The Army Corps of Engineers is putting together in an after action report on the performance of the Mississippi River levee system through New Orleans. The paper will combine everything learned about the predictions, preparations, and actions taken in the lead up to Hurricane Barry.
Spokesperson Rene Poche describes what the Army Corps of Engineers is doing with what they've learned in the aftermath of Hurricane Barry. "We do after every event is an after action report. And we look at things that went well, things that didn't go well, things we can improve on, those types of issues."
The Corps is learning from the unusual sitation presented by Barry. "Preparing for a storm, this is a little different because we did have the high river and a hurricane approaching," Poche says. "So we worked with other agencies and prepared accordingly."
This report takes into account the individual variables of projections for Hurricane Barry, like the possibility of overtopping levees with a storm surge on a river already swollen to flood stage. The report evaluates what precautions were taken this time and works up ways to prepare and respond should another situation like this happen in the future.
The report culls information from all players involved in keeping an eye on the region and the river. Recommendations for improvements in proceedures or the need for information gathering are made and then assigned to the agency with responsibility. An example is for on new river level gauges at Belle Chase and Pointa la Hache. Implimenting the installation of the gauges would be up to the National Weather Service.