[StBernard] levees

[Westley Annis]

ddk,

I believe you stated earlier you were going to be at the Hurricane
conference or at least part of it.  Did you get to voice this information at
that time?  Did any of your colleagues who may have attended?  I can't
believe this info is not getting out.

JLY



	-----------------------------------------------------
	With regards to Wendy's comments about levees failing.
	
	Many experts, including an impartial panel of experts called IPET
for short,
	identified the various failures.
	
	Levee overtopping, meaning if the levees would have been a foot or
two less
	than than the water surge, would have put a few feet of water in St.
	Bernard. However, the wall of water was so high, it scoured the
unarmored
	levees and eroded them such that a gaping hole began and continued
to
	un-ravel. The levee design in St. Bernard Parish was adequate (the
soil
	material was good and it was correctly built unlike the canal levees
in
	Orleans). The problem was not all areas were being funded regularly
to keep
	them maintained to the max. authorized height as per the
Congressional
	mandate after Betsy that we were told we deserved. They were too low
due to
	settlement, due to changes in the National Weather Service's
definition of
	the storm that Congress intended the protection be provided but the
design
	height was never upgraded, due to the change in the elevation levels
	published by the Natonal Geodetic Service that was not used when
made
	available, etc. 
	
	Today, we are told that the correct elevation datum, called
benchmarks, are
	being used; that most, but not all of the MRGO levees are raised
higher than
	the pre-Katrina level so that when they settle they are the right
min.
	height, and the true criteria for the storm we will be protected
against
	(eventually) will be used in the future. 
	
	Despite Donald Powell's assertion on WWL TV and the editorial in the
TP on
	April 9 that states, "Corps officials said last week at the National
	Hurricane Conference in New Orleans that the region's levees and
floodwalls
	are stronger than they were a year ago," it is simply not true.
	
	All levees and floodwalls are not strong-many walls on the IHNC that
didn't
	fall over may be on the verge of tipping over with the next wave of
water;
	the levee west of the Bayou Bienvenue floodgate is not up to El. 17
feet as
	it should be; no armouring has been done to any MRGO levees to
protect
	against scouring again; and the Caenarvon to Verret levee is
woefully lower
	than it should be. This situation is not what the public is being
told by
	people such as Donald Powell and whomever spoke for the COE at the
Hurricane
	Conference. 
	
	The limited pool of money available for bringing flood control to at
least
	the pre-Katrina height and condition is not being spent on these
items for
	St. Bernard and the lower 9th ward because it is going to other
priorities
	in the "region". We are told to wait until the 100 year improvements
are
	built. Do the math. We are at best less than 20,000 people. Other
than the
	refineries, we have no economic significance according to some. The
cost to
	give these 20,000 people at least pre-Katrina protection takes money
away
	from other priorities in the "region" and from the 100 year
protection
	program's budget. I am stated the true facts, the hard reality,
which is
	politically incorrect, but hey, that's the beauty of not being in
politics. 
	
	The truth will come out. Those who are concerned that these feel
good media
	releases will cause loss of life because it gives a false sense of
safety
	will see to it that the truth will prevail. ddk