Washington – Federal emergency officials say the New Orleans levee system is ready for another major hurricane, despite the less optimistic views of other political leaders and engineers.
“I think we’re in good shape,” Don Powell, the Bush administration’s coordinator of Gulf Coast rebuilding, said on “Fox News Sunday.” “There’s no question in my mind, we’re ready.”
The levees failed after Hurricane Katrina, a Category 4 storm, roared ashore a year ago, flooding New Orleans. The levees were built to withstand a Category 3 storm; the highest level is a Category 5.
“We are ready for a hurricane regardless of where it’s going to hit,” David Paulison, director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which says it repaired and reinforced 220 miles of levee walls, has been closely monitoring the fifth named storm of the Atlantic season, Ernesto, which could hit Florida soon after Tuesday’s anniversary of Katrina.
“I believe that the levees are ready for hurricane season,” Powell said. “The levees are back to where they were pre-Ka trina, and they’re on their way to being the best, better and stronger than they have ever been.”
But officials on the ground – including the head of the Army Corps – were more skeptical.
U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., said on ABC’s “This Week” that the levee repairs alone aren’t enough.
“They’re back up to Category 3,” she said. “We need to get them up to Category 5, and we are working to do that.”
New Orleans Mayor C. Ray Nagin told “Meet the Press” that the city was ready – but only to evacuate.
“You will never see a replay of last year, as long as I’m the mayor of the city,” he said Sunday.
