I've taken some liberties with one of my favorite quotes. Why I chose this particular aphorism for this post's title will soon be apparent.



One thing to remember: this post deals with something written almost three years ago and reflects conditions at that time. Five years ago today, New Orleans experienced disastrous flooding that killed approximately 1,500 of its residents; left countless others injured, psychologically damaged, and homeless; caused billons of dollars in damages; and left the world wondering why the USA government responded in a manner totally unbecoming to the world’s most powerful nation. At the time, the flooding was believed to be a natural disaster, and some no doubt still believe that.





I no longer believe that fiction, especially after reading a letter written on 30 October 2007 by one of the USA ’s foremost geotechnical engineers, a member of one of the independent teams investigating the flooding. Given the age of the letter, I suspect many of you have read it. I just discovered it, thanks to Lloyd G. Carter. The letter's title is profound: New Orleans, Hurricane,Katrina, and the Soul of the Profession.





I’ve never read such a remarkable, thorough, and troubling report. I use the word ‘report’ because a 42-page, single-spaced letter strikes me as more a report than a letter although it has the format of the latter. Professor Raymond B. Seed’s 30 October 2007 letter to William F. Marcuson III, then president of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), painstakingly documents the post-flood investigations, and had particularly harsh words for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (primarily the New Orleans office) and the ASCE headquarters staff. He also had a few choice words for the President of Louisiana State University. But most of his scorn is directed toward the USACE and ASCE, to which he belongs.





Seed did not mince words; consider some he used: unethical, collusion, murder, cover-up, incompetent, retribution, hardball, unpardonable, dysfunction, shame, flawed, set-up, punishment, watered-down, indefensible. trustworthiness, pointless. You get the picture.





Seed is Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at UC-Berkeley, the nation’s top-rated department. He is obviously proud of his profession and concerned that its reputation and position of public trust were irreparably damaged by certain USACE and ASCE actions. His letter to Marcuson is a plea to right the ship and get ASCE on track again.



A lot of things struck me about Seed's letter. Two things stand out:

1) Levees failures during Hurricane Katrina were similar and in some cases, identical in location, to the ones that occurred during Hurricane Betsy. If the post-Betsy investigation had been done properly, the 2005 flooding might have been avoided or mitigated. This corresponds to the New Orleans office's long (c. 50 years) history of avoiding meaningful outisde technical review of its work.



2) Federal pressure was brought to bear on Louisiana State University, UC-Berkeley, and the National Science Foundation (who funded some of the investigative work). The latter two rebuffed the pressure, but LSU's president caved and ultimately fired Dr. Ivor Van Heerden of LSU's Hurricane Research Center (now called the Hurricane Center), who was one of the leaders of the State of Louisiana's investigative team. LSU later received $12M from the USACE to "help the Corps prioritize its projects."



It is importnat to note that Seed gave kudos to some who performed admirably in the face of great pressure. He also does not impugn the entire Corps or all of ASCE.



I would love to see Harry Shearer's documentary, The Big Uneasy, which will be shown tomorrow at selected locations. His film will undoubtedly address some of the same issues broached by Seed. Here is a recent NPR interview of Shearer:









Here is ASCE's current take on the disaster.

The situation has obciously changed since Seed wrote his letter. The USACE leadership in New Orleans has changed. I can't comment on the steps ASCE has taken simply because I have not folowed that situation (I am not a member, nor I am an engineer). I hope it has, because I am a great admirer of the civil engineering profession and count civil engineers among my most valued colleagues and friends.



Many organizations are remembering the 2005 disaster with all sorts of retrospectives. Please make a reading of Professor Seed's letter part of your remembrance.



Comments on his letter are especially welcomed.

Download Katrina_and_Soul_of_the_Profession

"The only thing necessary for the triumph of eveil is for good men to nothing." -- Edmund Burke, quoted in the letter (p. 41)