Der Untergang der Titanic

April 15 is the 110th anniversary of the Titanic disaster.

Fifteen hundred plus souls were lost on that day due primarily to human arrogance.

The captain was attempting to complete the maiden journey in record time, despite reports of icebergs. And there were too few lifeboats.

One hundred and ten years later, we still talk about the disaster that changed maritime laws as we know them. No longer are ships allowed to turn off their radios. No longer are ships required to provide lifeboats only for the wealthy. No longer does breaking speed records matter more than lives.

One hundred and ten years from now, it is Levees.org’s hope that people are still talking about the worst engineering disaster in the history of the United States – the breaching of levees in New Orleans in 2005.

Congress reacted to the bona fide catastrophe––which took the lives of fifteen hundred plus souls––by passing laws making life safer for the nearly two thirds of Americans who live in counties protected by levees.

These included the creation of a national database of federal and non-federal levees, a new levee safety inspection tool using global positioning technology and a 16 member levee safety committee.

The catastrophe also highlighted the need for a National Levee Safety Program which is being rolled out this year.

One hundred and ten years ago, the Titanic sank and no one blames the iceberg.

Hopefully, one hundred and ten years from the Levee Breach Event of New Orleans in 2005, no one will blame the hurricane.