Posted on 09/01/2005 8:10:33 PM PDT by andie74
WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said Thursday that a lack of funding for hurricane-protection projects around New Orleans did not contribute to the disastrous flooding that followed Hurricane Katrina.
In a telephone interview with reporters, corps officials said that although portions of the flood-protection levees remain incomplete, the levees near Lake Pontchartrain that gave way--inundating much of the city--were completed and in good condition before the hurricane.
However, they noted that the levees were designed for a Category 3 hurricane and couldn't handle the ferocious winds and raging waters from Hurricane Katrina, which was a Category 4 storm when it hit the coastline. The decision to build levees for a Category 3 hurricane was made decades ago based on a cost-benefit analysis.
"I don't see that the level of funding was really a contributing factor in this case," said Lt. Gen. Carl Strock, chief of engineers for the corps. "Had this project been fully complete, it is my opinion that based on the intensity of this storm that the flooding of the business district and the French Quarter would have still taken place."
(Excerpt) Read more at chicagotribune.com ...
Not exactly what I had heard reported. Still interesting.
Are you speaking of the budget cuts for the corps?
I wonder if...being below SEA level has anything to do with it??hmnnn??
Much easier for the MSM to get a RAT politician on the air since 1) they are RATs too and 2) they aren't doing anything. Don't expect this guy to make too many appearances since, at the very least, he will be out doing his job.
Arse-be-covern.
Responding to this Nonsense claim only validates it...like that idiot media whore Cindy...
No Response...other than: "People are dying right now and that is our first concern. Save your politics for another day...perhaps next week if you can contain yourself that long. Next Question Please"
Dig a hole and it will fill up with water.
Yes.
It is soooo much fun watching politicians from Lousy-ana, whose greed and corruption finally bit 'em, and the LameStream chattering class idiot children, trying to second guess the engineers at the Army Corps of Engineeers.
When those who have never even lifted a shovel start criticising those who literally move mountains for a living I think "Bring out the popcorn, it's show time!"
The Liberals, and the rest of the "Communism Lite" crowd, will conveniently forget that they were all for "saving money" and thus only authorizing levees for catagory 3 hurricanes.
Real butter on that popcorn, please!
I hope you all get a chance to read this.
Yea, but Bush still sucks.
If you go down the list of objectives in building a city in the first place...New Orleans in present day...really fails to meet most objectives. You never build below sealevel unless you have a fantastic seawall...like Amsterdam. You prepare for the worst possible crisis and settle for nothing less. To fix New Orleans...it will likely run into the billions and you have to ask if this is the right thing to do for people who just assumed you would take care of them. What of New York and its subway structure or the Golden Gate bridge which will one day require replacement? Our infrastructure has become holy...but we simply aren't prepared for the costs involved.
Xacly!
Well I guess now we've learned the hard way to do it right.
Rebuild it to withstand the worst case Category 5.
At least now that the adjacent property is probably already condemned,
there shouldn't be any difficulty acquiring it to both widen and heighten the levees.
I would have thought some self-respecting terrorist group would claim responsibility for the flooding by now. The left's Bush bashing is probably too good to spoil, tho.
(Denny Crane: "Sometimes you can only look for answers from God and failing that... and Fox News".)
And its getting funnier by the moment.
Am I right in that, or have these been anomalies?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.