Based in Hattiesburg, MS, Dr. Mark Klinedinst joined the University of Southern Mississippi in 1986 and continues to teach and conduct research at the institution as an emeritus professor of economics. Beyond his academic work, Dr. Mark Klinedinst has published the book Katrina: Ten Years After, which examines the devastation left in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.

The economic impact of Hurricane Katrina can be hard to fathom. With more than 1,800 lives lost during the storm, Hurricane Katrina leveled the Gulf Coast, doing an estimated $161 billion in damages. In fact, the $40 billion in insured losses alone nearly doubled the total damage done by Hurricane Andrew in 1992, which was previously the costliest hurricane in American history. The hurricane is not only one of the most destructive natural disasters the United States has ever seen, but also it’s the single most costly hurricane the country has experienced. The city of New Orleans was hit hardest, with 80 percent of the city flooding at the height of the storm.

Of course, raw damage is only one means of measuring the economic impact of a natural disaster like Katrina. For example, the storm destroyed over 200,000 homes, more than any other natural disaster in America. The loss of these homes drove thousands of business leaders, consumers, and laborers from the region, all while the state deemed 18 percent of local businesses to be unsalvageable due to damages. New Orleans employment rates fell by 30 percent between August and December of 2005, with the state losing 214,000 jobs, 12 percent of the state’s total.