Despite Warnings, Washington Failed to Fund Levee Projects

L.A. Slimes via Yahoo ^ | Sept. | Richard A. Serrano and Nicole Gaouette

[COEXERJ145]

WASHINGTON — For years, Washington had been warned that doom lurked just beyond the levees. And for years, the White House and Congress had dickered over how much money to put into shoring up century-old dikes and carrying out newer flood control projects to protect the city of New Orleans.

As recently as three months ago, the alarms were sounding — and being brushed aside.

In late May, the New Orleans district of the Army Corps of Engineers formally notified Washington that hurricane storm surges could knock out two of the big pumping stations that must operate night and day even under normal conditions to keep the city dry.

[COEXERJ145]

Yahoo has this on their front page as "White House failed to fund levee projects".

The media has their orders from the DNC and they are to blame Bush for the disaster.

[denydenydeny]

So what if the money budgeted for levees went to build casinos. It's still Bush's fault.

[faithincowboys]

Unbelievable. The media is amazing.

[Rodney King]

And these levee projects were going to increase the levee protection from Cat 3 to Cat 4 or 5? If not, then how is this relevent?

[smonk]

is there even such a thing as cat-5 hurricane proof levees?

[xkaydet65]

Did they mention that the two breaks in the levee system were in refurbished and rebuilt sections? The old earthen levees held firm, but the new concrete structure folded like a cheap suitcase. Anyone want to investigate the bidding process in the construction?

[mewzilla]

Were NO/LA willing to cough up their share for the projects...?

[dfwgator]

So let me get this straight. They say "for years". Can we assume those included the years 1993-2001?

[msnimje]

How is it the Levee Board in New Orleans had enough money to purchase a PRIVATE AIRPLANE and a CASINO on the Mississippi River????

[KJC1]

The onslaught continues.

Oversimplifications and omissions and distortions and misdirections and misappropriations of accountability and revisions. What a big surprise.

[T. Buzzard Trueblood]

Anyone want to investigate the bidding process in the construction?

Wondering about that myself...

[TXBSAFH]

What stopped the NO city and LA sate governments from funding these improvements?

[MarkeyD]

I've been thinking the same thing. The company that constructed the levees are probably the same company that does road construction in Chicago.

[Venerable Bede]

Despite Warnings, Local Governments Failed to Implement Levee Projects.

[MarkeyD]

They had to spend the money on advertising NO as a tourist destination.

[Ursus arctos horribilis]

Uh huh, sure. And the NO mayor and crooked city council took money from the levee fund to build two casinos????

[BenLurkin]

You mean the decade of greed?

[DJ MacWoW]

is there even such a thing as cat-5 hurricane proof levees?

Corps Officials Say New Orleans' Flood Walls Were in Good Condition
Al Naomi, senior project manager in the Corps' New Orleans District, says, "The [project's] design was not adequate for a storm of this nature." He adds that to cover a Category 5 storm, work on storm protection improvements would have had to start 20 or 25 years ago.

[Ursus arctos horribilis]

And a terr perp crashing a Piper Cub into this section of levee could do the same thing.

[whershey]

I don't worry about it. Nobody reads this garbage anyhow.