Dragna: Pump station capacity will triple

The pumping station on Victor II Boulevard in Morgan City will soon have triple the pumping capacity it previously had and will provide for better drainage in the area, officials say.
Workers are preparing to install three new pumps at Pump Station 6 in Morgan City to replace old pumps that weren’t functioning properly, said Lee Dragna, St. Mary Parish Consolidated Gravity Drainage District No. 2 chairman. Previously, the old pumps could pump 80,000 gallons of water a minute, but the new pumps will pump about 230,000 to 250,000 gallons per minute together, he said.
Workers finished driving piles Tuesday at the site and were working to dig the ditches needed to put in concrete and rebar at the pump station, Dragna said.
The district has put up a sheet pile bulkhead, installed pilings and will pour a slab for the new pumps, Dragna said.
The drainage district used its own employees and contractors to do the work, Dragna said. On Thursday, district officials plan to install the 30-footlong pumps, he said.
Construction began on the project about two weeks ago. The district had failing pumps at the station for several months and couldn’t find anyone to repair them, Dragna said. Therefore, district leaders decided to buy new pumps, he said.
The new pumps start and stop automatically. The drainage district will still have workers check on them to make sure they’re working properly, he said.
Drainage district officials are only responsible for maintaining the drainage ditches, or canals, in the city, and the city is responsible for getting the water through the pipes, Dragna said.
Though the drainage district hasn’t had any issues with the ditches overtopping since the new board took over within the past couple of years, the new pumps will allow officials to keep the water levels even lower than normal in the ditches and let the water flow slightly faster, Dragna said.
Dragna expects the project to finish around Oct. 1, and workers are scheduled to test the pumps Oct. 15, he said. After that the pumps will be certified.
Installing the new pumps is also necessary for the internal drainage analysis needed to certify Morgan City’s levees for 100-year flood protection, Dragna said.
That certification is expected to allow for reasonable flood insurance rates.
The St. Mary Levee District and the drainage district are currently working together to design levee improvements in Morgan City before going to construction on the various portions of the project.
One portion of the project will involve raising La. 70 by Lake End Park and incorporating a section of the highway into the levee system.
--By Zachary Fitzgerald
zfitzgerald@daily-review.com