Terrebonne Parish Officials Assure Residents of Effective Measures to Manage Flooding

With rains drenching the area, Terrebonne Parish Director of Public Works David Rome assures residents everything is being done to keep up.

Last weekend, the Parish experienced local flooding, “A wide area of Terrebonne Parish received nearly 4 inches of rain Saturday afternoon within an hour,” Rome explained, “This rainfall rate caused localized street flooding and areal flooding of low-lying areas from Chauvin to Schriever.” He assured all parish pump stations were operational and pumping at the time of the deluge. Terrebonne Parish Public Works crews were dispatched out to ensure that gravity drainage systems such as culverts and catch basins remained clear of flowing debris.

Rome explained that all Terrebonne Parish pump stations are automated and can detect when water rises. “All pump stations were actively pumping at the time of Saturday’s rain event,” he said. Capacity at the pump stations was not an issue.” He explained that the amount of rain in such a short period of time caused the street and area flooding due to the time it took to get to the pump station. In general, both forced and gravity drainage systems can manage one inch of water per hour for the initial hour and a half and then an extra half inch per hour for the remainder of the event.

With rain continuing to saturate the area, Terrebonne Parish President Jason Bergeron assures the Parish is staying on top of things, “Terrebonne Parish Consolidated Government is committed to protecting the lives and property of parish residents through a state-of-the-art comprehensive drainage system,” he said, “We will continue to assess and improve this system as the Parish develops and climatological conditions demand.