Flooding river tops Louisiana levee, but water still rising

MISSISSIPPI DELTA — The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reports the mainline levee located between Wilson Point and Pittman Island in Louisiana is performing as designed.

According to reports from the National Weather Service’s Advanced Hydrologic Prediction Service, readings in Greenville began reporting an initial decrease in water elevations at 2 p.m. May 13 reaching a minimum elevation of 63.6 feet at 2 a.m. May 14 before beginning to rise.

The change in the streamgage readings was a result of an abandoned levee, referred to as the old Wilson Point abandoned levee near rivermile 501, overtopping and then crevassing. The abandoned levee began overtopping May 12.

Local emergency management personnel were advised that the abandoned levee would most likely experience overtopping as water levels began to rise.

As the levee overtopped and then crevassed, it began filling the area between the abandoned levee and the mainline levee resulting in the drop of streamgage readings at Greenville and Vicksburg. Water levels have now stabilized between the river and the inundated area.

At 10 a.m., May 14, the NWS AHPS hydrographs show the Greenville stream gage reporting 63.85 feet. The NWS forecast currently shows that the river will crest near 65 feet today. The Wilson Point mainline levee will continue to perform as designed.

Source: Corps of Engineers