Levee district gets $3.5 M for winter flood fight work

The St. Mary Levee District is beginning to get reimbursed by the federal government for the millions of dollars of work the St. Mary Levee District did be-ginning in late December to protect up to six parishes from flooding,
The Federal Emergency Management Agency announced $3.52 million will be awarded to the St. Mary Levee District for emergency reinforcement, protection to levees and other infrastructure the district provided in the wake of the flooding event that began Dec. 28, 2015, U.S. Rep. Charles Boustany, R-Lafayette, said in a Wednesday news release.
Levee District leaders first learned Feb. 5 they should get reimbursed for 75 percent of the flood fight costs after the President declared a federal emergency declaration.
The grant is reimbursing the levee district for 75 percent of $4.7 million spent on the flood fight.
In January, a temporary barge was put in place on Bayou Chene near Amelia surrounded by sheet pilings to prevent parts of St. Mary, Terrebonne, Assumption, Lower St. Martin, Lafourche and Iberville from flooding due to high water in the Atchafalaya River. The river crested around 8.2 feet Jan. 23.
District officials expect to have spent a total of $7.78 million related to the winter flood flight, which included the removal of the Bayou Chene structure and the ongoing work to repair the road on Avoca Island, Director Tim Matte said. The levee district should receive a total of $5.8 million in reimbursement, he said.
The $3.5 million grant “is certainly welcome news” for the district as the St. Mary Levee District has spent over $6 million, so far, on the project and had yet to get any reimbursement, Matte said.
The levee district typically brings in roughly $3 million each year.
Workers are still about two months away from finishing repairs to Avoca Road from damage caused by the flood protection efforts, Matte said. Hesco baskets that were filled with sand to create a levee around the island have mostly been removed, he said.
The district also got 75 percent reimbursement for the spring 2011 flood fight, which cost about $11 million. In addition to closing Bayou Chene that year, the district had to do some flood protection work on the west end of the parish.
Officials chose not to do any work on the west end of the parish during the winter high water because the river projection wasn’t as high as 2011, and permanent improvements on Hanson Canal and Yellow Bayou had been implemented since 2011, Matte said.