Billions spent to upgrade New Orleans’ hurricane defenses in 20 years since Katrina
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers spent $15 billion on improved levees and flood walls following the 2005 disaster
NEW ORLEANS, La. (InvestigateTV) — Twenty years after Hurricane Katrina made landfall in southeast Louisiana as a Category 3 storm, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has spent billions of dollars to upgrade the safeguards that failed catastrophically in 2005.
The National Weather Service reported that nearly 1,400 people died in Katrina, making it one of the deadliest hurricanes to hit the United States. It was also the costliest hurricane in history, with $125 billion in damage.
Floodwater inundated 80 percent of the city after the levees failed.
Engineering failures revealed
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers tested New Orleans’ levees in the 1990s but failed to recognize the flimsy nature of the soil beneath them. The problems date back to the 1800s, when some of the earliest levees were small mounds using whatever material was available.
“So, they put reasonable material on top of whatever was there from the late 1800s and built what looked like a levee,” H.J. Bosworth, a civil engineer, said.
Along the canals draining into Lake Pontchartrain, sheet pilings driven into the earth were too short.
“When the water came up, the water went through the unsuitable material, which was deep beneath the earth, put pressure against the canal or the levee, and the levee slid toward people’s houses and broke into pieces,” Bosworth said.
$15 billion in improvements
In the aftermath, the Corps spent nearly $15 billion installing 150 miles of improved levees and flood walls.
The most prominent feature is what locals nicknamed “The Great Wall,” a two-mile-long, 26-foot-high surge barrier built in marsh conditions with piles driven hundreds of feet into the earth.
“It’s a whole different world than what it was when Hurricane Katrina hit,” said Chris Dunn, chief of the engineering division of the Corps’ New Orleans district.
“Surge was able to penetrate deep into the city,” he said.
The Corps also built the world’s largest pumping station, which can divert water from the Intracoastal Waterway during tropical events. The goal is to provide 100-year storm protection or to guard against a storm with a 1 percent chance of striking in any given year.
Ongoing challenges and progress
Twenty years later, New Orleans remains a better-protected city, but many pre-Katrina problems persist. The city copes with aging infrastructure, including water pipes that are more than a century old. In the last five years, the population shrank by more than 20,000 people.
Across South Louisiana, homeowners confront escalating insurance rates following other hurricanes.
Progress has been made on other fronts.
Long one of America’s murder capitals, violent crime is falling, with the homicide rate at a 50-year low. The tourism industry is thriving.
Cafe Du Monde was the first major tourist attraction to reopen following Katrina, 53 days after the storm.
“The discussion was how fast can we do it. It was never about whether we do it or not,” Jay Roman, the owner, said.
Future protection plans
Officials don’t plan on stopping with current improvements.
In December 2024, Congress authorized the Army Corps of Engineers to look at providing a 200-year level of protection. The Corps is now analyzing the costs versus the benefits.
In New Orleans’ Lakeview neighborhood, which was heavily flooded during Katrina, businesses like the Main Squeeze smoothie store represent recovery.
“Made a statement, made a bold statement that we are here. We are here for you,” co-owner Dr. Brittany Adams said. “It’s vibrant. It’s moving. It’s very popular now.”
Sandy Rosenthal, who founded Levees.org to keep the full story of the levees in the nation’s memory, said Katrina should not be seen as simply a natural disaster.
“About the same number of people died as during 9/11 or the Titanic. This is every bit as big an event in our nation’s history, in our world’s history,” Rosenthal said.
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