LOUISIANA HURRICANES & FLOODS SPECIAL REPORT

DISASTER PERSPECTIVE

CHUCK MARCEAUX

AS DIFFERENT AS:

APPLES & ORANGES

TheGreatU1.S.A.PPS

KATRINA

RITA

THE NEW ORLEANS FLOOD

http://www.nola.com/katrina/graphics/flashflood.swf

THE DAMAGE35 large wastewater treatment plants destroyed25 small         ""           ""          ""        ""170 individual   ""         ""           ""        ""50 million tons debris to be disposed of350,000 building structures to be taken down (250,000

homes included), (every school in Orleans, Plaquemines, St Bernard)

200,000 autos (tires, oil, fluids, Freon to be drained prior to flattening and sending to be recycled)

60,000 boats to be trashed1,000 rail cars damaged, to be removed126 radiation sources leaking5 million tons of hazardous material to be removed3,000 underground facilities (tanks) to be removed$1.7 billion federal highway needs (includes new twin

spans)$750 million on non federal system

Building CodesInspectors Fault Lack of Codes In Storm Damage A federal buildings inspection team has found that damage from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita was amplified by a lack of construction standards in the Gulf Coast states, as well as by shoddy building practices.None of the states severely affected — Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Texas — had adopted statewide building codes before the storms last year, according to the team's report, released Friday by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, a unit of the Department of Commerce. As a result, many of the collapsed brick walls in the region had not been correctly anchored or reinforced. Shingles blew off roofs because not enough fasteners had been used, or because they had been put in place incorrectly. Dozens of windows shattered on high-rise buildings, as in downtown New Orleans, because nearby buildings were roofed with gravel, forbidden in high-wind areas under standard building codes. Though the 270-page report documents considerable building damage from winds and even more from storm surge, wind speeds did not reach levels that model codes are devised to withstand. The region's roofers, largely unlicensed and unregulated, come in for particularly scathing appraisal in the report. Where roofs were blown off, the team found that the culprit was almost always poor installation. The team found roofers making repairs after the storms in the same faulty manner, and the report urges that a system to ensure education of contractors be put in place. Apart from adopting and enforcing model building codes and taking better account of the potential hazard from storm surge, the agency urged the Gulf states to license, regulate and educate roofing contractors. None of the affected states licensed roofers before the storms. Louisiana has since adopted a statewide building code; some cities, like New Orleans and Lake Charles, La., already had similar codes. Texas adopted the International Building Code in September 2005. Mississippi has no statewide code.

LOUISIANA LICENSING BOARD APPROACH1. Board members message to Executive Director2. Executive Director message to staff3. Message sent to Governor Blanco4. 5 New hotlines being added Tuesday5. Coordination of Message with other state agencies6. The message “Applications must be completed”7. Enforcement Posture – Sensitive & low key in affected areas8. Public Service Announcements ($50,000 authority)9. Media messages for the press10. Message to Louisiana Contractors11. Message to Out of State Licensed Contractors12. Message to Out of State Unlicensed Contractors 

CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY OUTREACH ISSUES 1. Affected and displaced Louisiana Workforce2. What can the Board do to help?3. Website posting of employment opportunities, company contact numbers, etc. 

QUESTIONS THAT NEED TO BE ANSWERED1. Are we going to let unlicensed people work in Louisiana?2. Are we going to let licensed out of state people work w/o first obtaining a Louisiana

Contractors License?3. Will we enforce bidding w/o license portion of the law?4. Will we stop people working on affected areas if found to not be licensed and in compliance

with the Contractor Licensing Law?5. Will we waive any contractor licensing provisions?6. How can the Board assist Louisiana industry while at the same time be courteous and

professional to those outside our state?

PlanningBoard: Sends letter to Governor Kathleen Blanco 90 day grace period for debris removal and demolition of

buildings

Meets with:Commercial Contractor Trade AssociationsIndustrial ContractorsInsurance IndustryHomebuilders

Board establishes emergency policies Installed 5 Hotlines to handle calls Assigned displaced investigators to hotline duty Coordinated info with other state agencies Posted contractor and consumer info on web Expedited license applications for approval every 10 days Purchased 120 days of TV and Radio time to promote consumer

protection and contractor licensing laws in State of Louisiana

1996 - 2006 Projected Trend After 7 Months

2516

1736 1807 1877 1829 1766 1849 1957

2448

3618

4160

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

3500

4000

4500

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 1 11

CONSTRUCTION WORK

APPLICATIONS

10 YEAR TREND

CONTRACTOR REALITIES AFTER THE DISASTERSContractors may not get paid by prime

contractors for a long timeFEMA and Corp of Engineers work may

not require a state contractors licenseThe “Gold Rush” peaks early, slows,

then begins a long steady climb.Commercial work available mainly

debris removal and demolition of structures and underground utilities

RESIDENTIAL REALITIES

Comprehensive complications regarding the work – demolition

Fema flood elevation mapsMandatory IBC & IRC Bldg. Code and

InspectorsInsurance Issues – Flood, Wind, Act of

GodMortgage Lenders, OwnersHome Improvement Contracting,

availability of insuranceHomeowner/Builders/Building Permits

QUESTIONS?

THANK YOU