On this day in 2005, Hurricane Katrina, the most destructive hurricane ever to hit the United States, makes landfall on the U.S. Gulf Coast, near New Orleans, Louisiana. Katrina, which formed over the Bahamas on August 23, was the third major hurricane of a particularly severe 2005 season. The storm caused massive devastation in and around the city of New Orleans and major damage elsewhere in Louisiana and along the coasts of Mississippi and Alabama.
Hurricane Katrina was the most costly natural disaster in American history, with damages of more than $80 billion. In all, more than 1,800 people died, 1 million more were displaced and 400,000 lost their jobs as a result of the disaster. Even one year later, despite efforts to rebuild the city, large parts of New Orleans remained heavily damaged and thousands remained homeless or unemployed.