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20 years since Katrina
FOX 13's Craig Patrick reconnects with some of the first responders who played a big part in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
TAMPA, Fla. - Katrina made landfall in South Florida as a Category 1 hurricane, then strengthened to Category 5 in the Gulf of Mexico. Mississippi and New Orleans suffered catastrophic storm surge and flooding from the Cat 5 storm.
Tampa Bay firefighters, including Kelly Hallman, were deployed for urban search and rescue in Biloxi and surrounding areas.
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Timeline:
August 25, 2005: Katrina hit Florida as a Category 1 hurricane.
August 28, 2005: Katrina intensified in the Gulf of Mexico, reaching Category 5 strength.
August 29, 2005: The storm struck Mississippi and New Orleans and levees breach, causing catastrophic flooding.
August 30–31, 2005: Search-and-rescue operations began and communications remained severely disrupted.
The backstory:
Hurricane Katrina exposed systemic failures in disaster preparedness and response. Decades of underinvestment in levee systems and emergency planning left New Orleans especially vulnerable.
Many, like Roy Kerr, were caught in the wrong place at the wrong time, while first responders faced overwhelming challenges amid unprecedented destruction.
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Local perspective:
Tampa Bay firefighters were on the front lines in Mississippi, navigating debris-strewn neighborhoods to rescue residents.
Residents like Susie Towater relied on amateur radio and satellite phones to check on family members in Gulfport, highlighting the breakdown in conventional communications.
By the numbers:
Tens of thousands of residents were stranded after the storm, and bridges and critical infrastructure were destroyed.
Why you should care:
Katrina was not just a natural disaster — it triggered a man-made catastrophe. Failures in engineering, planning and emergency response contributed to the loss of life and widespread devastation.
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Its legacy continues to shape policy, disaster preparedness and infrastructure planning across the U.S.
What's next:
FOX 13's five-part series, America After Katrina, airs nightly at 10 p.m., with a 30-minute special airing on Friday at 6:30 p.m. Future segments will examine what went wrong, what lessons were learned and how the nation has changed since 2005.
The Source: Reporting for this story was done by FOX 13, including original coverage by FOX 13's Mark Wilson and Craig Patrick in 2005. It also includes first-hand interviews with survivors (Roy Kerr, Susie Towater) and first responders (Kelly Hallman) as well as archival footage, radar and satellite imagery from FOX 13 and NOAA.