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A rapid assessment of the chance of overtopping and possible overflow can be made by combining the maximum water levels and wave heights calculated by the surge atlas with the current heights of dykes and flood walls. The results of this quick scan can be used, among other things, in the planning and preparation of rescue and repair work. This information can also support decisions about whether or not to close the flood barriers around New Orleans.

Since Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Royal Haskoning has had its own office in New Orleans with five permanent staff. Many people from the Netherlands and the UK are also working on the project there temporarily. Royal Haskoning is working on the redesign of the dykes around New Orleans for the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). The 600 kilometre dyke system, which includes three large flood barriers, is scheduled for completion in 2011 so it can protect the city against a hurricane that occurs, on average, once every 100 years.

With the time of year for hurricanes looming, everything is being made ready again to prepare New Orleans. “Last week there was a completely unannounced exercise here,” says Mathijs van Ledden. “Hurricane Mike was still south of Cuba and was predicted to make a possible landfall on the border between Mississippi and Alabama as a category 3 hurricane. I was asked what water levels and waves the USACE could expect on the basis of the meteorological data, such as the path and strength of the hurricane. Thanks to the hurricane surge atlas, they were given a well-founded answer within half an hour.”