Originally posted by the Voice of America.
Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America,
a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in
the public domain.


US to Open Spillway to Protect New Orleans, Industrial Operations

   VOA News  May 14, 2011
   The Morganza Spillway, center, which allows water from the Mississippi
   River to divert into the Atchafalaya Basin, is seen from the air in
   Morganza, Lousianna, May 12, 2011.

Photo: AP

   The Morganza Spillway, center, which allows water from the Mississippi
   River to divert into the Atchafalaya Basin, is seen from the air in
   Morganza, Lousianna, May 12, 2011.

   U.S. Army engineers are preparing Saturday to open a massive spillway
   along the Mississippi River to divert flood waters away from the
   densely populated cities of Baton Rouge and New Orleans.
   Opening the spillway, however, will flood tens of thousands of hectares
   of farmland and rural property elsewhere in Louisiana, affecting 25,000
   people and threatening 11,000 buildings. The Morganza Spillway has only
   been opened once before, in 1973.
   Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal said his state will do everything it
   can to protect people and property in the flood zone. But he warned
   residents in the path of the flood, "Now's the time to evacuate. That
   water's coming."
   The Red Cross says it has ample shelters to accommodate residents who
   could be forced out of their homes for several weeks until the water
   recedes.
   The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said there will be a slow opening of
   the spillway, located upstream from the Louisiana capital, Baton Rouge.
   But eventually some areas below the spillway could be inundated with
   more than seven meters of water. Officials hope the release of
   floodwaters into the rural areas and backwater bayous will take
   pressure off downstream levees protecting Baton Rouge and New Orleans,
   as well as help protect numerous oil refineries and chemical plants
   along the lower reaches of the Mississippi River.
   One Army engineer said the water flow from the swollen river is so
   massive and intense that the 85,000-seat sports stadium in New Orleans
   would be filled with water in 50 seconds.
   In the neighboring state of Mississippi, officials warn the rising
   river could flood catfish farms, endangering a $200 million-a-year
   business. Cotton crops are also at risk.
   U.S. President Barack Obama plans to visit to the flood zone on Monday.
   He will tour Tennessee's largest city, Memphis, where the Mississippi
   River crested at near record levels earlier this week.
   New Orleans is still recovering from devastation it sustained from
   Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Many sections of the city have not been
   rebuilt, and thousands of residents who left have not returned.

   Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.

.