OCT 2001 Warning - Scientific American.com: Drowning New Orleans -- [ CIVIL ENGINEERING ] -- A major hurricane could swamp New Orleans under 20 f

Science & Technology at Scientific American.com: Drowning New Orleans -- [ CIVIL ENGINEERING ] -- A major hurricane could swamp New Orleans under 20 feet of water, killing thousands. Human activities along the Mississippi River have dramatically increased the risk, and now only massive reengineering of southeastern Louisiana can save the city: "October 2001 issue

CIVIL ENGINEERING

Drowning New Orleans

A major hurricane could swamp New Orleans under 20 feet of water, killing thousands. Human activities along the Mississippi River have dramatically increased the risk, and now only massive reengineering of southeastern Louisiana can save the city

* Infographic: Sinking out of Sight
* Infographic: Sinking out of Sight (page 2)
* Infographic: A Worst-Case Scenario

The boxes are stacked eight feet high and line the walls of the large, windowless room. Inside them are new body bags, 10,000 in all. If a big, slow-moving hurricane crossed the Gulf of Mexico on the right track, it would drive a sea surge that would drown New Orleans under 20 feet of water. 'As the water recedes,' says Walter Maestri, a local emergency management director, 'we expect to find a lot of dead bodies.'

New Orleans is a disaster waiting to happen."