NEW ORLEANS — The New Orleans Sewerage and Water Board warned its customers of limited and reduced drainage power on Friday ahead of expected storms this weekend.
S&WB leaders said that some areas may experience flooding with Turbines 4 and 5 temporarily out of order, reducing their ability to pump runoff from the city streets. They said the power will not affect the number of pumps available but will slow down the ability to prevent street flooding.
SWBNO Executive Director Ghassan Korban said one to two inches of rain over several hours is expected.
"Given our fragile power status, we cannot be too careful going into this weekend,” said Director Korban. "However, we lack the redundancy to address greater rainfall, mechanical failures, or an Entergy loss of power. If any of these failures happen, there is a possibility that draining the streets of New Orleans will take longer than customers are accustomed to.”
The City of New Orleans, Nola Ready, Entergy and the National Weather Service are also prepared for the case of a weather event.
WWL Louisiana's weather forecast says late Saturday night through the overnight hours, a line of rain and thunderstorms will move west to east through the area. Rain should be ending by 8 a.m. or so on Sunday morning. Some rain may get heavy overnight and an isolated strong storm is possible packing brief gusty winds.
SWBNO's Operations Team is on standby to send backup power to drainage pump stations to increase stormwater storage and limit flooded streets.
Leaders also said Turbine 5 is expected to have power by Dec. 15 and urge residents to remain vigilant and weather aware while its capacity to drain stormwater is diminished. SWBNO will work closely with NOLA Ready to inform residents of any potential impacts related to this weekend’s weather.
SWBNO advises all residents to stay weather aware by following @NOLAReady for updates or text NOLAREADY to 77295 for text updates. For the latest information on SWBNO’s pumping and power status, visit SWBNO.org.
► Get breaking news from your neighborhood delivered directly to you by downloading the new FREE WWL-TV News app now in the IOS App Store or Google Play.