NEW ORLEANS – There’s still eight weeks left of hurricane season and storms don’t look like they’re out of our rearview mirror. As the City prepares for Tropical Storm Delta, the Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans says everything is under control. 

“You know, we’re very early on in seeing what the storm is gonna do, but this is a year-round effort with Sewerage and Water Board being hurricane ready,” Courtney Barnes, Communications Director of Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans said.   

It’s been a busy hurricane season and it’s not over yet. Tropical Storm Delta will likely become — at least – a category 2 storm and has a strong possibility of making landfall in Southeast Louisiana this Friday. Fortunately, the Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans says they’re more than prepared as all 99 pumps are available and fully operational.

“That gives us enough redundant power to drain,” Barnes explained. “We have enough power to power our system. We’re confident in walking into this and we’re gonna remain vigilant and staff up and make sure our operations are ready to go when needed.”

It’s no secret, in the past pumps have failed and given out. Barnes also tells us this time around, she’s confident the equipment is reliable.

“Sometimes, the rain does outpace our system especially if we’re looking at a storm. Luckily, this one seems to be moving pretty fast so we won’t have a lot of sustained rain, hopefully,” said Barnes. “We know our system is vulnerable, we always say that but what we are doing, we learned from each storm and every storm is different so we remain very nimble and we’re ready to adjust to whatever the storm brings.”

Catch basins and streets will also be cleaned ahead of Tropical Storm Delta. No matter the challenge, Barnes assures Sewerage and Water Board will remain available to assist the community.

 For more information on this tropical storm, text ‘DELTA’ to 888777.