The Bureau of Reclamation is beginning to deploy people and equipment to provide assistance in the Hurricane Katrina disaster area in the Gulf Coast region. Reclamation's assistance is being coordinated with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Federal Emergency Management Agency.
The Expeditionary Unit for Water Purification is currently en route to the southern Mississippi coast to provide drinking water for victims in one of the hardest hit areas of the region. An identical unit from the Office of Naval Research will join the EUWP in southern Mississippi.
The portable units are designed to purify contaminated and salty waters to better than EPA drinking water standards. Depending on the quality of the water, each unit can produce between 100,000 and 200,000 gallons per day.
In addition, more than 30 Reclamation employees are preparing to deploy to the Baton Rouge, La., area. These highly skilled employees will provide quality assurance and quality control for debris removal. The deployment will last at least 30 days, with additional deployments in the future.
Reclamation continues to provide technical assistance to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for levee repairs and stabilization in the New Orleans area.
Source: Bureau of Reclamation
