July 29 2025
Lafayette LA
A number of Dredge the Vermilion (DTV) Board Members spoke at the Lafayette City Council meeting on July 15 on a number of flooding issues related to our parish and our watershed.
Below are selected speakers notes and subject:
Dave Dixon President DTV and Commissioner Bayou Vermilion District(BVD)
Subject :Current Flood Risk Assessment
As you are aware we are coming up on the 9th anniversary of the 2016 major flood event
We are here to advise the council and administration of the current flood risk assessment
While some flood mitigation projects have been competed, much more is needed to reduce our flooding risk
DTV’s current risk assessment:
1. Before 1993 the flood level at Surrey was 12 feet which was Lowered to 10 in 1993
2. NOAA(National Weather Service) tracks and published flood events at the Surrey gage.
- From 1940 -1980 11 12ft floods were recorded.
- During the 1st 7 months of 2019 we had 5.
- Since Oct 2024 to today we have experienced 3 additional 12ft events.
3. Coulee ill des Cannes (CIDC)remains a major problem. We sent council members that represent affected areas of the parish videos of what happened at CIDC and the river after a 5” rain in May. Note- In 2016 the highest water between the airport and Vermilion Bay was at CIDC and the river.
4. The spot dredging project failed to complete south of rotary point as per the design due to scheduling and cost issues. There is still a major shoal remaining as per the USACE channel survey April 2 2025 south of Coulee Mine at the river.
5. So- Where do we stand 9 years after 2016?
- The drainage efforts by the Robideaux administration after 2016 actually had the unintended consequence of accelerating water flows to the river.
- The drainage efforts by the Guillory administration remain uncompleted.
- The US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Major Dredging Project has not yet begun
6. Net Net – The river cannot handle the volume of water being sent there. Given the right storm we will probably experience another major flood.
Thank you for this time to address this most serious issue.
Dr J Patrick Herrington MD Board Member DTV
Subject :Observations of a Resident that lives along the River
Good evening, Honorable Mayor-President Boulet, Chairman Boudreaux, members of the Council, and Administration.
I’m Dr. Patrick Herrington. My wife and I have lived on the Vermilion River since 1988. Our property on Thibodeaux Drive had not flooded since the catastrophic floods of the 1940s. Contributing to the 40s flooding events were flawed decisions that redirected natural waterways, resulting in unintended consequences downstream. The successful Vermilion River Dredging project, completed in the 1950s, mitigated some of the previous upstream mistakes for many years.
Fast forward to 2016. OUR HOME FLOODED. Trust me, that was a huge shock to see water rushing into our home before that August daybreak. It changes your life.
For years, I’ve noticed changes in the river’s behavior that have profound current and future implications for our community. Increasing amounts of water are now flowing into the river more rapidly, primarily due to unchecked land development and inadequate retention strategies. The Vermilion’s capacity to efficiently move similar volumes of water in the past downstream has decreased due to silting and a lack of maintenance. Even more impactful is the recently expanded Coulee Ille des Cannes (CIDC) , which drains the city of Scott. Its large water volume and rapid flow during heavy rains create a significant water dam that blocks the river’s flow downstream from Lafayette. This damming is another unintended consequence of shifting flooding from one area without considering the effects on another. Current actions or inactions by both the public and private sectors have compromised the Vermilion’s ability to drain efficiently. The river’s behavior now is the proverbial “canary in the coal mine”!
Members of the council, administration, and Mayor-President, our neighborhoods and roads, both near and far from the river, have already suffered repeated damage and remain at risk. The time has come for decisive action. Our community faces increasing flood risks that demand more than routine maintenance—we need a comprehensive, coordinated response.
There are individuals with whom you are already familiar with in the private sector who have experience and intimate knowledge of this watershed area’s complex drainage, its vulnerable choke points, and who currently work with multi-parish and state governmental entities regarding watershed flood mitigation strategies. You need their help, and you need to be the catalyst for forming a comprehensive regional flood mitigation panel and plan involving all stakeholders, neighboring municipalities, parish/officials, state agencies, emergency management, and local experts. This collaborative approach will develop solutions that address flooding at its source, not just its symptoms.
While maintaining our culverts and coulees remains important, we must think bigger. We need integrated watershed management, improved early warning systems, and strategic infrastructure investments and plans that protect our entire region.
The resources and expertise are available. What we need now is leadership to bring everyone to the table.
Engage them in your planning. They are ready to help you pursue bold, decisive solutions now to help protect your citizens.
Look, I realize that the gears of government grind slowly when numerous different entities are involved. However, Mother Nature is not going to wait for a bureaucracy to inch its way to the finish line. We need governance to do everything possible NOW to help avoid a repetition of damage done to the citizens’ property in the 2016 flood, and God forbid, any loss of life. Thank you
Karen Hail Board Member DTV and President Bayou Vermilion District(BVD)
Subject :Request for a Comprehensive Flood Mitigation Plan
Thank you for the opportunity to address the council, Mayor President and Chief Administration Officer.
My name is Karen Hail. I am the President of Bayou Vermilion District Commissioners serving my 3rd term as President and a Dredge the Vermilion board member.
Dredge the Vermilion is a group of highly skilled citizens that have become Subject Matter Expert on our Watershed. We come from different backgrounds different skill sets but we are bound together for the overall good of all of the citizens of Lafayette.
We study the statistics, we travel through the watershed to observe firsthand, we attend local and regional watershed meetings, and we continually debate the issues. And we are discouraged with our city, parish, state and federal government in the management of the watershed.
My first request of you today is a Comprehensive Flood Mitigation Plan for the residents of Lafayette. Lafayette represents the highest risk area in our watershed due to the density of population.
It is my understanding that Lafayette Parish has a required FEMA Flood Mitigation Plan that is updated every 5 years. However, I was informed in 2019 that this plan does not address the Watershed.
The Louisiana Watershed Initiative nor the Acadiana Watershed District have provided a Comprehensive Flood Mitigation Plan. Their efforts are to be recognized however as of this date they have been ineffective for our region in making any significant changes that address flood mitigation. Yet millions have been spent.
My second request is for each of you to take ownership of developing this comprehensive flood mitigation plan. If I were asked today who owns the issue of flood mitigation, I could not answer the questions. Federal, State, Regional, Parish, City, FEMA, Corp of Engineers perhaps the correct answer is the citizens of Lafayette.
Why is my request critical? Because as witnessed this past April and May it only takes a 5 inches downpour for the river to reach flood stage.
We speak for all citizens especially for ones that have no voice or, more appropriately, suffered hardships but have no ability to suggest solutions.
We are proud citizens of Lafayette that love our people and are concerned about the future of Lafayette. Lafayette is the highest risk in the Watershed because of our population numbers and the density of population therefore we need to lead. Example: If there were a comprehensive plan considerations for the priority of projects should be weighted as per population at risk.
Chris Gros Registered Professional Civil Engineer Board Member DTV
Subject :Lafayette’s Current Capital Investment Program. Specifically, Project Schedules and other information.
Thank you for granting me the opportunity to address this distinguished body including the Honorable Mayor-President Monque Boulet, Chairman Boudreaux, and the Lafayette City Council.
My name is Chris Gros, and I stand before you this evening not only as a professional in my field but also as a concerned member of our community.
I am currently a Registered Professional Civil Engineer. I worked 38 years for Chevron’s Gulf of America Offshore Operations (retired in 2017) performing engineering duties as an offshore facilities engineer, with main responsibilities as Offshore Project Manager, Project Engineer, and Major Hazards Facilitator.
I would like to discuss the City’s Current Capital Investment program. Specifically, project schedules.
As a citizen with an engineering background I would like to see in addition to a project list, project schedule milestones to include project start and end dates for engineering activities, bidding and procurement activities, and construction start and completion dates.
I believe public access to project schedules will ease frustrations among citizens concerned with future flooding.
We appreciate all DTV Board Members who showed up and spoke at the City Council meeting! They did a great job and I do believe we have the council and the administration’s attention. Speaking were the following:
Dave Dixon
Dr Pat Herrington
Karen Hail
Chris Gros
Bob Hammick
Jeremiah Supple
Brent Logan
Also attending Darrell Fontenot. After the meeting we visited with Rachael Godeau( Chief Administrative Officer). She advised the delay on the CIDC retention ponds was the USACE permit. We advised her to go lobby the USACE in New Orleans like St Martin Parish did successfully to get a permit they were dragging their feet on.
𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐃𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐠𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐕𝐞𝐫𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐨n
Dredge the Vermilion (DTV) is a non-profit 501(C)(3) setup to inform the public about the need to identify and to perform regional drainage projects in the Teche-Vermilion watershed. The board and advisors of DTV are all citizen volunteers with varying backgrounds from engineering, business owners, business management, medical, banking, and legal.
If you wish to help with our efforts, please like and share our posts on Facebook(search “Dredge the Vermilion”)
Website
Please see our website at www.dredgethevermilion.org if you would like to make a donation. All donations help fund our website, Facebook and other marketing efforts, public outreach, and research.
Thank You,
Dave Dixon
President Dredge the Vermilion