Meteorologists predict that the huge waves and floods caused by Hurricane Katrina will be as high as nearly 10 meter, exceeding the height of urban flood control walls, which may cause a disastrous blow to the city.
According to the National Hurricane Research Center on the morning of 28th Eastern Time, the wind speed of Hurricane Katrina has reached 257km per hour, rising to category 5 hurricane, and it is expected to land on the southeast coast of Louisiana on the morning of 29th Eastern Time.
In the safire-Simpson system, category 5 hurricane is the highest level. This system divides hurricanes into five levels from strong to weak: the wind speed of the first-class hurricane is between118km and153km per hour, and the wave height caused by the storm is1.5m; The wind speed of category 5 hurricane exceeds 249 kilometers per hour, and the wave height caused by the storm is above 5.5 meters.
The damage is mainly in three States, concentrated in two States, one is Louisiana and the other is Mississippi. These two states account for 2% of the American economy. Everyone says it doesn't matter if it's less than 2%, but these two States have more important places. The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal in the United States, including satirical magazines in the United States, have made a long analysis of this economic loss. The most important point is compared with 9. 1 1: 9. 1 1 destroyed the financial center of new york, and it is a single economy. Louisiana and Mississippi are called the mixed economy of old and new. In addition to networking and communication, there are many things such as shipping and logistics, which are very huge and concrete substances. For example, ports, such as oil pipelines, for example, Louisiana is the largest grain exporter in the United States, including soybeans, corn and barley exported to China. However, if the facilities in this port are destroyed, the software can be easily recovered, but the repair of hardware transportation machinery will be slow. Therefore, the impact of this hurricane on the American economy is far more than 9. 1 1, and it is very easy to replicate after 9. 1 1. To put it bluntly, white-collar companies can copy.
The American economy is closely linked with the global economy. One is refineries in these two States and the Gulf of Mexico. There are 14 refineries, and now 9 have been closed. There is a shortage of oil in Atlanta, with gasoline down by 20% and natural gas lost by 23%. Raw materials and products will greatly promote the next step. Let me give you an example. The price of bananas imported into the United States has increased by 25% because the transportation of cereals and cereals has been blocked. Of course, there are related product price increases, which not only affect the whole United States, but also have a great impact on the global economy.
Five victims of the hurricane disaster in the United States died of cholera, and 400,000 people may be unemployed.
New Orleans is still a vibrant and energetic this beautiful city. After the "looting" of hurricanes and floods, the city is now almost an "empty city".
Reid, leader of the Democratic Party of the US Senate, estimated on the 6th that the cost of disaster relief and reconstruction in the hurricane-stricken areas in the United States may eventually reach as high as 654.38+050 billion US dollars.
The mayor of New Orleans said that the number of victims may reach 65,438+100,000. Riley, deputy director of the New Orleans Police Department, said that about 400-500 of the city's 1600 police officers were missing.