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Back before the city council Tuesday afternoon, Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson says leaking pipes and plumbing issues have flooded the Orleans Parish Jail with problems.
“This whole thing has been building for a while. The issues have been present for years, they’ve worsened over time. That has to do with the aging system, deferred maintenance, and increased strain on our facility due to the capacity,” said Hutson.
The sheriff’s office is requesting about $300,000 for emergency repairs and about $900,000 for other needed fixes.
“We have 16 active leaks. These leaks are causing damage to control panels that now we have to replace. So, it’s leading to other things that now have to be replaced,” said Chief Financial Officer at the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office Bianka Brown.
Brown says recent flooding even left about three feet of water on the jail’s third floor. Contractors point to subpar work when the jail was built ten years ago as a cause of the leaks.