Hurricane Katrina and the Flooding of New Orleans: Emergent Issues in Sheltering and Temporary Housing

Abstract

Hurricane Katrina created an unprecedented need for sheltering and temporary housing across a four-state area along the Gulf Coast. This article reviews the disaster literature with respect to sheltering and temporary housing and contrasts how these needs actually developed with respect to both the preimpact and postimpact evacuation situations. The article also investigates the ways that intergovernmental planning failed to anticipate the need for shelter/housing solutions or to implement effective measures to put those plans into operation.