Risques littoraux majeurs - Webissimo

ABSTRACTObservations on the Impacts of Hurricane KatrinaBy John Headland, Senior Vice President, Moffatt & Nichol, New York, NY, USAThe author was a member of the first civilian group to observe damage resulting fromHurricane Katrina during September, 2005. This work was performed under the auspicesof the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) with the approval and support of theU.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). The result of this initial work is presented in areport entitled “Preliminary Report on the Performance of the New Orleans LeveeSystems in Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005” published by ASCE and the U.S.National Science Foundation. Numerous additional studies have been prepared andpublished subsequent to the initial referenced report including those prepared by ASCE,USACE and other institutions. This paper/presentation will present a summary of thedamages experienced during Hurricane Katrina including those in New Orleans as well asthose at Ports and shorelines in neighboring areas. General engineering observations willbe presented along with comments regarding engineering/economic approaches fordeveloping coastal flood protection projects in the United States in light of the NewOrleans experience.The presentation will be organized as follows: (1) general description of impacted areas,(2) storm characteristics, (3) types and locations of damages in New Orleans and adjacentport/coastal areas, (4) summary of important damage mechanisms, (5) lessons learned,and (6) comments on flood protection approaches in the U.S.