Parish flood control measures pass Corps muster

By COLIN MURPHEY
Parish officials along with representatives from the United States Army Corp of Engineers spent time recently inspecting vital infrastructure in the area in order to ensure the system will work when the time comes.
The inspection of the levee system in the area is done yearly and although the official report from the Corp of Engineers has not been released, one official who accompanied the inspectors said no major issues were identified.
St. Mary Parish Chief Administrative Officer Henry “Bo” LaGrange said the levee system in the parish is up to the standards established by the Corp of Engineers.
“The levees in St. Mary Parish were built by the Corp of Engineers to protect the people during flood events from the Mississippi River and its tributaries,” LaGrange said. “Federal law says you have to have a local authority to be the responsible party to operate and maintain the levee system once they were built. So every year, the Corp does an inspection to make sure we are living up to our part of the deal.”
LaGrange said, during the annual inspection, no major issues were identified and that the system is well prepared because of further enhancements to handle a flood event.
“We are responsible for minor repairs like keeping the grass mowed and the roads graded,” LaGrange said. “The Corp is responsible for major repairs. This is ongoing from many years ago. Overall, we got good reviews from those who were inspecting us.”
LaGrange said the official report from the Army Corp of Engineers wouldn’t be released for possibly a few months.
Another official who was with the inspectors during their time in the area was Executive Director of the St. Mary Parish Levee District Tim Matte. Matte said the entire levee system gets inspected.
“Each year we are able to address the issues and get a little better at it,” Matte said. “It was all minor stuff this year. There were no issues associated with a levee failure. The inspections went well.”
Matte did say there were still some ongoing concerns with the levees but they involved the public and their interactions with the structures.
“We do have rules and regulations about driving on the levees,” Matte said. “The reason we have those rules is because the damage that can be done can affect the operation of the levee. Potholes or ruts can cause a weak spot that can lead to a failure and that’s why it’s important to keep people off the levees.”
The levees in St. Mary Parish are part of the largest flood management system in the world. The levee system was mandated by the Flood Control Act of 1928 after the most destructive flood event in the history of the United States.
The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 inundated 27,000 square miles with up to 30 feet of water in some places and affected over 600,000 people. In some locations, the width of the Mississippi River reached 80 miles wide during the flood.