Katrina was a category 4 hurricane in 2005
Compare to another category 4 hurricane from the previous year:
Copyright Times Publishing Co. Aug 14, 2004
Hundreds of power company trucks will roll out of the North Florida Fairgrounds this morning, part of a massive state response to Hurricane Charley's destruction.
Crews from Louisiana, Texas and elsewhere will reinstall downed electric lines and dig holes to replace downed utility poles.
"This is only the beginning," said Michael Willems, a Florida Power & Light employee, as he clutched a cell phone, arranging for a fresh convoy of trucks from Mississippi.
Within hours of Gov. Jeb Bush's request for immediate help, President Bush declared the state a federal disaster area. That is supposed to hasten temporary housing assistance, business loans and other relief in 40 of Florida's 67 counties.
The Bush brothers' handling of the storm's aftermath will be scrutinized closely during a presidential race in which Florida is the biggest battleground. After Hurricane Andrew in 1992, helpless South Florida residents accused the first President Bush of delaying the arrival of federal troops.
"The attitude is, whatever it takes to get this done, don't worry about the cost," the governor said. "This is a legitimate role of government. I don't think anyone would disagree that during a time of emergency we need to go all out."
The backbone of the state's preparations is a matrix of mutual aid pacts, many with other states, affecting everything from food to prescription drugs to hospital beds. The Emergency Management Assistance Compact, or EMAC, was spearheaded by former Florida Gov. Lawton Chiles, among others, after the Andrew experience.
Some 5,000 Florida National Guard troops, some recently home from Iraq, are expected to be activated by Sunday. Mobilizing at an armory in Tampa, they'll fan out in Humvees over flooded roads to get supplies to areas with the worst damage.
The state has ordered nearly 2-million gallons of bottled water and nearly 3-million pounds of ice, along with shipments of canned food from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
On standby were disaster medical teams, 50 medical professionals with short-term supplies who can be dispatched to affected areas.
The hurricane response is a special challenge to the state because of the high concentration of elderly residents in southwest Florida. The 2000 census reported Charlotte County had the highest percentage of elderly of any county in the country, with 35 percent over 65.
The state was preparing to tap its stockpile of pharmaceutical drugs, or raid supply lines from drug manufacturers, to ensure that enough medicine was available to those in need.
FEMA, the federal disaster relief agency, had 110 people in Florida on Friday and more on the way. Among the equipment on standby:
Forty semitrailer trucks with enough supplies to sustain 1,000 displaced residents, with cots, blankets, meals, water, small generators, portable toilets and one-person tents. One was being driven from Fort Worth, Texas.
Plastic sheeting and other materials that will allow Floridians to shore up homes and businesses until repairs can begin.
Ten flatbed trucks stocked with generators.
A spokeswoman for FEMA, Mary Hudak, said much of the agency's contribution will be helping to fix roads, restore power and make other improvements.
