How are our Louisiana folks

[W.J.Langholz]

Gar and Ron how you doing? Is openning the spillway going to get close to you guys?

W.

[GAHorn]

They both live far west of the Big Muddy, and shouldn't be affected. (But George Courtney (former N.H. rep might have some proppity in trouble, as his family is nearer.)

[ron74887]

Thanks for asking Willie--yesterday, I help some move from Butte LaRose, which is about 8 miles east of me. Monday I moved stuff from our farm which is just north of the Morganza spillway. The north levee is our south protection levee. We are in a triangle which is supossed to be safe . We have not moved cows or anything except furniture--the powers to be (corp of misfits) told my brother that he may have a few hours to leave if the levee breaches-- an would have 40 ft of water--yet have not said move anything out. On the way up Monday some nitwit was actually grading the levee top. People there are really worried since no one has any answers. Don't really know where they thought the water from the mid west (since it has been pounded for the last few months as well as all the snow) was going to go except here. Typical govt run--federal law states that the spillway can't be opened until a certain volume and height at Baton Rouge was reached and then they delayed that. Opend one bay yesterday and so far today 4 more according to the national news. nothing here. Well they flooded Mo. Tn. Ar. Ms. and now La. doing good.
My house is just west of the west Atchafalaya protection levee and unless some unforseen mishap we should be safe.

Brother Tom Benedict called and let me know he has room for the cows and calves if we need to move them--it'll just take time to get them loaded-and only if they say move before a breach. If that occurs it is all over for them and equipment.

I would have answered earlier but been so long since I logged in could not remember name or password and had to go to a computer that remembered. getting senile--that ought to bring in the incoming.
Thanks again Ron

[Bruce Fenstermacher]

I would have answered earlier but been so long since I logged in could not remember name or password and had to go to a computer that remembered. getting senile--that ought to bring in the incoming.

Good think you remembered you have a computer that remembered.

[ron74887]

that's one Bruce your log was getting to friendly and got roped and hog tied yesterday and was transported across the lake. Got the gator hunter out here today to see if we can get her. Then this morning a 10 footer (male) and maybe your log were having an affair. probably going to take him out in the next fewdays. Gave a guy permission to put up a dock and building to help with his tours and by the dock have a half dozen 3 footers playing around all day. hope to see everyone in SD. Ron

[W.J.Langholz]

Ron
Thanks for the update. You will be in my thoughts and prayers over the next several days and will be watching the news for updates. Hope all turns out well

W.

My neighbour only has about 20 percent of his corn planted, it rains just about every 3-4 days, we still have some snow in our ravines .....i did mow the runway today, it could have gone for another week but now it all 1 length and looks nice, going to get down to 34 tonight,

[ron74887]

Willie, on the way to the farm Monday--There are plenty of beans planted. I know one guy probably has well over 1000 acres planted. roughly at $75 per acre(estimate) he is in debt already and will lose all of it--by now it is probably under a foot or more water and will be for weeks to come. As of today there are 9 bays open out of 134--but they say they will open only 25-guess they will try to figure out what is/will happen down river in the basin area??
Since the 73 flood a lot of the area/river has silted up and they really have no idea what the flow will be. We had fences that actully went into the ground from silt in the low areas as we followed the contour on the ground building it originally.
I will not get started on the govt corp--that would be like a raging idiot bull .
If you get on google earth look for 30 degrees 47' 47.23 N 91 degrees 46' 18.35W you will see the farm-- the morganza spill way north levee is south of us and the spillway itself is just north of morganza which is southeast of us. We border the Atchafalaya river on the west and go into the wood to the cleared land east. Where our cleared land ends to the east is where the corp dug a ditch to drain the triangle protected area. The Mississippi river is east and make a couple of big turns which is what they are worried about being compromised. Blow it up and follow the levees there is/will be lots of area flooding. thanks again Ron

[wingnut]

I remember seeing that Morganza watchamacallit many years ago. We were flying to Nawlins to bid a wreck, and were IFR (I follow rivers). I remember thinking that it looked like the Mississippi would rather go the way of the Apachalaya, and considered that maybe that watchamacallit was a dam to keep that from happening.

So, the first 6 letters are 'Morgan'. Anything to do with Morgan City? And if so, what does the 'za' stand for?

Hard to imagine that much water. I see the news coverage, but still hard to visualize

[GAHorn]

I remember seeing that Morganza watchamacallit many years ago. We were flying to Nawlins to bid a wreck, and were IFR (I follow rivers). I remember thinking that it looked like the Mississippi would rather go the way of the Apachalaya, and considered that maybe that watchamacallit was a dam to keep that from happening.

So, the first 6 letters are 'Morgan'. Anything to do with Morgan City? And if so, what does the 'za' stand for?

Hard to imagine that much water. I see the news coverage, but still hard to visualize

If you saw "Easy Rider" you saw Morganza, LA.

From Wikipedia: "Morganza takes its named from Morganza Plantation, the antebellum holding of Charles Morgan, an early surveyor, political figure and first American sheriff of Pointe Coupee Parish...."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morganza,_Louisiana

[ron74887]

Del, back in the late 60's they open the control structure of the atchafalaya above Simmesport, La and the Mississippi river dropped 8 ft in a 24 hour period in Nawlins and they were getting salt water in the city drinking water system. shut it down immediately. So they have known for years that the Mississippi wants to change course and IT WILL one day regardless of what they do. It will breach a levee one day and come hell or high water --probably high water. It is close to 70 miles closer to the gulf that way. At one of the meetings this week our state official Jeff Landry made an outstanding comment of what he corp is doing--spending 11 million each year to dredge a curve in the Atchalfalaya near Butte Larose and they could cut a ditch to straigten it out for 5 million and never have to dredge again. Govt waste. Look at all the curve the big muddy makes from Natchez to the gulf. Amazingly it has not straighten itself out already. Ron

[GAHorn]

So what are you saying, Ron... People buy and live in low-lying areas and when it floods .... it's all the gov'ts fault?

Sometimes it's too easy to leap to accept simplistic solutions and of course, it's always the "guvmints" fault. The Mississippi and the large cities at/near it's mouth are crucial to the economy of the U.S. and THAT is why the Corps of Engineers maintain the old river system. (I suppose you can imagine all those ocean-going ships off-loading in the Atchafalaya swamp?)

"The great river wants to carve a new path to the Gulf of Mexico; only the Old River Control Structure keeps it at bay. Failure of the Old River Control Structure would be a severe blow to America's economy, interrupting a huge portion of our imports and exports that ship along the Mississippi River. Closure of the Mississippi to shipping would cost $295 million PER DAY, said Gary LaGrange, executive director of the Port of New Orleans, during a news conference Thursday. The structure will receive its most severe test in its history in the coming two weeks, as the Mississippi River's greatest flood on record crests at a level never before seen."
http://www.wunderground.com/blog/JeffMa ... rynum=1801

Frustrating as natural disasters may be... it's the Corps of Engineers who have PREVENTED hundreds of such disasters for many decades.... and it's unfair (especially from those who have benefitted immensely from those efforts for so long) to blame them and the gov't when God/Nature performs it's natural, occasional deluge.

Meanwhile... the argument for the alternative course of the river is given in the "link" I provided above, and may be worth considering. (But it will not be without huge cost and a total re-make of the livliyhoods of those in the LA cities in that area. For example: "Without the Old River Control Structure, the Mississippi River would have carved a new path to the Gulf in the 1970s, leaving Baton Rouge and New Orleans stranded on a salt water estuary, with no fresh water to supply their people and industry...")

And that is only the cities... " B. F. Goodrich, E. I. du Pont, Union Carbide, Reynolds Metals, Shell, Mobil, Texaco, Exxon, Monsanto, Uniroyal, Georgia-Pacific, Hydrocarbon Industries, Vulcan Materials, Nalco Chemical, Freeport Chemical, Dow Chemical, Allied Chemical, Stauffer Chemical, Hooker Chemicals, Rubicon Chemicals, American Petrofina--with an infrastructural concentration equaled in few other places--it was often called "the American Ruhr." The industries were there because of the river." Not to mention all the lives affected by those jobs.

I'd say the Corp of Engineers and the Guvmint saves more jobs and lives than are occasionally displaced by mother nature's overwhelming of their abilities.

There is an argument that occurs and re-occurs about whether or not the gov't should buy out all those folks south of hwy 190. But the plain fact is... even if that DID occur... those folks would move right back in there and squat on that land.... and when natural disasters re-occur... they'd blame the gov't all over again. One can't live in and off of a swamp forever without an occasional flood disaster, so there's little reason to be caught by surprise. It ain't the gov'ts fault. IMO

[ron74887]

George, what I am saying is that it is because the FEDERAL LAW states when the gates can be open needs to be changed. WE all know that rain /snow has to come down the Mississippi and there is no way to stop that. Instead of flooding everyone in MO. Ar. Tn. Ms. and La. the structures needed to be open weeks ago and allow the water to get south and lower the levels well before it get to this point. Everyone could stand a few inches rather than 10 ft. I will agree that there is plenty of industry that WILL sufer when mother nature decides to change the course. The old river structure was in a big bind in 73 and was damaged to the extent that no one was sure it was going to survive--this year will be another test. When/If it does Morgan City will be the new southern port and private industry will move that way.
I'm not sure what Lagrange is saying about closure cause river traffic is shut down from New Orleans north and may get shut down below because of the river level anyway and that it will be the same lost. I agree there is plenty of industry along the river and by air miles not that far from the Atchalafaya and they could get water by pipe line and another set of locks to keep the river at levels to provide shipping. The govt better to more than sit on their hands as they have since 73 and hope mother nature does not send them this yearly cause the structure probalby will not hold.
As far as the people living in this area, they accept the flooding as they have before and it is a major inconvience of moving. The big problem is Govt stacking up of water to a level beyond reasonalble control. IMO Ron