There were two breaches, both in the same levee. One by surge action, one by loose barge.
Posted on 09/20/2005 11:38:42 PM PDT by CobaltBlue
Louisiana's top hurricane experts have rejected the official explanations for the floodwall collapses that inundated much of New Orleans, concluding that Hurricane Katrina's storm surges were much smaller than authorities have suggested and that the city's flood- protection system should have kept most of the city dry.
With the help of computer models and visual evidence, scientists at Louisiana State University's Hurricane Center have concluded that Katrina's surges did not come close to overtopping those barriers.
* * * * Ivor van Heerden, the Hurricane Center's deputy director, said the real scandal of Katrina is the "catastrophic structural failure" of barriers that should have handled the hurricane with relative ease.
"We are absolutely convinced that those floodwalls were never overtopped," said van Heerden. * * * * Tuesday, researchers showed numerous indications that Katrina's surge was not as tall as the lakefront's protections. They showed a "debris line" that indicates the top height of Katrina's waves was at least four feet below the crest of Lake Pontchartrain's levees. They also pointed out how the breached floodwalls near the lake showed no signs of overtopping -- no splattering of mud, no drip lines and no erosion at their bases. They contended that the pattern of destruction behind the breaches was consistent with a localized "pressure burst," rather than widespread overtopping.
Their model indicates that most of the surge around the lake and its nearby canals was less than 11 feet above sea level, and that none of it should have been greater than 13 feet. The Army Corps's flood-protection system for New Orleans was designed to handle surges of more than 14 feet above sea level.
"This should not have been a big deal for these floodwalls," said oceanographer G. Paul Kemp. There's no way this should have exceeded the capacity."
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
I would be curious in the outcome of that lawsuit as to who the winner is and who the loser is. ; )
I know. I like addressing in the third person sometimes. Anyway I can barely resist posting lawyer jokes. They're such an easy target.
When a lawyer gets pious I just break out laughing.
Oh, My Cousin Vinny. Good movie.
Yeah, I am definitely no Joe Pesci!
Oh, I get it now; everybody's at fault -- except, of course, THE CURRENT CLIENT, right?
Man, as far as I can tell after reading that rant, I might be sued by Cobalt because I might have known that stuff and never did anything about it.
And this one is not helping that reputation.
The government is suing itself, we the people.
By paying an estimated 200 billion for "recovery" they are suing the taxpayer. The taxpayer pays the bill not the Fed. The Fed is never "punished" as a result of a judgment. It is me, the taxpayer, who takes the hit who had no say in the situation to begin with.
You just want to soak the taxpayer some more for your own personal gain - apparently.
And lastly, if you don't like the work the Fed did on the levee system I have a great idea. Let the locals build their own levee system at their own expense and then they'll know who's responsible when it fails. Otherwise, if you want to live at the expense of others then too freaken bad.
I recall back in '87 that their prices on domestic beer were fairly reasonable.
You shouldn't have passed it.....
See there, you proved my point; even when you're wrong, you just resort to petty personal attacks to try to puff yourself up.
The very reason I left: lawyers trying to get "something" for people who don't deserve anything.
Sure 'nuff--some of it's a lot like reading a John Edwards' blog...
And they are certainly not ashamed to take it.
And you don't seem to be ashamed of taking a percentage so large that, had it been loan, would be considered usury.
When you take 10% or less of every case you win, come back and brag. Until then, you're just another one of the reasons why people hate lawyers.
And let's not hear any of that crap about how people hate them, but they really love them, because when they need one, they hire one.
Pure, unadulterated BS. When I need to take a dump, I use a toilet. But I don't love a toilet either.
Where do I sign THAT petition?
Well, that's why I asked the question about channeling!
The alternative to suing the government when it is negligent, is letting them get away with it.
This leads to lack of personal responsibility, more negligence, and corruption.
Everybody knows this. This is why Congress has enacted laws which allow lawsuits in the event of negligence.
There's no free lunch.
My job is to make the system work by keeping it honest.
The alternative is places like Iraq, where the government just stole $1 billion, and the UN, where more billions were stolen.
If you can think of a better form of government, have at it.
In the meantime, this is the one we've got, and I think it works pretty well.
There were two breaches, both in the same levee. One by surge action, one by loose barge.
A third?
Must be an "ankle biter"! ; )
Only in an alternate universe I'm afraid...
And what if one of the entities doesn't like the outcome? Will yet another "party" emerge to handle the appeal? :-)
You attack me, but I can't say anything back?
What are you smoking?
I'm giving official notice right here and now:
I'm stealing that line.
LOL
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