Levee overtopped in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana

[qanda]

Last edited Wed Aug 29, 2012, 05:38 AM - Edit history (2)

Source: CNN

[Updated 5:26 a.m. ET] Billy Nungesser, Plaquemines Parish president, told CNN what happens when a levee is overtopped:

"As that water flows over the top, it eventually will eat out portions of that levee, which then it washes away.

"Either that or the inside of the levee will fill up.

"One or the other will happen. Either way that area’s going to be totally inundated with water."

Read more: http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2012/08/29/isaac-drenches-gulf-coast/

---

This is from the CNN blog because they still don't have a full story up about this yet.

[lonestarnot]

1. Oh man.

People haven't been totally evacuated from there yet.

[revolution breeze]

19. A mandatory evacuation was ordered for Plaquemines Parish Monday n/t

[dipsydoodle]

2. ISAAC BEGINNING TO MOVE INLAND IN SOUTHEAST LOUISIANA

http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/ that's @ 10.11am BST / 05.11am your time there in the vicinity.

[Firebrand Gary]

3. Let's hope it starts to shut down now that its on land.

Although, I think the rainfall is the biggest concern right now.

[Gabby Hayes]

6. The "Discussion" section at the Hurricane Center site is getting tense

Earlier this evening an officer with the Corps of Engineers called Nungesser to reassure him the levees would hold. About 30-45 minutes later the roof was blown off Nungesser's home.

National Weather Service Radio is broadcasting the latest updates, but here's all the info on curfews, road closures, etc. from the Weather Channel site. It is extensive.

http://www.weather.com/news/weather-hurricanes/gulf-coast-states-prepare-20120827

Good luck, Billy, and everyone else in Isaac's way.

[leveymg]

4. GoogleEarth shows some sort of large fuel storage complex right at that location. Braithwaite.

Not good.

[dixiegrrrrl]

14. That huge sinkhole is close to the Gulf, also.

I am really curious about the effect of the storm on it.

[PeacePal]

5. Here's NOLA local coverage link

Here's a link: http://www.wwltv.com/news/local/Plaquemines-Parish-levees-overtopped-near-Braithwaite-167805265.html

[boppers]

7. I live waay inland, 185 feet above sea level.

Why are we supporting a dangerous way of life?

Are there benefits to supporting those who live life in this danger?

[glowing]

8. Because we r Americans and we are in it together

Its where people live that fish and go out onto oil rigs... If u have a forest fire, crop failures, tornados, ice storm, or earthquake, no one asks why we are supporting you.

When FL is hit, no one asks why we support FL? Its always asked about LA and New Orleans... And I can only think it's due to the dog whistles about the poor black people there...

If money was spent fixing levees and making sure the pumps were operating to level 5 standards instead of war in Afghanistan or Iraq or wealthy people like Mitt paid their fair share of taxes; no one would worry about money. Your few pennies of contribution to FEMA isn't all that much in the grand economic budget the congress throws together.

[spinbaby]

9. I'm not sure but...

...I think that post might have been missing a sarcasm tag. At least I hope so.

[boppers]

21. Nope.

I'd ask the same about people living on the rim of a volcano.

[Bacchus4.0]

10. haven't we been pumping money into NO since Katrina, and now we have a levy that was overtopped

in 1993 the Mississipi River flooded and the government provided rebuilding the houses lost provided it was out of the flood zone. A wise policy. Now we have once again flooding in NO. Just because poor people live there doesn't mean its a good idea to keep them there.

[dixiegrrrrl]

15. You need to do your homework about who lives in the levee protected areas.

After Katrina, New Orleans city began a program of tearing down the New Deal era housing projects. The projects were brick highrises, and had come thru the storm ok, but since everyone was mandatory evacuated, the highrise people had to leave the city.They were mostly black and poor.
Right after the storm, the city boarded up the high rise housing projects, with people's possessions still inside, and folks were not allowed back in.
Then the city tore down the highrise housing and built. via a government and private sector partnership, new housing, in what they call a mixed income area, where 1/3 housing is for high income, 1/3 for medium income and 1/3 for low income.
In the lower 9th ward where a lot of the poor people lived, many people have not been able to return and their houses have been torn down.But "gentrification" is happening in those "poor" areas now, where wealthier people are buying lots and building homes, and of course driving up housing prices.
another word for the gentrification is "ethnic cleansing"

So, now that the "poor" areas have become upscaled, is it all right to let the richer people live there????

Here are some links.
New Orleans after Katrina: The ethnic cleansing of a ‘Chocolate City’
http://michigancitizen.com/new-orleans-after-katrina-the-ethnic-cleansing-of-a-chocolate-city-p8978-76.htm

New Orleans' post-Katrina gentrification is touchy
http://www.newstimes.com/news/article/New-Orleans-post-Katrina-gentrification-is-touchy-3819855.php

7 years after Katrina, New Orleans sees gentrification spreading into old neighborhoods
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/7-years-after-katrina-new-orleans-sees-gentrification-spreading-into-old-neighborhoods/2012/08/28/37c97db8-f0e5-11e1-b74c-84ed55e0300b_story.html
http://michigancitizen.com/new-orleans-after-katrina-the-ethnic-cleansing-of-a-chocolate-city-p8978-76.htm

[Bacchus4.0]

20. gentrification, ethnic cleansing, and integration. maybe you can differentiate those for me

First of all if the lower 9th ward was abandoned and no-one was living there, then how can it be gentrification? or ethnic cleansing? no-one was there anymore.

However, my post had nothing to do with socioeconomic or ethnic factors but everything to do with NO and its geographic and physical location on the landscape and its susceptibility to extreme weather events. No matter the historical nature of the city, continuing to place people in a flood zone is very poor public policy. No matter if the areas are now being populated by wealthy people, those areas still require utilities and public services that continuously have to be reestablished after a climatic event and that is just plain stupid.

Add to that overall global warming, and this will just happen more frequently. Adaptation to climate change takes action. And I am not talking about signing treaties and hoping world governments comply with the belief that in 50 years from now things won't be any worse. I am talking about constructing and relocating communities so they are not susceptible to inevitability.

[revolution breeze]

18. Braithwwaite is a very rural area outside of New Orleans

They actually did not flood during Katrina but with the addition of new levees, water was actually pushed into areas that escaped Katrina.

[snooper2]

13. We don't all support Florida, I think everyone there should be re-located to OK

and we just cut that portion of the country off and give it for free to Cuba..just let it float over there LOL...It's going to be underwater in 75 years anyway, cut our losses now.





Plus it fucks up the shape of the country, we like nice smooth lines these days..

[Baclava]

11. keep an axe in your attic?

[Yavin4]

12. Harry Shearer Warned Us

Here's a link to Levees.org:

http://levees.org/mission-and-goals-of-levees-org/

[dixiegrrrrl]

16. Yavin, thank you for that link.

Important work they are doing.

I don't get how humans fail to understand the dire consequents of ravaging the planet.

[Yavin4]

17. Harry Also Made a Fantastic Documentary About the Levees

We take basic infrastructure for granted because the Republicans have created this illusion in people's minds that their tax dollars go to welfare recipients and nothing else. So, the people vote to starve their government of funds to help maintain and build our crumbling infrastructure.