In one of his first public appearances since being fired as head of
the LSU Hurricane Center, which he co-founded, Ivor van Heerden, a sharp
critic of the Army Corps of Engineers in the aftermath of Hurricane
Katrina, will speak in Abita Springs on Wednesday. (FYI, May 27.)
His 7-9 p.m. appearance at the Abita Springs Town Hall is being
co-sponsored by the Northshore Democratic Women's Club and Progressive
Northshore Democrats.
Van Heerden's topic will be "Understanding The Katrina Catastrophe
With The Help Of Computer Models.''
The presentation is free and open to the public. Joanne Pettit,
president of the Northshore Democratic Women's Club, said elected
officials from throughout the area have been invited to attend.
For nearly a decade before Hurricane Katrina in 2005, van Heerden had
warned of the potential for widespread disaster in the Gulf South region
from a major hurricane because of what he perceived as inadequate storm
surge protective installations. Following the destruction from Katrina,
van Heerden ratcheted up his sharp criticism of the Army Corps for what
he calls flawed designs in protective levees that gave way during the
storm leaving much of New Orleans and nearly all of St. Bernard parish
under water.
In April LSU announced it was terminating van Heerden from its faculty
and replacing him as head of the Hurricane Center effective at the end
of the spring semester in 2010. Heerden said he has not been given a
reason and that action has touched off protests in support of the
professor including rallies and other actions by grassroots groups such
as Levees.org. Their supporters and others have petitioned Gov. Bobby
Jindal to pressure the university to re-instate van Heerden.
His book, The Storm, published in 2006, was internationally acclaimed
for its minute examination of storm response failures at all levels and
intricate documentation supporting his thesis that the Corps made many
serious mistakes in monitoring protective levee systems before Katrina.
For a time in 2006, van Heerden was ordered by the LSU administration
to not speak to the media and there has been speculation since his
termination, that it was done because the school administrators fear his
federal government criticism could jeopardize federal grant
opportunities for the school.
Since his dismissal, Heerden has resumed talking to the media and
recently told writer John Swartz in The New York Times, that now
relieved of continuing LSU administration pressure, he is free "to
really start to speak out and tell my side of the story and in the
process maybe some good with come of it."
Van Heerden is a native of South Africa and deputy director of the LSU
Hurricane Center and director of the Center for the Study of Public
Health Impacts of Hurricanes. He holds a doctorate in marine sciences
from LSU and is an associate professor of civil and environmental
engineering. His academic research has been in the areas of disaster
preparation and response, coastal geomorphology, environmental
management and habitat restoration.
Simon said during the presentation, refreshments will be available in
Town Hall for purchase. She said doors will open at 6:30 pm and an
overflow crowd is anticipated. Those seeking more information can e mail
northshoredwc@gmail.com.