Engineers Say a Key Levee Won't Be Set for Months

By MATTHEW L. WALD for nyt
Published: September 14, 2005


WASHINGTON, Sept. 13 - Hurricane Katrina washed away a 17-foot-tall earthen levee that had protected St. Bernard Parish, east of New Orleans, from the waters of a shipping canal, and the Army Corps of Engineers said Tuesday that the ravaged parish would be left defenseless against even small storms at least until early next year because replacing the structure would take months.

In a conference call with reporters, Col. Duane P. Gapinski of the corps acknowledged that the levee might not be rebuilt even by the start of next year's hurricane season.

On the other hand, Colonel Gapinski and other corps officials said, at this point there is little for the levee to protect. "St. Bernard Parish is complete destruction," he said.

Local authorities have ordered the parish evacuated and have said no one will be allowed to return for four months.

"It's going to take longer than four months to rebuild that levee, a lot longer than four months," even to restore it to the level of protection it afforded before the hurricane, Colonel Gapinski said. "But it's going to take a lot longer than four months to rebuild St. Bernard Parish."

The parish, which unlike New Orleans lies above sea level, was protected by the levee from the Mississippi River-Gulf Outlet, a canal built by the corps that is now a subject of scrutiny. Completion of the canal four decades ago allowed saltwater intrusion that, the corps acknowledges, was a factor in the death of marshes that once helped protect the city from storm surges. Some experts say the canal may also have provided an express lane for the Aug. 29 surge to reach populated areas.

Corps officials report progress in pumping out floodwaters from New Orleans and adjacent areas. The city is now 50 percent inundated, they said Tuesday, from a high of 80 percent, with 27 permanent pumps and 46 temporary pumps moving a daily total of seven billion to eight billion gallons.

The corps on Tuesday stuck to its estimate of "dewatering" the main part of New Orleans by Oct. 2, and the East New Orleans section and St. Bernard Parish - barring new flooding - by Oct. 8. Plaquemines Parish will be dry by Oct. 18, the corps said.

Officials also reported that the Mississippi River was now open to deep-draft navigation along its entire length, although a small part of the southern end is limited to daylight transit because some aids to navigation have not yet been replaced.
- bill 9-14-2005 4:32 pm [add a comment]

bayou buzz Katrina Update: Jefferson Parish, New Orleans, St.Bernard, St. Tammany Katrina Author: Steve Sabludowsky | 9/13/2005 :

Earlier reports in the media that New Orleans businesses can get passes to return were issued by mistake. That process does not exist yet. He’s waiting on a report from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) before he will make a decision on people returning, and he expects that report in the next two days.

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St. Bernard Parish had a public meeting today at the Capitol in Baton Rouge. Thousands of people showed up to listen to their leaders and express their concerns. The Parish received severe damage from the storm. Estimates are that 30,000 homes were lost. Most of the water has receded, but officials estimate it would take 4 more months to clean up the Parish. Soil samples were taken to determine toxic levels and should be ready tomorrow. Once that is evaluated a timetable will be established for residents to return and check on their property. Arabi and Upper Chalmette will likely be among the first neighborhoods to be allowed back, with other areas being allowed back based upon safe environmental levels. There will be more details on this in the coming weeks.

The positive signs included an announcement that all parish streets should be clear of water and debris by the weekend and that toxicology testing had uncovered no signs of infectious diseases in the water still draining from a few areas. But keeping their perspective in check, officials say they still believe that structures in 70-80 percent of the parish may have to be razed.