Hurricane Disaster Redux?

Four of the most tragic words in the English language for one to hear would be: “I told you so.” To face a terrible disaster and know that it could clearly have been avoided if one had only chosen to listen to sound advice given beforehand would be most disheartening and shameful. One need only look to the specific and clear warnings being given about the readiness of the Gulf Area for another hurricane to wonder whether such a tragedy will befall the Bush administration.

Beyond the Katrina Hurricane disaster, we have a shameful failure on the part of the Bush Government to live up to its express promises of aid and reconstruction of the devastation in New Orleans and the Gulf Areas. After first ignoring the problem, Bush went personally to New orleans to promise swift and bold action to aid the reconstruction of New Orleans. Nearly two years after the natural disaster ravaged the delta areas, the populace are still struggling and staggering to regain their footing. And that is the good news.

The hurricane season of 2007 begins next month, and New Orleans is ill prepared to deal with another storm. As with celebrated reconstruction projects orchestrated by the Bush Administration in Iraq, the celebrated levee repairs and reconstruction in New Orleans are showing serious defects. A report on levee construction funded by the independent National Science Foundation found serious flaws in the Army Corp of Engineers levee repairs, including erosion that could lead to failures in the event of significant flooding pressure. Photographs of the hurricane protection levee system can be found on the National Geographic Magazine website [ngm.com/levees].

The other lynch pin of the hurricane protection system is the network of pumps intended to remove flood waters from low lying areas in New Orleans. A previous report found that millions of dollars had been paid in no bid contracts for installation and repair of these pumps to a company owned by a previous business partner of Jeb Bush. The pumps installed by that company, however, were found defective and unable to provide the required protection even for flooding less severe than the Katrina levels.

The advance warnings are clear and unmistakable. Shoddy workmanship and opportunistic cronyism and profiteering have been endemic to projects managed by the Bush Administration. Unless massive efforts are undertaken immediately to address the defective levees and pump systems, the citizens of New Orleans and the gulf areas will be left without reasonable protection as the hurricane season returns. Whether the area can withstand another natural disaster is doubtful at best. But if another major hurricane strikes and proves fatal to New Orleans, the fault will lie not solely with Mother Nature, but also with the Bush administration which has failed miserably in providing the promised relief and protections that were both promised and deserved. And the tragedy will be that no one will be able to say that the President has not been warned.