It may have been nearly 19 years since Hurricane Katrina, but cities are still recovering from its destruction. I spoke with Mayor FoFo Gilich about Biloxi’s post-Hurricane Katrina infrastructure repair program to learn what progress they’ve made since 2005.
The effects of Katrina were felt even underground. The hurricane severely damaged the city’s water, sewer and drainage systems.
“The original sewer system in Biloxi was built in 1957 with older technology and different types of pipes – not the PVC we use today,” said Mayor Gilich. “And it was only supposed to last 25 years. 1957! So we’ve been living on borrowed time, but this gives us the opportunity to rebuild the infrastructure, the really critical infrastructure of the city.”
What should have been a simple upgrade quickly turned into a complete rebuild that lasted over a decade.
The Hurricane Katrina Infrastructure Repair Program is a $360 million FEMA-funded project to replace all wastewater systems affected by Katrina.
In addition, improvements are also being made, such as the installation of additional sewers to prevent flooding on the streets.
“We don’t want to have to go through that again,” Gilich said. “Basically, we’re going to have brand new infrastructure. Most of it will be there for another 100 years. When a storm comes, you just wait for the water to come back and some of the systems will survive.”
Currently, only two areas need to be rebuilt. Gilich estimates that reconstruction will begin at the end of 2025.
Once that project is completed, Gilich plans to begin improving infrastructure in parts of the city that were not directly affected by Katrina but have since become aging.
