ABSTRACT
On Thursday August 25, 2005, a tropical storm reached the coast of Florida. As winds reached over 73 mph it was upgraded to hurricane status. Hurricane Katrina, as it was now officially designated, quickly passed over the southernmost tip of Florida, then moved into the Gulf of Mexico where it strengthened as it soaked up the warm gulf waters. At 11 am on Sunday August 28 wind speeds exceeded 170 mph. Katrina was now a fully-fledged category 5 hurricane, capable of inflicting ferocious damage and enormous harm.
