KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — Friday marks 20 years since Hurricane Katrina struck the coast of the southern United States.

While it has been two decades since Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans and the coasts of Mississippi and Alabama, for survivors who lived through the storm, it can still feel like just yesterday. An estimated 1,800 people were killed in Hurricane Katrina and the flooding that followed, according to the George W. Bush Library. Millions more were left homeless along the Gulf Coast and in New Orleans, as the hurricane caused more than $161 billion in damage.

Although East Tennessee wasn't directly impacted by the hurricane, WATE and the community rallied with the volunteer spirit to help raise funds and supplies for those who lost everything and pitched in on refugee

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