The History Channel Presents KATRINA: AMERICAN CATASTROPHE

The History Channel Presents KATRINA: AMERICAN CATASTROPHE

Hosted by Bob Woodruff, ABC News

World Premiere on The History Channel(R)

How a Massive Hurricane Tore Apart a Vulnerable City

Monday, September 12, 2005 at 8pm ET/PT

MODERN MARVELS: LAKE PONTCHARTRAIN CAUSEWAY Follows at 9pm ET/PT ISAAC'S STORM at 10pm ET/PT

NEW YORK, Sept. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- New Orleans has long been one of America's most out-of-the-ordinary cities, a key U.S. port and a premiere destination for conventioneers, partygoers, music lovers, and food aficionados. But one of its most remarkable aspects -- a location below sea level in the flood-prone, mosquito-infested Mississippi River Delta -- ultimately made it the site of one of the most horrifying U.S. natural disasters ever: the destruction caused by Hurricane Katrina and the floods and desolation that followed. On Monday, September 12, The History Channel has scheduled an evening of programming on the hurricane and related subjects to provide historical context and offer a fresh perspective on the events.

These programs include the world premiere special, KATRINA: AMERICAN CATASTROPHE at 8pm ET/PT, followed by MODERN MARVELS: LAKE PONTCHARTRAIN CAUSEWAY at 9pm ET/PT and ISAAC'S STORM at 10pm ET/PT. ABC News's Bob Woodruff, who is on the scene in the Gulf Coast, hosts the evening, which will also encourage viewers to contribute to Katrina relief funds.

KATRINA: AMERICAN CATASTROPHE / 8-9pm ET/PT. This World Premiere special on The History Channel explores the history, the science, and the technology behind what happened in the city of New Orleans, and examines the uncertain future that lies ahead.

As Hurricane Katrina lurched menacingly across the Gulf of Mexico and toward New Orleans in the sticky heat of late August, residents of the "The Big Easy" began to dread that the disaster they had long feared was at hand. Knowing the city's unique and dubious layout left it susceptible to major flooding, they fled in droves, but many stayed behind, some by choice, some because they were unable to leave. Initially the outlook was hopeful, as the city was spared a direct hit by the category 4 storm. But when the levees holding back water from nearby Lake Pontchartrain began to break, the catastrophe that many experts had been predicting could happen -- did happen. Three days after Katrina hit, much of New Orleans was underwater.

KATRINA: AMERICAN CATASTROPHE tracks the days leading up to the storm. It looks at the rich history of the city of New Orleans, which was founded in 1718, and complex geology, and the city's key role in the U.S. economy. It explores what can be done in the future to better protect this fragile city and the region. Many leading experts in fields such as engineering, geology, history, economics, meteorology and geography were interviewed for KATRINA: AMERICAN CATASTROPHE to give a complete picture of what happened and why.

Among the topics covered in the special:

* Why New Orleans was built in such a vulnerable location: How it was both highly accessible and tremendously vulnerable ... how the relative high ground and proximity to the mouth of the Mississippi River offered easy access to Lake Pontchartrain and an outlet to the sea and trading routes ... The economic reasons the city was located in that precarious spot

* The delicate geology of the city and surrounding environment ... including information about how the level has been sinking and that even before the recent disaster, the city was losing four acres of marshes per hour ... The role of human activity in adding to the "natural disaster" that took place in New Orleans ... How the city has become even more vulnerable, how it has been losing ground to both natural and manmade incursions

* The history and technology of the levees, which were first built in 1723 ... the fact that some of the pumps the city was still using were quite old and difficult to repair

* The economic issues, including the reasons why the city became such a hub, and what the future ramifications will be, including the economic impact of Katrina on the port of New Orleans, the oil industry, and the effect on the local and national economy

Finally, the special also addresses the questions of why, if the city's positioning left it in such clear danger, were plans apparently not ready to act quickly in the event of disaster.

Susan Werbe is Executive Producer for The History Channel. KATRINA: AMERICAN CATASTROPHE is produced for The History Channel by ABC News Productions.

MODERN MARVELS: THE LAKE PONTCHARTRAIN CAUSEWAY / 9-10pm ET/PT. The History Channel Modern Marvels series goes to the lake whose waters spilled into and destroyed the "Crescent City" in MODERN MARVELS: THE LAKE PONTCHARTRAIN CAUSEWAY. Two 23-mile-long ribbons of concrete span the length of this -- the largest inland body of water in Louisiana -- to form the world's longest automobile bridge. The causeway was originally built in part to serve as a possible evacuation route from New Orleans. Encore Presentation.

ISAAC'S STORM / 10pm-12m ET/PT. The History Channel goes back in time more than 100 years to ISAAC'S STORM, to revisit the legendary category 4 hurricane that leveled Galveston, Texas, in the year 1900, resulting in the deaths of more than 6,000 people. The most devastating hurricane in American history came out of nowhere to annihilate a budding island metropolis, and left the city unrecognizable. The program examines the work of meteorologist Isaac Cline, who had previously declared the island safe from the impact of major storms, showing how his reliance on the science of the time may have left thousands of people in peril on the shores of Texas. Encore Presentation.

Now reaching more than 88 million Nielsen subscribers, The History Channel(R), "Where the Past Comes Alive(R)," brings history to life in a powerful manner and provides an inviting place where people experience history personally and connect their own lives to the great lives and events of the past. In 2004, The History Channel earned five News and Documentary Emmy(R) Awards and previously received the prestigious Governor's Award from the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences for the network's "Save Our History(R)" campaign dedicated to historic preservation and history education. The History Channel web site is located at http://www.historychannel.com/. Press Only: For more information and photography please visit us on the web at http://www.historychannelpress.com/.

Source: The History Channel

CONTACT: Kathie Gordon of The History Channel, +1-212-210-1320, Kathie.gordon@aetn.com

Web site: http://www.historychannel.com/ http://www.historychannelpress.com/

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