Robert Seeberger wrote: > Horn, John wrote: >>> Behalf Of Robert Seeberger >>> >>> There is a bit of misinformation that is being spread around. The >>> actual levees held and have not been a problem. What everyone is >>> seeing on TV is a break in a canal wall and that is not a levee. >>> There is a report I saw that relates an eyewitness who claims that >>> a >>> loose barge is what broke the canal wall. >> >> Sounds like something they would say on Fox News... >> >> Seriously though, it sure looks like a levee. They are calling it >> the 17th Street Canal Levee. Doesn't sound like misinformation to >> me. And it looks awfully close to the lake to me. Also, there >> were >> 3 breaks in all. You can get a really good map of them on cnn.com >> using satellite images. >> >> http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2005/hurricanes/interactive/fullpage.nol >> a.flood/katrina.html >> >> Isn't New Orleans cut by many different canals? I thought that was >> part of the flood control to get the water out. Well, before the >> flooding, that is... >> > The levees are the huge berms that protect the city from lake > Ponchetrain on the north, the Mississippi on the south and Lake > Boerne(?) on the east. At least that is what people usually refer to > when talking about the levees. > The canal walls are quite a bit different. They are basically > concrete > walls supported by dirt and are quite flimsy in comparison. > I could be wrong, but I got this info from WWL-TV and that is what > the > correspondent said. Maybe it is simply a technical distinction? > Note that all three breaks are in canal walls. > Got some more. >From NPR: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4826934&ft=1&f=1007
Q: What is the difference between a floodwall and a levee, anyway? The canals walls that broke are technically called floodwalls. They are made of concrete and steel, 6 to 10 feet tall, about a foot wide at the top and 2 feet wide at the bottom. They stand on top of an earthen base. A levee is a broad mound, 50 feet or more wide at the base, that rises slowly to a broad crest at the top. You could easily walk or drive up the side of one. These are far more stable than floodwalls. Water can spill over the top and erode some of the levee, but it will still function. When a floodwall fails, it fails catastrophically. HTH xponent Canal Street Maru rob _______________________________________________ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
