New Orleans Lawsuit Allegations Confirmed by Independent Investigations

NEW ORLEANS, Nov. 7 /U.S. Newswire/ -- A New Orleans attorney, who has filed suit charging malfeasance and incompetence by public officials responsible for levee protection, says a U.S. Senate Committee probe reinforces the allegations in his suit, filed three weeks after Hurricane Katrina.

Attorney Ashton O'Dwyer, alleges in his Class Action suit filed in U.S. District Court, that public officials at all levels of government (federal, state and local) failed to protect residents from death, injury and property damage by allowing incompetent engineering and design of levees including the 17th Street and London Avenue Canals.

Much of the New Orleans east bank was inundated with 6 to 10 feet of flood waters only one day after Katrina when a 200 foot wide breach of the 17th Street Canal levee pushed water deep into the city, including its downtown area.

At least two independent investigations into the levee breaks have indicated poor engineering and design flaws led to the disaster. One of the groups hearing testimony this week was the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. O'Dwyer claims, among other things, in his "Victims of Katrina" suit, that the engineering flaws and the failure of public officials to identify potentially dangerous soil conditions were the major cause of the deaths, damage and destruction in New Orleans, and not hurricane Katrina itself.

Ashton O'Dwyer is available to discuss his lawsuit in more detail. Please call 504-884-6727.