Katrina Victims File Claims in Excess of $12 Trillion

[Guest guest]

Katrina Victims File Claims in Excess of $12 Trillion Money Enough to Bankrupt

the U.S. Economy...and Then Some

http://www.thedailygreen.com/environmental-news/latest/hurricane-katrina-claims-\

47010702?src=nl & mag=tdg & list=dgr & kw=ist

Homes destroyed by Hurricane Katrina in Gulf Coast in Gulfport Mississippi.

Photo: Rob Carr/AP Photo

The people of New Orleans have tallied their losses from Hurricane Katrina and

demanded payments, and for the first time the Army Corps of Engineers has

released the total sum of their demands. And it's about as pretty as a

hurricane-devastated home.

Here are some of the ways USA Today measured the tally:

489,000 made claims for damage and death related to the failing of the

levees that were supposed to protect the city from catastrophic flooding.

247 of the claims demanded $1 billion or more.

One claim was for $6 trillion and another was for – get this – $3

quadrillion. Yes, it is a number (followed by 15 zeros).

That single extraordinary claim is valued at 250-times the U.S. gross

domestic product ($12 trillion).

Most claims will not be honored, or honored to the extent the claimants have

demanded. Louisiana has estimated Katrina caused $100 billion in damages, a sum

that seems paltry in the face of these claims. They are a reminder of how

devastating natural disasters can be, and a warning that – if global warming

does produce more extreme weather – the cost could be well higher than expected.

Hurricane Katrina Victims Denied Insurance Claims

Federal Panel: You Don't Qualify For Flood Damage Reimbursement

http://www.thedailygreen.com/environmental-news/latest/4724

Tens of thousands of home and business owners who suffered catastrophic losses

from flooding after the levees breached in New Orleans have been denied

insurance reimbursements, and a U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has sided with

private insurers over the victims.

In a decision yesterday, the panel said the insurance policies did not cover

flood damage, including damage from man-made disasters like the breach of the

levees following Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Insurers would have been on the hook

for $1 billion had they been made to pay, according to Hartwig, president

of the Insurance Information Institute, who was quoted by USA Today as saying

the decision was " correct and fair. "

It doesn't seem at all fair that tens of thousands of people whose lives were

ruined, and who had sought insurance ahead of disaster, are now on the hook for

that same bill. $1 Billion, even spread out among tens of thousands of people,

will be an insurmountable goal for many who might otherwise have returned to

rebuild their damaged communities.

The decision is also a warning to anyone living in a flood-prone or coastal

zone: Check your policies, and be sure that the insurance you pay for is giving

you the coverage you expect. The Federal Emergency Management Agency recently

warned that many of the flood policies people took out after Katrina have

expired -- and hurricane season is only now starting in earnest.

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~Haley

[Guest guest]

Haley, reading your post, I thought, lets Google

" Root Cause Analysis " Katrina

Lots of stuff came up including this:

http://pbma.nasa.gov/docs/public/pbma/general/10_3_05.pdf