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Hurricane Katrina News

08 Dec 2022

Jones Act Waiver Mess

© hanohiki / Adobe Stock

Potential energy shortages in the U.S. northeast this winter have led to arguments that the U.S. Jones Act should be waived. These arguments rarely, however, grapple with what exactly it takes to waive the Jones Act. This is not blameworthy because the Jones Act waiver standard has been a mess. For decades the standard for granting a waiver was interpreted in way as to make it all but meaningless, and now the standard is so strict that waivers are all but forbidden.Section 27 of the Merchant Marine Act, 1920, the so called “Jones Act,” is a “if this, then that” kind of law.

14 Mar 2022

Port NOLA Names Montroll Harbor Police Chief

Melanie Montroll (Photo: Port NOLA)

The Port of New Orleans (Port NOLA) has named Assistant Chief Melanie Montroll as Chief of its Harbor Police Department (HPD), following a rigorous national search that included a number of highly qualified candidates. She is a 21-year veteran of the force and will serve as the department’s first woman Chief of Police. Montroll succeeds Chief Robert Hecker, who will retire after having led HPD for more than 26 years.“The Port, our tenants and the region rely on our strong, ethical, and professional Harbor Police Department,” said Brandy D. Christian, Port NOLA President and CEO.

15 Nov 2021

Biden Names Landrieu to Oversee Infrastructure Plan

File photo: Mitch Landrieu speaks as New Orleans Mayor in 2011. (Photo: Marine Forces Reserve)

President Joe Biden named former New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu to oversee implementation of the $1 trillion infrastructure plan, the White House said on Sunday.Landrieu, also a Democratic former Louisiana lieutenant governor, led New Orleans from 2010 to 2018. He played a key role in helping the city rebound from the devastating Hurricane Katrina in 2005.Biden, who will sign the infrastructure bill into law on Monday, named Landrieu senior adviser responsible for coordinating implementation of the bill that includes big jumps in spending on roads…

30 Aug 2021

'Cajun Navy' Volunteers Race to Help in Ida's Wake

© bernard / Adobe Stock

In the small city of Houma, Louisiana, about an hour southwest of New Orleans, volunteer rescue workers with a “Cajun Navy” group struggled in the wee hours of Monday to navigate streets strewn with trees toppled by Hurricane Ida's ferocious winds.The group had sped down from Lafayette after getting reports of people trapped by the fierce storm's floodwaters. Rob Gaudet, a 52-year-old software developer from Baton Rouge, fielded dozens of distress calls about hard-hit communities."If they can get on the roof, that’s better.

30 Aug 2021

Hurricane Ida Makes Landfall Near Port Fourchon, Louisiana

Credit: NOAA

Hurricane Ida made landfall in Louisiana on Sunday as an extremely dangerous Category 4 storm, forcing those who did not flee to brace themselves for the toughest test yet of the billions of dollars spent on levee upgrades following Hurricane Katrina 16 years ago.Ida came ashore near Port Fourchon, Louisiana, at 11:55 a.m. CDT (16:55 GMT), the National Hurricane Center (NHC) said. Hurricane-strength winds extended 50 miles (80 km) out from Ida's eye, forcing New Orleans to suspend…

12 Aug 2021

Ingalls Names Norris Director of Government Affairs

Jack Norris (Photo: HII)

America’s largest military shipbuilding company Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) announced on Thursday that its Ingalls Shipbuilding division has named Jack Norris as director of state and local government affairs.Norris will lead all state and local government relations efforts in support of the Pascagoula, Miss. shipbuilder’s strategic goals and will collaborate with community and economic development partners, HII said.“Jack has a strong government relations background that includes 20 years of experience managing public policy and supporting economic recovery and growth…

05 Mar 2021

Kari Wilkinson Named President of Ingalls Shipbuilding

Kari Wilkinson (Photo: HII)

America's largest military shipbuilder Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) announced Friday that its board of directors has elected Kari Wilkinson to serve as executive vice president of HII and president of HII’s Ingalls Shipbuilding division, effective April 1. She will succeed Brian Cuccias, who announced that he will retire April 1.Kari Wilkinson, who will report to  HII executive vice president and COO Chris Kastner, currently serves as Ingalls’ vice president, program management.“Kari…

27 Oct 2020

Arctic Shipping Creates Insurance Headaches as Routes Open

© a_medvedkov / Adobe Stock

When Captain Will Whatley guides a ship through Arctic waters, he is starkly aware of what can go wrong.Double the manpower is needed to navigate. Lookout shifts are kept to just one hour, so sailors don't lose concentration and miss a mass of floating ice. Big icebergs show up on radar, but smaller, truck-sized "bergy bits"—even more dangerous—can be missed, the captain says.The cold can freeze equipment and the earth's magnetic field disrupts compasses. If anything goes wrong…

09 Oct 2020

Hurricane Closes 92% of Gulf of Mexico Oil Output in Biggest Shutdown in 15 Years

Credit: Nasa

A strengthening Hurricane Delta dealt the greatest blow to U.S. offshore Gulf of Mexico production in 15 years, halting most of the region's oil and nearly two-thirds of its natural gas output.An already large and powerful storm, Delta could intensify further on Friday as it churns through the Gulf's prime oil-producing area. Its winds reached 120 miles per hour (195 kmh), according to the National Hurricane Center.Delta has shut 1.67 million barrels per day, or 92% of the Gulf's oil output…

09 Jun 2020

Ingalls Shipbuilding Reopens Facility Wrecked by Katrina

U.S. Navy destroyer Delbert D. Black (DDG 119) was moved to Pier Four on the east bank of the Pascagoula River, signifying the reopening of Ingalls' facility that had been decimated in 2005 by Hurricane Katrina. (Photo by Derek Fountain/HII)

Ingalls Shipbuilding has reopened its rebuilt and modernized facility on the east bank of the Pascagoula River after much of the site was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.The Pascagoula, Miss. shipbuilder announced Friday that it moved the newly built destroyer Delbert D. Black (DDG 119) to the east bank's Pier Four, signifying the site's official reactivation. Ingalls, a division of Virginia-based naval shipbuilding giant Huntington Ingalls Industries, had shifted all of…

28 Nov 2019

Mammoet SPMTs Cantilevered

Dutch company specialized in engineered heavy lifting and transport Mammoet said that its crews have successfully set 108 total shoulder spans on the southbound lanes of the New Orleans Causeway in Louisiana by means of the self-propelled module transporter (SPMT) used as a cantilever set atop a barge.The shoulders are located between the crossovers, giving motorists and first responders a safe place to pull over when there are breakdowns or accidents. This endeavor is considered the most significant improvement to the almost 24-mile-long bridge since the second span was completed in 1969. Because the space between the bridge columns was too narrow for the barge itself…

29 Aug 2018

University of Miami’s Hurricane Research is Helping Save Lives


Inside research tank of University of Miami SUSTAIN laboratory (Photo: University of Miami)

As the 2018 Atlantic hurricane season unfolds, millions of people along the Eastern seaboard of the USA are keeping a careful watch on the weather forecast. What are researchers doing to improve the prediction of hurricane intensity – and ultimately help save lives?While experts are able to predict the track a hurricane will take with increasing accuracy, predicting their intensity is much more of a challenge.“We saw several times in this last hurricane season where storms just intensified really rapidly…

12 Jul 2019

Big Easy Braces for Barry Flooding; Emergency Declared

file image: AdobeStock / © mode list

New Orleans braced for severe flooding with residents told to hunker down as a growing tropical storm in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico headed for landfall late on Friday or early on Saturday as the first Atlantic hurricane of 2019.U.S. President Donald Trump declared a state of emergency for the state of Louisiana late on Thursday, hours after the region's oil production was cut by half as energy companies evacuated offshore drilling facilities and a coastal refinery.Tropical Storm…

11 Jul 2019

New Orleans Braces for TS Barry

File Image: A containership transits the Port of New Orleans on a better day. Image CREDIT: Port NOLA

Some residents and visitors prepared to flee New Orleans on Thursday as Tropical Storm Barry closed in and city officials warned of severe flooding if it makes landfall by early Saturday as the first Atlantic hurricane of the 2019 season.The storm had maximum sustained winds of 40 miles per hour (64 kph) as of 10 a.m. CDT (1500 GMT) on Thursday, the National Weather Service said.Forecasters issued a storm-surge warning for a stretch of Louisiana coastline south of already-sodden New Orleans stretching from the mouth of the Atchafalaya River to Shell Beach.

19 Nov 2019

US Funds $30 million for Coastal Flood Protection

River dredging operations in the State of Louisiana (CREDIT: Port of New Orleans)

The U.S. government's oceans and waterways agency will provide $30 million to improve coastal resilience, officials said, aiming to reduce the impacts of worsening storms, flooding and rising seas in nearly half of U.S. states.Grants through the program are designed to restore or expand coastal wetlands, dunes, reefs, mangroves and barrier islands that are key to coastal protection, said the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in an announcement.Coastlines worldwide are being damaged or threatened by more extreme and destructive weather…

30 Aug 2017

Harvey Soaks Louisiana as Houston Struggles With Flooding

Tropical Storm Harvey bore down on Louisiana on Wednesday, pouring down more water after setting rainfall records in Texas that caused catastrophic flooding and paralyzed the U.S. energy hub of Houston. The storm that first came ashore on Friday as the most powerful hurricane to hit Texas in more than 50 years has killed at least 17 people and forced tens of thousands to leave their deluged homes. Damage has been estimated at tens of billions of dollars, making it one of the costliest U.S. natural disasters. There is some relief in sight for Houston, the fourth most populous U.S. city, with forecasters saying five days of torrential rain may come to an end as the storm picks up speed and leaves the Gulf of Mexico region later in the day.

31 Aug 2017

Coast Guard Foundation: Harvey Relief

Coast Guard Aircrew Assists Infant During the Aftermath of Hurricane Harvey (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Chase Redditt)

The Coast Guard Foundation, a nonprofit organization committed to the education and welfare of all Coast Guard members and their families, has activated its Disaster Relief and Response Fund to assist Coast Guard Members impacted by Hurricane Harvey. “As we see the hurricane rescue efforts unfold, we bear witness to the skill and expertise of the men and women of the United States Coast Guard,” said Susan Ludwig, president, Coast Guard Foundation. “These brave men and women are…

15 Sep 2017

Oil, Chemical Spills from Harvey Adding Up

More than 22,000 barrels of oil, refined fuels and chemicals spilled at sites across Texas in the wake of Hurricane Harvey, along with millions of cubic feet of natural gas and hundreds of tons of other toxic substances, a Reuters review of company reports to the U.S. Coast Guard shows. The spills, clustered around the heart of the U.S. oil industry, together rank among the worst environmental mishaps in the country in years, but fall far short of the roughly 190,000 barrels spilled in Louisiana in 2005 after Hurricane Katrina - the last major storm to take dead aim at the U.S. Gulf Coast. Harvey slammed ashore in Texas on Aug. 26, unleashing record flooding around Houston that destroyed countless homes, displaced around a million people and killed scores. The U.S.

15 Sep 2017

Oil/Chemical Spills from Harvey Are Big, but Dwarfed by Katrina

More than 22,000 barrels of oil, refined fuels and chemicals spilled at sites across Texas in the wake of Hurricane Harvey, along with millions of cubic feet of natural gas and hundreds of tons of other toxic substances, a Reuters review of company reports to the U.S. Coast Guard shows. The spills, clustered around the heart of the U.S. oil industry, together rank among the worst environmental mishaps in the country in years, but fall far short of the roughly 190,000 barrels spilled in Louisiana in 2005 after Hurricane Katrina - the last major storm to take dead aim at the U.S. Gulf Coast. Harvey slammed ashore in Texas on Aug. 26, unleashing record flooding around Houston that destroyed countless homes, displaced around a million people and killed scores. The U.S.

29 Sep 2017

SUNY Maritime Training Ship Sent to Puerto Rico

(File photo: SUNY Maritime)

SUNY Maritime College’s Training Ship Empire State VI will soon sail to Puerto Rico to aid in the recovery efforts and to deliver basic necessities to the island’s residents. The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD) activated the vessel for a pre-scripted Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) mission to support relief efforts. Once moored on site, the self-contained vessel will support recovery efforts by providing housing, power, food and water to first responders.

20 Oct 2017

Rob Nakama: From USCG to Foss Maritime

Rob Nakama (Photo: Saltchuk)

Just two weeks after accepting the U.S. Coast Guard’s congratulations on a military career spanning almost three decades, Rob Nakama drove from Washington D.C. to Seattle to join Foss Maritime as the company’s Manager of Contingency Planning and Emergency Response. “I’ve been in the military for the majority of my life; the transition has been surreal,” he said. Nakama was born in Hawaii, growing up on the island of Maui as the son of a taro farmer who worked for the Aloha Poi Factory.

24 Oct 2017

Empire State VI Returns from Puerto Rico

Empire State VI (Photo: SUNY Maritime College)

SUNY Maritime College’s training ship has returned to campus Tuesday after nearly two months aiding hurricane relief workers in Florida and Puerto Rico. The ship Empire State VI was used to provide power, housing, food and water to emergency relief workers, first in Florida following Hurricane Irma, then in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria. Empire State VI is owned by the Maritime Administration, a branch of the U.S. Department of Transportation, and used by Maritime College throughout the year to educate and train future maritime industry professionals.

13 Apr 2018

Ingalls to Reactivate East Bank Facilities

Ingalls Shipbuilding East Bank Photo HII

Huntington Ingalls Industries announced Thursday that its Ingalls Shipbuilding division will reactivate part of its shipbuilding facilities that was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The site on the east bank of the Pascagoula River is the original Ingalls Shipbuilding Corp., founded in 1938. According to the shipbuilder, its reactivation will restore the facility’s ability to support Ingalls’ current ship construction and modernization programs as well as help the company better prepare for future work, including next-generation amphibious assault ships and surface combatants.

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