Latest Weather Blog
Livingston Parish still trying to bounce back from last year's flood
Related Story
DENHAM SPRINGS – A lengthy report by the Amite River Basin Drainage and Water Conservation District highlighted how bridges and interstate barriers impacted the August 2016 flood event.
You can read the entire report HERE.
“Bridges had a widespread impact on peak flood levels throughout the [basin],” environmental engineer Bob Jacobsen wrote in his report. Jacobsen surmises bridge impacts exceeded a foot in many locations but at one controversial spot, was four-feet.
That location – I-12 at Grays Creek – was “the most significant” impact seen between bridges and flooding.
The stretch of interstate is the focus of a lawsuit where officials in Livingston Parish blame the barrier design for causing flooding in communities along I-12.
In August, the state announced it would re-design barriers– between two and four-feet tall – in new construction along I-10 and I-12. Two-inch tall, 10 or 12-inch wide holes will be built into future barrier walls in an effort to allow water to pass. The walls are designed to keep speeding cars from careening across lanes of the interstate and causing a head-on crash.
Barriers built along the stretch of I-12 under construction now in the Satsuma area will also feature the redesign. A similar design will be used in the planned expansion of I-10 from Highland Road in East Baton Rouge to the first exit in Ascension Parish. Barriers added to work west of the Basin Bridge toward Lafayette will also have the holes when those are completed.
“We appreciate the Amite River Basin Drainage and Water Conservation District’s interest in this issue and will fully review the insights contained in the report,” DOTD spokesperson Rodney Mallett told The Advocate in relation to the study about bridges and flooding. “We anticipate the information in the report will contribute to the state's efforts to manage water.”
***************
Follow the publisher of this post on Twitter: @treyschmaltz
News
