Coastal Flood — Lower Jefferson, Louisiana

1996-10-05 to 1996-10-08 · Lower Jefferson, Louisiana

Wider weather episode

Coastal flooding resulted from a sustained period of strong east winds. A tight pressure gradient persisted over the northern Gulf of Mexico due to the proximity of a strong high pressure system over the Southeast U.S. and Tropical Storm Josephine in the Central Gulf of Mexico. Tides of 3 to 4 feet above normal developed over the southeast Louisiana coastal areas from the mouth of the Pearl River through the mouth of the Mississippi River to Grand Isle and areas around Lake Pontchartrain. Particularily hard hit were areas outside the hurricane protection levees in Orleans and St Bernard Parishes where roads and a few houses were flooded. Louisiana Highway 1 was covered by a foot of water and was closed to all except emergency vehicle traffic. Minor coastal flooding was also reported along Lakes Pontchartrain and Maurepas, primarily affecting roads along the lake shore, although 2 houses in Mandeville sustained moderate damage and 4 houses in the Bayou Liberty area of Slidell were flooded. A maximum tide of 4.0 to 4.2 ft. NVGD occurred at Grande Isle from the early morning hours of October 5th through October 7th. At Bayou Bienvenue, near Lake Borgne in St Bernard Parish, a maximum tide of approximately 5.5 ft NVGD occurred from the mid morning hours of October 5th through October 6th.Damage cost estimates were provided by the respective parish offices of emergency preparedness. A combined cost of 3 million dollars was estimated for levee repair, dredging and beach stabilization and assistance provided by the State of Louisiana. Additional large costs included debris clean-up and repair of water and pump stations.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 5569049. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.