It may be many weeks until all the water is removed from New Orleans. Before all the vital pumping stations can be reactivated, the city swamped by Hurricane Katrina has to be drained and its floodwalls and levees (embankments) repaired. Much of it was under 2.4 metres (8 feet) of water this week though the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) said the level seemed to be stabilising on Friday. The weather will largely dictate the speed of work and the hurricane season is predicted to run into October. Whether patching up a breached floodwall to keep water out or...