Causes and Remedies of Flooding Along the Mississippi River Research Paper

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PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION -- DISASTERS -- Mississippi FLOOD 2011

The Mississippi Flood of 2011 was one of many floods endured by the Mississippi River area and surrounding areas. Past flooding taught lessons that were largely unheeded, as "experts" adhered to antiquated systems that repeatedly fail. The many vital competing interests in that geographic area are in dire need of solutions addressing and protecting all interests rather than sacrificing some for the safety of others.

Historical Background Of Similar Disasters Surrounding The Mississippi River

Legend has it that the Mississippi River floods the surrounding area every 100 years; however that is clearly untrue, as several notable floods have occurred within that timeframe. In April and May of 1927, 27,000 square miles in several states were flooded, causing 246 deaths, leaving more than 700,000 homeless and causing $400 million in damage (in 1927 dollars). In August and September of 2005, several states were flooded, causing 238 deaths in Mississippi alone, 6,000 injuries with 700 still missing, displacing more than 1 million people and costing more than $160 billion throughout the Gulf Region (2005 dollars). In April 11-13, 1979, Mississippi and Alabama were flooded, killing 9, causing the evacuation of 15,000 and causing more than $700 million in damage (1979 dollars). In April 12-16, 1974, the area between the Pearl and Pascagoula Basins was flooded, causing 8 deaths, requiring the evacuation of 9,000 and costing more than $9 million in damage (1974 dollars). In February 16-25, 1961, Hattiesburg, MS was flooded, killing 3 and costing $6 million in damage (1961 dollars). From March to May, 2013, more than 12 million acres were flooded, damaging more than 30,000 homes and causing the evacuation of more than 50,000, though no deaths or injuries were reported and the costs are unclear. From December of 1982 through May of 1983, there was a series of floods, killing at least 6, causing the evacuation of thousands and creating damage of $32.5 million in the Yazoo Basin; $1.5 million in the Big Black River Basin; $1.1 million in the Pearl River Basin; more than $50 million in south Mississippi; and $312 million in north Mississippi (in 1982 or 1983 dollars, as appropriate). In August 17-19, 1969, several states were flooded, killing 153 in Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama and costing $950 million (1969 dollars). In April and May, 1992, north Mississippi was flooded, killing 1, injuring an undetermined number, damaging 1,700 homes, with costs estimated to be hundreds of millions of dollars (1991 dollars) (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, n.d.). Clearly, flooding in Mississippi and in other Gulf Area states is a common phenomenon.

2. Lessons Learned From Past Flooding In Mississippi River Area And Similar Rivers

Experience has shown that floods occur seasonally with common or drenching rains accompanying tropical storms that later channel into river basins and fill them with water. Under those conditions, rivers, lakes, and other water bodies have repeatedly overflowed to submerge nearby acreage. The land neighboring rivers, lakes and other water bodies in that area is called the "floodplain." Mississippi is disposed to four types of flooding: river flooding; flash flooding; coastal or tidal flooding; and drainage flooding. Numerous areas in Mississippi are in the 100-year floodplain and more than 300 communities are officially Special Flood Hazard Areas (SFHA), according to federal authorities. Since 1892, about 90% of Mississippi's counties have been affected by flooding (Mississippi Emergency Management Agency, 2012, p. 6). Since 1824, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has attempted to control the flow of the Mississippi River and other nearby rivers in order to avoid catastrophic floods.

3. Non-Application of Lessons Learned and Ultimately a Systems Failure

The repetition of flooding shows that lessons were not sufficiently applied prior to the 2011 flooding. The river flood defenses need to be thoroughly reworked, according to some members of Congress, local floodplain supervisors and other important organizations in the area.

For one vital aspect, the delta is crumbling and the eroding coastal marshes damage local fishing industries and make inland cities such as New Orleans exposed to the most harmful effects of hurricanes (Russell, 2011). Many experts believe the current system controlled by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is ultimately untenable. However, according to Paul Harrison, the Senior Director of the Mississippi River and East Coast for the Environmental Defense Fund, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers "wants to continue to invest in the old system rather than look at these events as an opportunity to create a 21st-century system" (Russell, 2011).

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The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has set a course for the river and continually dredges in order to force the River to flow as the Corps deems fit. However, the River is evidently trying to overrun the delta. In April of 2011, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers blew out more than 2 miles of the levee at Birds Point in Missouri to divert water threatening Cairo, Illinois, flooding approximately130,000 farmland acres with 1/5 of the river flow. Then in May of 2011, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers started opening the Morganza Spillway north of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, steering water from the engorged Mississippi River into the Atchafalaya River. The water deviation flooded farms and prime oyster inlets to prevent the Mississippi river from spilling over the levees in Baton Rouge and New Orleans. Then the significant spring floods "tested the limits of the system," which failed during the Mississippi Flood of 2011.

The Mississippi Flood of 2011 is widely deemed a systems failure. After the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers blew out more than 2 miles of the levee at Birds Point in and started opening the Morganza Spillway north of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, steering water from the engorged Mississippi River into the Atchafalaya River, the unusually heavy Spring rains tested and eventually overwhelmed the system., causing massive levee failures and significant flooding.

4. Failure(s) of Preparedness Cycle

The "Preparedness Cycle" is based on federal guidelines provided by The National Incident Management System (NIMS), the National Response Framework (NRF), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Comprehensive Preparedness Guide (CPG) 101, Version 2.0, the Presidential Policy Directive -- 8 (PPD/8), and the Homeland Security National Preparedness Goal (Mississippi Emergency Management Agency, 2012). It includes six vital activities for responding to flooding and other emergencies of that caliber: planning, organizing, training, equipping, exercising, and evaluating & improving. A widely distributed figure illustrating the Preparedness Cycle is below.

The Preparedness Cycle -- National Response Framework (Mississippi Emergency Management Agency, 2012, p. 49).

Planning is supposed to allow a crisis team to control the whole cycle of a possible emergency, discern requirements for handling that emergency and assist all stakeholders in learning their roles in handling the emergency (Mississippi Emergency Management Agency, 2012, p. 50). The failure of planning is obvious because the Mississippi Flood of 2011 clearly was not handled throughout: the Corps blew out part of a levee, redirected the Mississippi River flow and was unable to manage the emergency without its significant property damage in the amount of $2-4 billion along the entire River system and the loss of one life. Organization involves developing the organization, strengthening its leadership and marshalling well-qualified teams of unpaid and paid staff to respond to and recover from the emergency (Mississippi Emergency Management Agency, 2012, p. 50). Organization clearly failed because the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has adopted a "we know best" attitude, excluding effective local staff and recommendations for refurbishing the existing system (Russell, 2011). Training means developing vital response skills by systematically training teams and organizations, including the federal, state and local governments and private-sector individuals, communities and organizations (Mississippi Emergency Management Agency, 2012, p. 50). Failure of training is obvious, again, in the Corp's exclusive, unbending manner of controlling the current, antiquated system, leading to disastrous results. Equipping means that all jurisdictions -- federal, state, local and trial -- must learn what equipment is available and the capabilities of that equipment (Mississippi Emergency Management Agency, 2012, p. 50). This failure is not immediately obvious; however, the catastrophic effects of the Mississippi Flood of 2011 could easily lead one to conclude that this aspect was also a failure. Exercising means opportunities are created to test the current system and improve its effectiveness without risk (Mississippi Emergency Management Agency, 2012, p. 50). Again, the Corp's insistence on using an antiquated, ineffective system shows the failure of this aspect: if anything, the Corps resists testing and improvements. Even after the costly 2011 Flood, the Commander of the Corps' Mississippi River Valley Division stated, "We used every element of the flood-control system, but my hydraulic engineers are reporting that we used about 85% of the system's design capacity. We still had a reserve" (Russell, 2011). Finally, evaluating and improving means.....

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