# Katrina factoid **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 4, 2005, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-factoid/320051 "2005-09-04T15:59:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-factoid/320051/1 "2005-09-04T15:59:42Z")
Last night on CNN I saw a factoid on the ticker: Katrina has affected over 90,000 square miles, an area larger than Great Britain. One site I found lists the UK as being over 94,000 sq. miles. I wonder what they mean ‘affected’? Devastation? Or just relatively normal flooding? ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-factoid/320051/2 "2005-09-04T18:07:35Z")
If just the power was knocked out, I’d say that’s an effect. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-factoid/320051/3 "2005-09-04T21:44:43Z")
The population of GB is I think around 60 million. So, if as a result of Katrina 60 million people were without power, or 60 million people had been flooded out of their homes, that would be pretty significant. That would be almost 1/4 of the US. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-factoid/320051/4 "2005-09-04T21:45:51Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > The population of GB is I think around 60 million. So, if as a result of Katrina 60 million people were without power, or 60 million people had been flooded out of their homes, that would be pretty significant. That would be almost 1/4 of the US. I believe the ticker-writer was referring to area, not population. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-factoid/320051/5 "2005-09-04T22:12:33Z")
I know that. I also know Katrina left an estimated 5 million people without power. Is 5 million people roughly the population of Great Britain? I’m just pointing out my own factoid, is all. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-factoid/320051/6 "2005-09-04T23:36:55Z")
CIA World Factbook on the UK [http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/uk.html](http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/uk.html) > [@](#): > > People United Kingdom > > Population: > 60,441,457 (July 2005 est.) > [@](#): > > Area: > total: 244,820 sq km > land: 241,590 sq km > water: 3,230 sq km > note: includes Rockall and Shetland Islands > Area - comparative: > slightly smaller than Oregon ---
**Author:** ![Kiminy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Kiminy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kiminy)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2005, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-factoid/320051/7 "2005-09-05T00:42:02Z")
I heard this factoid too–I think from W’s speech yesterday–but it definitely referred to square miles of affected area, rather than to population. Further research yields [this story](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4211464.stm) from the BBC, which includes this quote: > [@](#): > > Mr Goodhand - head of logistics at the British Red Cross - said he would be working on establishing aid supply lines. > > He said: "From what we have seen on TV, the scenes of devastation are far worse than we envisaged. > > “It appears an area about the size of Great Britain has been hit, which is much more than could have been anticipated in the first few hours.” I also found [this article](http://msnbc.msn.com/id/9159053/), which includes: > [@](#): > > **Huge disaster zone** > With federal disaster declarations covering 90,000 square miles of the Gulf area — an area roughly the size of Great Britain — the scope of the devastation and the federal government’s response to it are unprecedented, White House spokesman Scott McLellan said at Thursday press conference. I think it’s important to remember that most areas of the United States have considerably fewer people per square mile than most areas of Europe do.