A woman walks in the middle of a street through the rain-soaked and deserted French Quarter of New Orleans in advance of Hurricane Katrina August 28. Hundreds of thousands of New Orleans residents fled inland as Katrina strengthened into one of the fiercest U.S. storms ever seen and barreled toward the low-lying Gulf Coast city.
NOAA satellite image of Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico on August 28, 2005.
Thousands of people wait outside the Superdome to be let in for shelter from Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans August 28. Mayor Nagin said this was a refuge of last resort.
People were told to bring several days of food and water with them. However, despite telling people they would need several days of food and water, the city did no pre-positioning of supplies or security at any city hospitals, hotels or shelters, including the Superdome and Convention Center.
Drivers and passengers wait outside their cars as traffic snarls on the interstate highway leaving downtown New Orleans August 28.
