Levee and Floodwall Load Test Is Handled With Extreme Care
For the first time, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is conducting a site-specific load test on an active piece of a flood protection system. It is loading a heavily instrumented, 150-ft-long section of levee and I-wall in New Orleans with the equivalent of a storm flood. The Corps is trying to determine if it can safely increase the maximum water elevation in one of New Orleans’ main outfall canals. Officials say the experience gained may pave the way for real-time testing on active floodwall and levee structures elsewhere in the nation.
“The Corps is a learning organization....The lessons learned and the after-action review from this test will be shared throughout the Corps of Engineers,” says Major Nicholas Nazarko, chief of staff for the Hurricane Protection Office and officer-in-charge/project manager for safety on the test. “This could have applicability anywhere there is an I-wall,” he says.