Following a meeting with Bayou Corne residents Tuesday, Gov. Bobby Jindal reiterated his dedication to making a Houston-based brine producer pay damages for a massive sinkhole that has forced the evacuation of the small town in Assumption Parish.
Jindal, who met with the residents of Bayou Corne in a closed-door meeting around 2 p.m., also re-emphasized Texas Brine Co. LLC will be offering voluntary buyouts to locals looking to move on with their lives.
“Texas Brine is responsible for the sinkhole. We’ve been committed to holding them accountable. After months of discussions, after meeting with them last week, the company has finally agreed to start this process,” Jindal said.
Jindal’s remarks come seven months after the slurry hole first swallowed up trees and several acres of swamp in the bucolic bayous of Assumption Parish. Residents have expressed frustration over the state’s ponderous response and Jindal said last week at a press conference in Baton Rouge the buyout offers should have come sooner.
The governor had been mostly silent on the sinkhole until two weeks ago when he repeatedly sidestepped questions from a local television reporter on whether he’d be paying the sinkhole a visit. Jindal said he’s been getting regular updates on the sinkhole since it first appeared and decided to take finally push the company for buyouts after they failed to provide a resolution.
One local could be heard saying during his meeting with Jindal that he was “embarrassed to live here” and he would be taking his buyout and leaving the state.
Sheriff Mike Waguespack poked fun at Jindal for taking his time to visit the site, saying if he was ever late again they’ll “make him swim that sinkhole.”
“He may be a little too skinny to run for president, but he’s not too skinny for a 12-foot alligator,” Waguespack said.
Others said even with the weight of the state government at their backs, they know the buyout process would drag on while Texas Brine maneuvers through the various lawsuits that have been filed against them.
“It’s going to take a long time,” said Ernest Boudreaux, Jr., a Bayou Corne resident. “It’s really not a safe place here at all.”
Almost 350 residents have been under a mandatory evacuation order since the slurry hole erupted Aug. 3. Experts believe the 13-acre sinkhole was caused by a brine cavern drilled into an underground salt deposit buried beneath the nearby towns of Bayou Corne and Grand Bayou. Officials have said the brine cavern was drilled too close to the edge of the salt dome and subsequently collapsed.
A lawyer for Texas Brine said Monday home appraisals should begin next week after residents agree to an inspection visit, The Associated Press reported, and the property’s worth will be determined as of Aug. 2, the day before the slurry area materialized.
Texas Brine, which used to operate the now-failed brine cavern, plugged and abandoned the well in 2011. A second Texas Brine cavern, known as Oxy-Geismar 1, has recently captured the attention of scientists after it was discovered it also might have been drilled too close to the salt dome’s edge.
Last week, Jindal outlined a contingency plan for the town in case Oxy-Geismar 1 also fails, adding that while experts believe there is no data indicating a second cavern collapse is imminent, it behooves the state to have a backup.
Bayou Corne residents react to Gov. Bobby Jindal’s March 19, 2013 visitTwo Bayou Corne residents react to Gov. Bobby Jindal’s talk March 19, 2013 to those affected by the sinkhole near Pierre Part. Texas Brine, the company being held accountable for the sinkhole, has begun the buyout process with more than 50 residents. Other residents, however, don’t want the buyout but rather want to stay on their property.Watch video
Over the coming weeks, Jindal said the state will receive 3-D seismic data that will then be analyzed to determine subsurface conditions. Locals had been reporting natural gas bubbles in the bayou and tremors in the area for months for the sinkhole emerged and Jindal said a plan to move displaced residents back into their homes can’t proceed until that data has been evaluated.
31 vent wells have been installed near the bayou and 21 are currently flaring off natural gas, Jindal said, and more than 10 million cubic feet of natural gas has been vented out of the subsurface.
Additional vent wells will also be installed near the community during the last week of March to vent out more natural gas from the subsurface area, Jindal said, and a berm containment system for the sinkhole will be completed by the end of May.
Jindal’s contingency plan also includes alternative routes in case the ever-expanding sinkhole and the second Texas Brine cavern compromise the popular Louisiana Highway 70 corridor. Jindal said the state Department of Transportation and Development will be installing a monitoring system and sending the $1 million bill to Texas Brine.
Despite the governor’s optimism about holding the company’s “feet to the fire” over the sinkhole, residents were not so enthusiastic about the impending buyouts. Some expressed concern over whether they’d get a fair appraisal while others said they were worried enough people would opt for a settlement and prompt Texas Brine to buy the whole community out.
“What they do get may be the lowball, which is what I think they’re going to get, and that’s how they’re going to determine the prices. It’s not going to be right and the local people can’t afford to hold out everyday,” said Mike Daigre, another Bayou Corne resident. “Some of them may be offered a small amount that may not be right but they’re going to take it and run.
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Guestbook Entry
Our October stay on Mississippi Street bought to mind the Louis Armstrong song hit “What a Wonderful World”. Comfortable, warm accomodations, sumptous views,a relaxed atmosphere—all a weekender could ever desire. The only sad part was when we had to leave. However, we will return to our home away from home again!
Rhodes Spedale