Bracing for Gustav

During Katrina communication was a problem. How are you coordinating with other agencies?
We are having multiple conference calls daily with the other levee districts, DOTD [Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development] and the Army Corps of Engineers. Also we have our police at the EOC [New Orleans Emergency Operations Center].

What will prevent the problems that happened from Hurricane Katrina?
We are better than before Katrina--we've raised the levees and strengthened or replaced the floodwalls. That should help prevent what happened before but we are not at the 300- or 500-year flood mark. When we have a surge buffer on the Chef Menteur and Rigolets passes [the passes between Lake Borgne and Lake Pontchartrain], that structure will give us 500-year flood protection.

Could you please explain the mechanics of the drainage and pumping stations?
It's simple. Whatever falls inside the floodwalls is pumped into the lake or another body of water, through the canals. I'm not sure of the rate but the pumps start pumping a number of inches an hour and the rate slows some as they keep pumping.

Can the floodwalls and gates prevent flooding from a storm surge? How well should the current levee system be able to handle a Category 3 or Cat 4 storm?
A Cat 4 storm from the right direction could cause the surge to overtop the walls. A Cat 5 from another direction may not. There are so many variables to consider. The Corps of Engineers have been running models for days but all we can do is close the flood gates. There are no low spots in the levee so we are going to hunker down and wait for it to pass and then open the floodgates and start inspecting.

Do you expect flooding?
The way it looks now, we don't expect any. Last time, the surge caused the damage. This time it looks like rain will cause any flooding, not overtopping the levees.

What role will tides play?
Lake Pontchartrain has some tide swing but Monday we will be in a 'switching' tide. The tides vary from three-tenths to 2 feet. On Monday we will be in the low tide range so that should absorb a lot of the rain.