Corps: Floodgate Project More Than Half Done

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The Army Corps of Engineers says a massive floodgate and pump being built on the western side of the New Orleans metropolitan area is more than half done.

The corps says the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway West Closure Complex is about 65 percent finished. The structure will include a massive floodgate and pumping station. The project is meant to stop hurricane storm surges from flooding the West Bank, a heavily populated area west of the Mississippi River.

Meanwhile, the corps says it wants to build a 12-inch diameter waterline from near Louisiana Highway 23 to the West Closure Complex to keep the working in emergency conditions.