More flooding, this time in lower SMP

Parish President Guy Cormier, Homeland Security Director Terry Guidry and Dist. 1 councilman Byron Fuselier reported on the unexpected flooding plaguing Lower St. Martin Parish at the June 6 parish council meeting.
Because Mississippi River stages stayed below problem levels during the snow melt period, Lower SMP was thought to be out of danger. But hard local rainfall earlier in the month caused water to back up into the area, and the rush to fill and distribute sand bags began on Monday, June 5.
About 12 homes, particularly in the Bayou Estates area, flooded. Guidry told the council that, if rain continued, the water might stay at flood levels for weeks. By the time of a special meeting on Thursday, however, the rainfall had decreased and Fuselier said the water had started to recede. Nearly 40,000 bags of sand had been filled by Tuesday afternoon.
With the increased frequency of high-water events in the parish, the council approved a resolution for the purchase of a sandbag-filling machine capable of filling several thousand bags per day. Cormier said when the machine is purchased, the parish would stockpile bags so distribution can begin sooner when flood conditions are imminent.
Cormier added that a long-planned drainage project that would likely have prevented such backwater flooding in that area has been stalled for three years, awaiting Army Corps of Engineers approval. He expressed frustration with the “needless delay” caused by a small group of recalcitrant residents and Corps inefficiency.

In other business, the council also approved a resolution authorizing Cormier to execute an agreement with the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development and the Lafayette Metropolitan Planning Organization for “pavement preservation” on Cypress Island Hwy. The project would not require funding from the parish, as the MPO will provide the matching funds of 20 percent required for receipt of the DOTD grant.
And, the council approved an ordinance allowing parish jail inmates to be billed for a portion of medical expenses incurred during their incarceration.
Finally, approval was given to move the Tuesday, July 4 council meeting to Wednesday, July 5 at 5 p.m.