The Superdome & Convention Center
Possibly the largest humanitarian crisis to occur during the Katrina disaster was the drama that unfolded at the Superdome and Convention Center. Crowds swelling to more than 25,000 evacuees poured into both facilities in the days after the hurricane, seeking shelter and a means of evacuating from the stricken city. Supplies and relief troops were slow to arrive and it was not until September 2, a full 5 days after the hurricane, that buses arrived to evacuate survivors out of the squalor and anarchy that both locations had descended into.
August 29
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The above photos show the Superdome with its damaged roof as it appeared just after the hurricane on August 29.
August 31
Hurricane survivors make their way through floodwaters toward the Superdome on August 31.
September 1
This aerial view, taken on September 1, shows the damaged Superdome sitting in the floodwaters, and the massive crowds of hurricane survivors that have gathered out front, waiting to be evacuated.
| This photo, taken inside the Superdome on September 1, shows sunlight streaming in through holes in the roof and storm survivors camping out on the football field while waiting for help to arrive. | 
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| Thousands of people also gathered at the Convention Center. The Convention Center had never been intended to be used as a shelter and was not stocked with any relief supplies. Somehow, survivors on the streets heard rumors that people were supposed to gather at the Convention Center to be evacuated from the city. Emergency officials were unprepared for the huge crowd that gathered there and relief took nearly 5 days to arrive. | =
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September 2
| More than 25,000 people had gathered at the Superdome by September 2. The shelter had no electricity, food or water. | 
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The military finally arrived at the Convention Center on September 2 with relief supplies of food and water.
September 3
| By September 3, buses were finally evacuating storm survivors from the squalor of the Convention Center, taking most of them to shelters in Houston, Texas. | 
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September 9
This photo taken inside the abandoned Superdome on September 9 shows the trash and debris left behind by the evacuees.
September 10
| A worker cleans up the mountains of trash and debris left behind at the abandoned Convention Center on September 10. | 
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