NEW ORLEANS – A lot of new information came out Thursday not only about pump operations during the recent floods but about last night’s fire at the Sewerage & Water Board’s main plant.
Here’s what we know now:
- Sixteen pumps were offline Saturday for maintenance. Officials originally said the number of inactive pumps was seven.
- Loss of power happened multiple times at multiple pump stations.
- Two of 11 pumps were out of service at the pumping station that drains Broadmoor.
- Six of 26 pumps were out of service at the pumping station that drains Lakeview.
- Two of three pumps were out of service at the pumping station that drains City Park.
- Three pumps were out of service in Algiers and one was out of service in New Orleans East but those areas did not flood.
- Four of five turbines that power many of the city’s pumps are now out of service.
- A fire Wednesday night knocked one offline and three others were already out of service for repairs.
- The cause of the fire Wednesday night remains under investigation.
- Officials said it was an electric fire and the New Orleans Fire Department was not called
- Mayor Mitch Landrieu will ask an outside group to do an investigation into the flood response and manage the S&WB on an interim basis.
