Author Topic: Army Corps predicted Addicks and Barker flood pool lawsuits, decided not to act  (Read 740 times)

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Online Elderberry

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houstonchronicle.com 2/27/2017 By Mihir Zaveri

More than two decades ago, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers determined that property owners in the reservoir pools of Addicks and Barker dams might sue the Corps if they were flooded but had a slim likelihood of success, a conclusion that supported decisions not to pursue upgrades to the aging dams at the time, a Corps document shows.

The analysis, laid out in a previously undisclosed 11-page document entitled “Addicks and Barker Reservoirs Legal Takings Analysis,” shows that the Corps was cognizant that it could be sued, and that “Given the nature of the expensive homes that would be flooded and the quality of legal representation these owners could afford, there is always the possibility of an adverse ruling.”

Documents, however, show the Corps officials believed that a storm that could spill into homes would be so rare and irregular that it did not necessitate retrofitting the dams to avoid the potential flooding and litigation, despite mounting evidence that the dams increasingly were being constrained on both sides by the Houston area’s rapid development — increasing the amount of water they were being forced to hold back while decreasing the amount that could be released safely.

The document and the Corps’ conclusions have raised new questions after Hurricane Harvey, when the storm’s floodwaters filled the Barker and Addicks reservoirs and backed up beyond government-owned land, flooding more than 9,000 homes and businesses. Many homeowners now are suing the Corps for compensation.

More: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/politics/houston/article/Army-Corps-predicted-Addicks-and-Barker-flood-12714844.php

Offline thackney

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Six months ago today, we had completed our 2nd of eventually 3 evacuation trying to stay out of the rising water.

The following day, we got confirmation from my neighbor's family the water had entered our house.

Today the house is in chaos, but the rebuilding is going fast and furious.

We were not impacted by the reservoirs above, but the article got me to remembering.
Life is fragile, handle with prayer