GOOD NEWS FOR NEW ORLEANS

It's about time. I just heard on local radio that the 17th Street Canal, through which all water pumped out of the metro area flows into the lake, has been patched! And without any Federal help as far as I can tell: this was an effort by the Louisiana National Guard and state and local officials. As soon as the pumps are working again, they can start to drain out the city. Of course, they still have to patch the levee, but that should be completed in the next couple of days.

Finally, something to celebrate.

UPDATE: I don't know what the hell I'm talking about. This completed repair is on the Jefferson Parish side of the canal, but I believe there is also break on the Orleans Parish side which hasn't been fixed yet. In other words, I didn't even realize that the canal was breached on two sides, which makes me realize I'm not quite sure about how all that anti-flooding infrastructure actually works. Suffice it to say, some progress has been made, but there's much more work to do.

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