Re: OT: followup on New Orleans - disgraceful



dagmargoodboat@xxxxxxxxx wrote: 
John Larkin wrote:
[...]

There were three levee breaks, two of them on the same levee on the
Industrial Canal, about a half mile apart. The breaks were not caused
directly by the hurricane, but indirectly by moderately high water in
the lake, well below the tops of the levees. Whoever was in charge of
maintaining those levees should be shot, or maybe drowned.


John 


  Yesterday: I heard a Corps of Engineers guy guess that, on
investigation, the levee failure(s) will be attributed to "maritime
collision."

  Evidence?  Stranded barges, said he, cast about by the storm.
Looking at the Bellaire pictures (thanks John), I don't see 'em
though.

Nah- he is talking about big tankers "nosing" up against the levee walls while waiting in line to go through the locks. This practice apparently weakened the structure- specifically on that Industrial Canal which links the Mississippi river with the inland waterways.- reducing its capacity for high water. The Army Corps of Engineers knew about that problem, and they also knew about the levees sinking over time. If they are a tapered base then that alone reduces their capacity.

.

Relevant Pages

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