September 19, 2005

ESSENTIAL FACTS ABOUT THE VICTIMS OF HURRICANE KATRINA
By Arloc Sherman and Isaac Shapiro

PDF of this report

Categories:
All Reports by Date

Budget Priorities After Hurricane Katrina

Poverty and Income

If you cannot access the files through the links, right-click on the underlined text, click "Save Link As," download to your directory, and open the document in Adobe Acrobat Reader.

Many Hurricane Katrina victims faced difficult living conditions even before the storm arrived.  Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama are, respectively, the first, second, and eighth poorest states in the nation. And of the 5.8 million individuals in these states who lived in the areas struck hardest by the hurricane, more than one million lived in poverty prior to the hurricane’s onset.

The information provided below helps explain why relief efforts are so important to Katrina victims.  Many of the storm’s victims have little or no resources on which to rely in these difficult times.

 

Poverty and Income in the Affected States and Counties

Table 1 shows the poverty rate and median household income in Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi.  The table compares the data for these states to the data for other states and the nation. [1]

TABLE 1
Poverty Especially High, and Incomes Especially Low, in States Hit Hardest by Katrina

 

Poverty Rate

Rank

Median Household Income

Rank

Alabama     16.1%

8th Worst

   $36,709

9th Lowest

Louisiana     19.4%

2nd Worst

   $35,110

5th Lowest

Mississippi     21.6%

Worst

   $31,642

2nd Lowest

U.S.      13%*

 

   $44,684

 

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) for 2004.

According to the ACS (which the government uses for ranking states by poverty), the national poverty rate was 13.1 percent in 2004. According to another government survey, the Current Population Survey, it was 12.7 percent.

Using data from the 2000 decennial census, we also calculated the poverty rates for individuals who lived in the areas hit hardest by the hurricane.  These areas —the counties and parishes that have been declared eligible for federal disaster assistance for individuals — include about two-thirds of the population of Louisiana and Mississippi and one-sixth of the population of Alabama.[2]

 

New Orleans — Poverty and Lack of a Vehicle

Of the 5.8 million people living in the areas hit hardest by Katrina, some 1.3 million lived in the New Orleans metropolitan area, with close to one-half million people living in the city of New Orleans itself.  The poverty rate in the city is exceptionally high.  The Census data indicate that more than one in four — 28 percent — of the city’s residents were living in poverty before the hurricane descended upon the city.  Of the 245 large cities in the nation (those with populations of 100,000 or more), New Orleans tied for the sixth poorest in the 2000 census.

Those who were poor in New Orleans commonly lacked their own means of transportation.  Our calculations, based on the Census data, show that more half of the poor households in New Orleans — 54 percent — did not have a car, truck, or van in 2000.  Among the elderly, the proportion was higher.  Sixty-five percent of poor elderly households in New Orleans did not have a vehicle, making it more difficult for them to escape the storm and its effects.

 

African Americans

The Census data also confirm that African Americans made up a disproportionate share of the hurricane’s victims.  About one of every three people who lived in the areas hit hardest by the hurricane were African American.  By contrast, one of every eight people in the nation is African American.

African Americans living in New Orleans were especially likely to be without a vehicle before the hurricane struck.  More than one in three black households in New Orleans (35 percent) — and nearly three in five poor black households (59 percent) — lacked a vehicle.  Among white non-Hispanic households in New Orleans, 15 percent lacked a vehicle.

POPULATION AND POVERTY DATA FOR AREAS AFFECTED BY
HURRICANE KATRINA, FROM THE 2000 CENSUS

 

Source: 2000 census; FEMA designations as of 9-14-05

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Black or African American” includes some individuals who specified more than one race.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Numbers in thousands

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ALL RACES

 

BLACK OR AFRICAN-AMERICAN

 

 

 

 

All Persons

Number Poor

Pct Poor*

Number below 50% of poverty line

 

All Persons

Number Poor

Pct Poor*

Number below 50% of poverty line

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

U.S.

281,422

33,900

12.4%

15,337

 

36,213

8,535

24.7%

4,279

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hardest-hit states: AL,LA,MS

11,761

2,097

18.4%

973

 

3,671

1,208

34.4%

589

 

 

 

Alabama

4,447

698

16.1%

315

 

1,167

350

31.2%

168

 

 

 

Louisiana

4,469

851

19.6%

408

 

1,462

511

36.6%

256

 

 

 

Mississippi

2,845

548

19.9%

250

 

1,042

348

34.9%

165

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Federal disaster areas:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Counties eligible for

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Any FEMA assistance**

14,194

2,417

17.5%

1,124

 

4,065

1,278

32.7%

624

 

 

 

Alabama

1,877

307

16.7%

142

 

588

179

31.2%

86

 

 

 

Florida

5,003

711

14.5%

324

 

973

241

25.6%

117

 

 

 

Louisiana

4,469

851

19.6%

408

 

1,462

511

36.6%

256

 

 

 

Mississippi

2,845

548

19.9%

250

 

1,042

348

34.9%

165

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hardest hit-counties: eligible

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

for aid to individuals

5,780

1,043

18.6%

493

 

1,909

625

34.0%

305

 

 

 

Alabama

771

130

17.2%

60

 

231

75

33.5%

35

 

 

 

Florida

0

0

0.0%

0

 

0

0

0.0%

0

 

 

 

Louisiana

3,110

559

18.4%

272

 

998

331

34.5%

167

 

 

 

Mississippi

1,899

355

19.3%

161

 

680

219

33.6%

103

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

New Orleans
metropolitan area

1,317

237

18.3%

120

 

496

159

32.9%

83

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

New Orleans city

485

131

27.9%

70

 

328

111

34.9%

59

 

 

 

* Percentage poor equals column 2 divided by the population for whom poverty status is determined. 

This may not equal column 2 divided by column 1.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

** Includes counties eligible for assistance to individuals as well as a broader group of counties eligible only for assistance to public agencies. For Louisiana and Mississippi, this includes all counties in the state. For Alabama and Florida, only selected counties are included.

 


End Notes:

[1] These comparisons are based on the latest available survey data (for 2004).  Much of the rest of this analysis relies on earlier 2000 census data, which are available with greater geographic detail.  In the 2000 census data, Alabama is ranked the fifth poorest state, while the ranks for Mississippi and Louisiana do not change.  These state ranks exclude the District of Columbia.

[2] In addition to these hardest-hit counties, the table also shows data for a broader list of counties.  The broader list includes counties that are part of the federal disaster area, and are eligible for FEMA assistance to public agencies, but may not be eligible for FEMA assistance to individuals.   In this broader list of counties, the combined population was 14.2 million and 2.4 million people were poor.

On the other hand, it should also be noted that the number of housing units that are irreparably damaged or need substantial rehabilitation is fewer than the number living in counties eligible for individual assistance.