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Mean old levee: New product being tested to quickly plug levee breaks

Posted by: Maven on December 1, 2009 at 6:32 am

plugFrom R&D Magazine, an article about new technologies to seal levee breaks being tested at an Oklahoma facility. The article begins with the lyrics from the 1929 Blues classic “When the Levee Breaks“:

“The challenge is to change that tune: to develop the technology to quickly seal a levee breach and reduce floodwaters through the opening within four to six hours of detection – before the water can do major damage.

Enter Wil Laska of the Science & Technology Directorate (S&T), the research arm of the Department of Homeland Security. Laska has sought out innovative technologies from industry, academia, and government to meet this challenge. Any proposed system, he dictated, had to not only be capable of quickly closing breaches, but also be suitable for scenarios in which the breach may be difficult or impossible to reach with conventional construction equipment.

“The thing is,” Laska deadpans, “there’s an effective structural material that’s readily available during floods…water.” … “

Read more from R&D Magazine by clicking here. You can also view a video of the PLUG in action at the website.

December 1, 2009 · Filed Under Levees

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