A2: Weather Wonk

On the Ann Arbor-based Weather Underground’s Wunder Blog, Jeff Masters writes about the Old River Control Structure, a 50-year-old civil-engineering feat in Louisiana that harnesses the Mississippi River and that could be challenged in the coming days: “Flow rates of the Mississippi at the latitude of the Old River Control Structure are expected to exceed the all-time record on Saturday, giving the Old River Control Structure its greatest test since the flood of 1973. … This is a dangerous flood, and very high water levels are expected for many weeks. Unexpected flaws in the design of the Old River Control Structure may give it a few percent chance of failure under these sorts of unprecedented conditions.” [Source]