20 Years After Hurricane Katrina, An Uneven Recovery And New Beginnings

GRAND ISLE, LOUISIANA - AUGUST 7: Waves wash ashore along the beach on August 7, 2025 in Grand Isle, Louisiana. Vegetation increases the stability of sand dunes which are critical in protecting Grand Isle from storm surges. New Orleans and the Gulf Coast region are preparing to mark the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, which made its second U.S. landfall on August 29, 2005 near Grand Isle and wreaked widespread damage to Louisiana’s only inhabited barrier island. In 2021, on the 16th anniversary of Katrina, Hurricane Ida delivered catastrophic damage to Grand Isle and nearby Port Fourchon. Katrina resulted in nearly 1,400 deaths, according to revised statistics from the National Hurricane Center, and remains the costliest storm in U.S. history at around $200 billion in today’s dollars. (Footage by Mario Tama/Getty Images)