The New Orleans levee system, rebuilt after Hurricane Katrina, passed the Hurricane Ida test

As it barreled into southern Louisiana as a Category 4 storm on Sunday, Hurricane Ida drew comparisons to 2005's Hurricane Katrina, which ravaged New Orleans and overwhelmed its aging levee system exactly 16 years earlier. Ida knocked out power to New Orleans and caused other damage, but the levees, flood walls, and floodgates held and protected the city from the storm surge.

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.