New Orleans 64% Smaller

A new report from the Census Bureau documents Hurricane Katrina's effect on demographics throughout the Gulf Coast region.

1 minute read

June 9, 2006, 8:00 AM PDT

By Mike Lydon


"After the twin barrages of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita last year, the City of New Orleans emerged nearly 64 percent smaller, having lost an estimated 278,833 residents, according to the Census Bureau's first study of the area since the storms.

Those who remained in the city were significantly more likely to be white, slightly older and a bit more well-off, the bureau concluded in two reports that were its first effort to measure the social, financial and demographic impact of the hurricanes on the Gulf Coast.

The bureau found that while New Orleans lost about two-thirds of its population, adjacent St. Bernard Parish dropped a full 95 percent, falling to just 3,361 residents by Jan. 1. The surveys do not include the influx in both areas that has occurred this year as more residents begin to rebuild."

Wednesday, June 7, 2006 in The New York Times

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