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What category was hurricane Katrina and what is a category?

Answer:

Hurricane Katrina was a category 5 hurricane at peak strength and a category 3 at landfall near New Orleans. A hurricane category is a strength level for hurricanes based on sustained wind speed that is used to estimate the potential for damage. There are 5 categories for hurricanes as well as two additional levels for storms below hurricane strength.

Sub hurricane levels
Tropical depression: 38 mph or less
Tropical storm: 39-73 mph

Hurricanes:
Category 1: 74-95 mph
Category 2: 96-110 mph
Category 3: 111-130 mph
Category 4: 131-155 mph
Category 5: 156 mph or greater.

First answer by Stormish. Last edit by Stormish. Contributor trust: 535 [recommend contributor ]. Question popularity: 1 [recommend question].

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