The Mazda 626, which has likely been stuck in the Lafitte Canal since Katrina, was pulled out after hours of workers detangling it from the muck.
While the New Orleans S&W was not entirely sure of the car's stint in the canal, NY Daily News reports the brake tag had a clear expiration date of
2007. The car was not alone in its plight pulled, too, from the canal was a sofa, a grill, pieces of a car, and a few bicycles. Essentially, the contents of
someone's garage got stuck underground and may be partially to blame for the clog in the pumping systems in Mid-City. The Lafitte Canal runs from
Drainage Pump Station 2 pumping water out of Mid-City and the Central Business District - notably, neighborhoods which faced severe flooding on
the July 10th storm. There are no records of the last inspection done to the canals, S&W claims it would continue inspecting a network of drains
operating in that area. Following the normal flooding patterns of New Orleans, the July 10th flood affected neighborhoods in Mid-city, Treme, and
Gentile most harshly. Though, Mid-City is currently the main focus of the New Orleans S&W efforts to unclog debris and trash from the drains.
Photo courtesy of S&WB.
