This map shows all the major breach sites during Katrina as well as all manmade and natural water bodies. It depicts neighborhoods affected by key breach sites and manmade and natural land features. CLICK TO ENLARGE.
Levees.org is Back at Quest to List Breach Sites Historic
Office of Historic Preservation in Capitol Annex Building, Baton Rouge
Last year, Levees.org attempted to nominate both the 17th Street Canal breach site that flooded the Lakeview neighborhood of New Orleans, and also the Inner Harbor Navigation Canal that flooded the Lower Ninth Ward neighborhood. The Army Corps owns the site of the latter breach site and blocked the entire nomination from being listed on the prestigious register.
However, the Corps does not own the site of the 17th Street Canal breach site, and therefore, under the rules of the Department of the Interior, shall not be able to offer comment.
“We will be pleased to conduct our technical review of your completed draft nomination and provide our opinion/advice regarding meeting the eligibility requirements as well as the adequacy of your documentation,” wrote Ms. Pam Breaux, historic preservation officer in an email to Levees.org last week.
Early this morning, eight years ago…
17th Street Canal breach site photo by Matt Ewalt
Updated Aug 30, 1:47 p.m.
Early this morning, eight years ago, levees and canal walls in and around the City of New Orleans failed far below their design capacity.
Neighborhoods throughout the city region – from St. Bernard Parish to the Lower Ninth Ward to Gentilly to Lakeview – were catastrophically flooded. Over eighteen hundred lost their lives and hundreds of thousands lost their belongings.
But history, both the good and the bad, shall be recorded.
So Levees.org is pleased that the Louisiana State Office of Historic Preservation told us last week that they will work with us toward placing the breach of the 17th Street Canal on the prestigious National Register of Historic Places.
The breach of the 17th Street Canal is the most clear-cut and most non-controversial example of federal negligence in its levee building.
