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Recent hurricanes have
impacted South Louisiana, but companies across the region
are quickly getting back on their feet and down to business.
Hurricane Gustav made landfall on the central Louisiana
coast near the city of Houma on September 1 as a Category 2
storm. The storm prompted a citywide evacuation of New
Orleans and many coastal communities. Hurricane Ike made
landfall Sept 13 in Galveston, Texas; coastal Louisiana also
received high winds and a storm surge that caused flooding
in some areas.
Impact on Business
Community
New Orleans USEAC clients are reporting mostly minor damage
to their facilities. Some companies in hard-hit areas,
particularly around Baton Rouge, are facing the major
disruption of being without power, though it is quickly
being restored. Many clients experienced internet and
telephone outages, and some are still struggling to get
their communications infrastructure back up and running.
Statewide, more than 73,000 electrical customers are still
without power because of Hurricane Gustav. (The day after
the storm, that figure stood at 1.3 million.) In East Baton
Rouge Parish, more than 21 percent of customers still don't
have power; in Iberville Parish, 33 percent of businesses
and households are without power. Other parishes with
widespread outages include Assumption, Ascension, Pointe
Coupee, Plaquemines, Saint John, St. Tammany, Terrebonne,
Lafourche, and West Feliciana.
Other companies are struggling with
workforce issues. 1.9 million people evacuated from coastal
southern Louisiana, and while nearly all evacuees have
returned, power outages and transportation difficulties over
the weekend kept some workers away. For example, one
shipbuilder that was short-staffed before the storm is
reporting a major shortage of workers. This is combined with
the disruption caused by the evacuation the week of the
hurricane.
Oilfield service companies were
particularly impacted, as they had to bring in all offshore
personnel, thereby incurring the costs of the evacuation as
well as lost revenue during downtime. Hurricane Ike caused
the shutdown of almost 20 percent of the U.S.'s oil refining
capacity, according to Bloomberg.
The New Orleans U.S. Export Assistance
Center is working closely with our client base to assist in
the recovery process. One of the hardest-hit areas was
Terrebone Parish, including the city of Houma, which has a
large concentration of oil and gas service companies.
Incidentally, this parish’s business community includes some
of the State’s most active users of Ex-Im credit, and we
anticipate that federal resources like these will be crucial
to the rebuilding. The USEAC also reached out to the Small
Business Administration’s Disaster Assistance Division,
which provides emergency loans, to coordinate the visit of a
representative.
The Louisiana District Export Council
is writing a letter to lawmakers with proposals for
hurricane recovery assistance for Louisiana SME exporters.
Finally, the USEAC is undertaking a trade mission to Brazil
for the Rio Oil & Gas show September 15 - 18, 2008 and a
business promotion event tied to the Saints football game in
London on October 26.
Tourism
Hotels and restaurants in New Orleans are rapidly re-opening
throughout the tourism corridor as residents and employees
return to the city. The historic French Quarter, the
Warehouse and Arts District, the Convention Center area, and
the downtown business district suffered very little damage
and for the most part did not even lose power during the
height of the storm. The Convention Center had virtually no
problems and looks forward to its September meeting calendar
with no disruptions. The Louisiana Superdome also fared
perfectly and rallied the city on Sunday, September 7 with
the Saints’ season opening victory over Tampa Bay. Nearly
all hotels and restaurants will be open and back to their
full levels of service by this weekend. Visitors should of
course check with their hotels before arriving to re-confirm
their reservations.
New Orleans' tourism community proved
to be exceptionally well prepared for Hurricane Gustav. In
fact, the city is receiving positive national media coverage
for its preparedness and the outstanding leadership of
government officials. The evacuation of some 30,000 visitors
to the city last weekend in less than 24 hours went
exceptionally well and almost flawlessly followed the
emergency plan established after Hurricane Katrina.
Transportation & Infrastructure
Port of New Orleans
The Port of New Orleans resumed normal operations on Sept.
5, just three days after Hurricane Gustav. Terminal
operations actually restarted on a limited basis Wednesday,
Sept. 3, as Coastal Cargo Co. began offloading cargo from
one of 11 vessels that remained in Port during the storm. By
Saturday, 13 vessels arrived at the Port. The Port sustained
minor wind damage at the Napoleon Container Terminal, and
all four gantry cranes were back online by Wednesday. The
Port’s Harbor Police Department resumed normal operating
hours on Sept 5 and the International Longshoreman’s
Association reports fully staffed gangs at Port docks. Gate
operations for trucks dropping off or picking up loads also
resumed normal hours by Sept 5.
New Orleans Public Belt Railway
The NOPB, a publicly owned and operated terminal switching
railroad that services the Port of New Orleans, is on a
schedule of limited operations. Updates are available at:
http://www.nopb.com/nopb/about-us/hurricane-updates.html.
Port of South Louisiana
The Port of South Louisiana, a bulk port that is the largest
tonnage port district in the western hemisphere, is fully
open and operational. Status reports available at
888-752-7678.
Port of Lake Charles
The Port of Lake Charles did not sustain any damage to its
facilities and resumed normal operations on September 4.
Located thirty four miles north of the Gulf of Mexico on the
Calcasieu River, the Port’s 1.6 miles of contiguous berths
offered a safe haven to 138 commercial shrimp boats,
offshore oil well crew & supply boats, deep sea cargo
vessels, tugs and barges were forced to seek safety of the
inland waters. Further informational available at
http://www.portlc.com/Newsletter/Newsletter.asp or
800-845-PORT (7678).
Port Fourchon
Port Fourchon, used by more than 60 companies to serve
offshore deepwater rigs and platforms in the Gulf of Mexico
from its location in South Louisiana, suffered from both
Gustav and Ike. Altogether both hurricanes prevented an
estimated $7 billion worth of oil and gas from being
available to the public. The roads to Port facilities have
been cleared, and the Harbor Police are allowing business
and camp owners, employees, deliveries, and other commercial
traffic into the Port. Cleanup and repair to port facilities
are proceeding, and the Port Commission anticipates a “quick
return” to normal operations. Phone service has been
restored, but electricity may not be restored for several
weeks. The Port operations center can be reached at
985-396-2750.
Port of Baton Rouge
The Port of Baton Rouge is open and fully functional.
Louis Armstrong New Orleans
International Airport
The Airport is open and fully functional.
Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport
The Airport is open and fully functional.
Flood Protection System
Hurricane Gustav highlighted the progress that has been made
to the city’s flood protection infrastructure since Katrina,
but work remains to be done. Since 2005 the Army Corps of
Engineers repaired or restored 220 miles of levees and
floodwalls in the New Orleans area, built floodgates to seal
off three drainage canals from Lake Pontchartrain, and
installed pumps along those canals. The canal upgrades were
put to the test during Gustav, and they performed well. Two
of the floodgates were closed, blocking off the lake, and
the pumps ensured that water in the canals didn't overflow.
The Corps touts the system’s performance as a success,
saying “the levee system held, the outfall canal gates
worked, and pumps operated for up to 13 hours, keeping the
canal water levels below the safe water elevations…The New
Orleans area now has the best flood protection in its
history."
In Their Own Words
“Anytime a Port is receiving vessels and working cargo just
a few days after a major storm is a great accomplishment,”
said Gary LaGrange, President and CEO of the Port of New
Orleans. “The entire Port community is to be commended and
we appreciate the support and patience of our customers.”
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