Q: I see this all over again. Did they fix the levees for Hurrican gustov?
A: The news media broadcast a lot of incorrect information about New Orleans over the past week, and the status of the levee system was really badly communicated. There are about 350 miles of levees protecting the greater New Orleans metro area and about 220 miles of them were damaged or destroyed by Katrina. ALL of the damaged/destroyed levees were repaired by the summer of 2006, and the repairs included many reinforcements. The system is getting a $14 Billion upgrade that started in 2007 (as soon as the repairs were completed). The upgrade won't be finished until 2011 or 2012 (it's an enormous project) but many improvements were in place when Gustav struck. Those improvements may have saved the city from worse flooding during Gustav. Additional work is planned for after the upgrade, including long-term projects to restore the wetlands and do other eco-friendly things to provide natural protection from hurricanes. If $14 Billion sounds like a lot, realize the federal government spent that much on a 3-mile tunnel under Boston harbor for commuters. More than half of New Orleans is above sea level. The parts BSL are neighborhoods built in the 20th century on drained swamps (swampland subsides after it is drained). Finally, the levee system (now and before) is a federal responsibility - NOT a responsibility of the city or state governments. Specifically, the levee system was designed and built by the US Army Corps of Engineers, and the USACE is accomplishing the repairs & upgrades.