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Plaquemines leaders thankful Gordon heading east

Plaquemines is outside the federal hurricane protection system, so storm surge is a major concern here.

BELLE CHASSE, La. – Plaquemines Parish President Amos Cormier III declared a voluntary evacuation for the East Bank of the Mississippi River and for the West Bank south of Jesuit Bend, but struck a confident tone about his parish’s preparation for Tropical Storm Gordon.

Cormier said he made the move Tuesday afternoon out of an “abundance of caution,” mainly because Gordon could still bring high winds to the eastern portion of Plaquemines and could down power lines, even as it was expected to come ashore in Mississippi or even as far east as Alabama.

Plaquemines is outside the federal hurricane protection system, so storm surge is a major concern here. Hurricane Isaac in 2012 was a slow-moving storm that didn’t bring high winds, but created major storm surge that overtopped parish levees in Braithwaite and other parts of Plaquemines.

Cormier met with his emergency operations staff and the elevated Emergency Operations Center and was confident the fast-moving Gordon would not overtop the restored parish levees, which are 12-feet high on the East Bank, except where they dip to 8 feet at the Scarsdale Pump Station.

“Two to 4 feet of storm of surge is currently being predicted for the East Bank,” Cormier said. “Our levees there, at the lowest point, are 8-feet high. Most of them are 12-feet high, so please, God, we hope that forecast remains and we won’t see any higher storm surge.”

Cormier also issued the following list of self-serve sandbag collection points for residents:

  • Boothville-Venice Fire Department
  • Buras Fire Department
  • Empire Shipyard
  • Port Sulphur YMCA
  • Plaquemines Parish Government Complex/Old State School
  • 119 Sewer Plant Road/Parish Heavy Equipment Office
  • Prawn Shop/Old Edna Lafrance Building in Braithwaite
  • Davant Community Center
  • Braithwaite Auditorium

Cormier’s response to Gordon did include some political controversy. After members of the Plaquemines Parish Council appeared for Tuesday’s 9 a.m. update at the Emergency Operations Center, Plaquemines Homeland Security Director Patrick Harvey sent an email to parish council members saying Cormier “advised … the 2 p.m. meeting would only include Plaquemines Parish Administration / Department Heads along with the Parish’s First Responders (Fire/EMS & Sheriff).”

Councilman Charlie Burt sent an email back to Harvey calling the exclusion of council members “a complete embarrassment and shameful.”

Councilman Kirk Lepine, who is running against Cormier for parish president, said he and his colleagues are getting questions about sandbag locations and other storm preparations and were being kept in the dark.

“I’ve worked under four presidents and I’ve never been treated like this,” Lepine said.

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