane Katrina did come," said Shelton "Shakespeare" Alexander, a erstwhile nonmigratory of Saint Bernard Parish.
2. Over 20,000 New Orleanians lined up to question structure astatine the Superdome stadium earlier the storm.
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The documentary described the Superdome arsenic a "last resort" for citizens who could not evacuate oregon did not permission successful time, with the enactment stretching for 2 miles.
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According to the documentary, the authorities was "overwhelmed" by the fig of radical who showed up astatine the Superdome, galore of whom were low-income and had nary means to permission the city. One antheral who stayed determination during Katrina described the overcrowded conditions: "I deliberation of like, the enslaved ships, like, the mode they stacked america up," Shelton "Shakespeare" Alexander, a erstwhile nonmigratory of Saint Bernard Parish, said.
3. Hurricane Katrina archetypal deed landfall astatine 3:00 AM connected August 30, 2005.
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In the documentary, New Orleanians picture seeing the fearfulness successful the eyes of quality broadcasters connected TV arsenic they warned of the information of the storm. Both hotels' roofs and the extortion of the Superdome experienced large leaks arsenic h2o spilled in, putting those seeking information successful danger. People who stayed successful their houses were forced to fly to higher crushed successful their attics, but the h2o kept rising, drowning galore successful their ain homes.
4. Multiple levees — described arsenic New Orleans' "best defence against the storm" — broke during Hurricane Katrina, causing a ft and a fractional of h2o to capable the metropolis streets each hour.
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The archetypal levee broke astatine 6:30 AM during the hurricane successful the 9th Ward. Other breaks occurred connected the 17th St Canal, the London Canal, and the Industrial Canal. According to the documentary, floodwaters roseate to 12-15 feet, and h2o flowed straight into wherever radical lived.
5. The levees' breaking was described arsenic a "nuclear weaponry [being] dropped connected the metropolis of New Orleans," according to the Louisiana Lieutenant Governor astatine the time.
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"I'm similar shit, the prima is shining, we're good. Next happening I know, idiosyncratic yells from crossed the mode and says, 'water's coming successful the city!'...and I'm looking astatine the ground, and I'm seeing water," said Phyllis Montanta-Leblanc, a nonmigratory of New Orleans East.
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6. After the levees broke, the Lower 9th Ward — a historically Black vicinity — was described arsenic being "underwater," causing galore to drown successful their ain homes.
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At the time, according to the documentary, quality outlets gave small sum to the flooding and deaths occurring successful the Lower 9th Ward and chose to item the much well-known locations successful New Orleans that had money, similar Bourbon Street. One interviewee stated: "The government's levees failed, and they near us."
7. Residents of the Lower 9th Ward acted arsenic their ain hunt and rescue team, riding astir successful boats to prevention their neighbors who were trapped.
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"Once we'd get astatine slightest 10 people, we'd bring them to Martin Luther King school. We were rescuing similar everybody, dogs and whatever. People that was hardly making it, that was halfway drowning. People trapped connected roofs. We'd prime 'em up...It's a bully happening we did it 'cause to beryllium honorable with you, our leaders wasn't present for my people," said Freddy Hicks, a nonmigratory of the Lower 9th Ward.
8. Those who were rescued from their flooded homes were aboriginal taken to the Superdome and forced to stay determination for days alongside those who sought shelter.
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According to the documentary, implicit 200 National Guardsmen were sent to support bid and prohibit anyone from leaving the Superdome until it was "safe," causing wide overcrowding. "It was acheronian arsenic hell, extremely, highly warm, and the odor was conscionable truthful atrocious due to the fact that you had each those bodies successful there," Shelton "Shakespeare" Alexander, a erstwhile nonmigratory of Saint Bernard Parish, described. "If I wanted to permission to spell and help...I couldn't leave."
9. 54 hours aft the levees broke, Air Force One with President George W. Bush connected committee flew implicit the catastrophe portion of Katrina.
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According to the documentary, President George W. Bush was connected abrogation erstwhile Hurricane Katrina hit. Days later, helium flew implicit New Orleans, past returned to the White House. In the documentary, residents expressed vexation with Bush's effect to the tempest devastation. One resident successful the 13th Ward was asked to remark connected President Bush flying implicit the city. "He flew over, 35,000 feet, looked retired the window, said, 'Damn, that crap look bad.' Then helium kept goin'."
10. Amidst the chaos, Lieutenant General of the United States Army Russel L. Honoré — a Louisiana autochthonal — took implicit arsenic pb bid for the city's rescue efforts aft the tempest hit.
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According to occurrence 2, "Shelter of Last Resort," federal, state, and section officials did not "get along" and were not moving unneurotic efficaciously to bring aid, further slowing the process of redeeming lives. "It takes logistics to lick the freakin' problem, and nary of those fucking politicians are trained to bash that," Honoré said. "I was the closest service commandant to the problem...I was told that I would pb Task Force: Katrina."
11. Three days aft the storm, radical were told to locomotion miles to the Convention Center for help, but nary assistance was provided erstwhile they arrived.
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President Bush had said connected the quality that buses were being sent to the Convention Center to transport radical from New Orleans to Houston, Texas, arsenic portion of alleviation efforts, but erstwhile survivors arrived, determination was zero aid. In the documentary, a constabulary serviceman was recorded telling survivors, "We person nary means to get anybody anywhere. We person nary aesculapian attention. The authorities hasn't sent america anything." One subsister successful the documentary described the unspeakable conditions astatine the Convention Center. "We didn't person immoderate food, immoderate water, anything. They had dormant bodies there."
12. Bus operations to instrumentality survivors retired of the metropolis began astatine the Superdome, but were rapidly unopen down aft gunshots were reportedly fired astatine rescue helicopters.
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In the documentary, Lieutenant General Honoré explained that the shots fired that the media reported weren't the afloat story. "People would spot a chopper flying, and they were isolated, and they'd instrumentality the shotgun and sprout it into the air, deliberation they'd get the helicopter's attention," helium explained.
13. Days aft the storm, martial law was declared successful the metropolis of New Orleans owed to inaccurate reports of "widespread looting."
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"We would aboriginal larn erstwhile they would analyse transgression statistic successful the metropolis that really the communicative of similar 'Oh my god, transgression is retired of control, and present constabulary person to patrol the streets,' it conscionable wasn't accurate," said Soledad O'Brien, a CNN anchor during Katrina. "There was truthful overmuch misinformation and hysteria, it virtually led to radical getting shot."
14. The media's racist framing of survivors further endangered Black New Orleanians.
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15. Vigilante unit against Black New Orleanians became a superior contented successful the days aft the storm.
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One Black nonmigratory who was interviewed successful the documentary described walking done a vicinity trying to find assistance and being shot. "Before you cognize it, boom, I was connected the ground. I didn't adjacent cognize what deed me...I spot a feline with a shotgun successful his hand...and helium fto disconnected different shot." It was besides reported that a radical of achromatic men successful Algiers Point were shooting astatine Black people. In the documentary, 1 achromatic antheral was videoed laughing, and saying, "We changeable 'em! It was great, similar pheasant play successful South Dakota."
A surgeon from a adjacent infirmary reported getting 6-10 gunshot victims per day, a important leap post-Katrina.
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What are your thoughts? Let america cognize successful the comments below.
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