Rising waters set stage for more sea walls in US future
When Hurricane Ida made landfall on Aug. 29, the storm’s fierce winds left fallen trees scattered across southeast Louisiana like lawn clippings, while its heavy rains and storm surge threatened severe flooding. But in New Orleans a sense of relief was palpable: The city remained largely dry.
Sixteen years to the day earlier, when Hurricane Katrina made landfall on Louisiana’s and Mississippi’s Gulf Coast, the aftermath was different. More than 1,800 people died due to structural failures in the region’s levee system, and tens of thousands of people who hadn’t evacuated found themselves flood bound in their New Orleans homes.
Why wasn’t Ida equally catastrophic?
Residents and experts alike say one big reason is the $14.5 billion in post-Katrina federal investment to
