NEW ORLEANS – Despite the COVID-19 crisis,, the city is still staying on top of hurricane preparedness.
Hurricane season begins on June 1st and city leaders are doing all things necessary to protect residents – including a full-scale exercise at the West Closure Complex in Belle Chasse.
“What we do is, prior to hurricane season, we operate the sector gate and the pump station and make sure that everything operable” Regional Director for Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority West, John Monzon told WGNO this morning. “If anything goes wrong, we have to know about it now so it gives us time to make any repairs or modifications necessary.”
The pump station at the complex is the largest in the world! “It’s big enough to fill an olympic-sized swimming pool in about three seconds.”
It pumps the rainwater out of the Harvey and Algiers canals. The sector gate is the largest in North America! “When it’s closed, it prevents storm surge from coming into the basin” Said Monzon.
The 1.1 billion dollar facility was paid with tax dollars. It didn’t exist back in 2005.
“After hurricane Katrina, we realized that the Westbank needed protection so this was built to protect Algiers, West Jefferson and Plaquimines parish” President of the Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority West, Scott Burke shared.
Since the complex was first used for hurricane Isaac in 2012, the city says the system is more than reliable. However, an annual check is still necessary.
“We’re holding ourselves accountable. Prior to Katrina, you know, a lot of people didn’t really know what was working, what was not working- the state of the facilities. We host these exercises once a year to make the public- to ensure the public that, you know, we are operating it. We are maintaining it and it does work.”
