--- title: The Mind-Blowing Flaw That Flooded New Orleans link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ku_ockR2t44 source: youtube-com-practicalengineeringchannel published: 2026-07-07T13:00:05Z updated: 2026-09-03T07:10:46Z first_seen: 2026-09-08T10:17:10.166315Z authors: - Practical Engineering summary: |- Based on a chapter from Disasters By Design: How Engineering Failures Shaped the Modern World by Grady Hillhouse, coming March 2, 2027, and available for preorder now. US: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/786143/disasters-by-design-by-grady-hillhouse/ UK: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/476190/disasters-by-design-by-hillhouse-grady/9780241798508 More About the Book: https://practical.engineering/books What happened in New Orleans in August 2005 wasn’t a natural disaster. A number of engineering errors made the hurricane far more deadly than it would have been otherwise. And I built a model to show you why. Watch this video ad-free on Nebula: https://nebula.tv/videos/practical-engineering-why-the-levees-failed-in-new-orleans Signed copies of my first book (plus other cool stuff) are available here: https://store.practical.engineering/ Practical Engineering is a YouTube channel about infrastructure and the human-made world around us. It is hosted, written, and produced by Grady Hillhouse. We have new videos posted regularly, so please subscribe for updates. If you enjoyed the video, hit that ‘like’ button, give us a comment, or watch another of our videos! CONNECT WITH ME ____________________________________ Website: http://practical.engineering Twitter: https://twitter.com/HillhouseGrady Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/practicalengineering Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/PracticalEngineering Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PracticalEngineerGrady​ Patreon: http://patreon.com/PracticalEngineering SPONSORSHIP INQUIRIES ____________________________________ Please email my agent at practicalengineering@standard.tv DISCLAIMER ____________________________________ This is not engineering advice. Everything here is for informational and entertainment purposes only. Contact an engineer licensed to practice in your area if you need professional advice or services. All non-licensed clips used for fair use commentary, criticism, and educational purposes. SPECIAL THANKS ____________________________________ Stock video and imagery provided by Getty Images, Shutterstock, Pond5, and Videoblocks. Video by Grady Hillhouse Edited by Wesley Crump Produced by Ralph Crewe Graphics by Nebula Studios MUSIC CREDITS ____________________________________ Aural Imprints from Epidemic Sound Rhubarb from Epidemic Sound Woodland Expedition composed by Caleb Winters (https://beacons.ai/calebwinters) Magnified XY from Epidemic Sound All Parts Equal from Epidemic Sound Tonic and Energy by Elexive is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6fBPdu8w9U content: extracted html: 2026-07-07-the-mind-blowing-flaw-that-flooded-new-orleans.html preview: file: 2026-07-07-the-mind-blowing-flaw-that-flooded-new-orleans.preview-ddb2720dc220.webp width: 256 height: 192 color: '#6f7372' images: - source: https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Ku_ockR2t44/maxresdefault.jpg original: file: 2026-07-07-the-mind-blowing-flaw-that-flooded-new-orleans.image-20434833b115.jpg width: 1280 height: 720 variants: - file: 2026-07-07-the-mind-blowing-flaw-that-flooded-new-orleans.image-f56eec135ec0.webp width: 48 height: 27 color: '#fbfbfc' extra: thumbnail: https://i4.ytimg.com/vi/Ku_ockR2t44/hqdefault.jpg --- Based on a chapter from Disasters By Design: How Engineering Failures Shaped the Modern World by Grady Hillhouse, coming March 2, 2027, and available for preorder now.\ US: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/786143/disasters-by-design-by-grady-hillhouse/\ UK: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/476190/disasters-by-design-by-hillhouse-grady/9780241798508\ More About the Book: https://practical.engineering/books What happened in New Orleans in August 2005 wasn’t a natural disaster. A number of engineering errors made the hurricane far more deadly than it would have been otherwise. And I built a model to show you why. Watch this video ad-free on Nebula: https://nebula.tv/videos/practical-engineering-why-the-levees-failed-in-new-orleans Signed copies of my first book (plus other cool stuff) are available here: https://store.practical.engineering/ Practical Engineering is a YouTube channel about infrastructure and the human-made world around us. It is hosted, written, and produced by Grady Hillhouse. We have new videos posted regularly, so please subscribe for updates. If you enjoyed the video, hit that ‘like’ button, give us a comment, or watch another of our videos! CONNECT WITH ME\ \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\ Website: http://practical.engineering\ Twitter: https://twitter.com/HillhouseGrady\ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/practicalengineering\ Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/PracticalEngineering\ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PracticalEngineerGrady​\ Patreon: http://patreon.com/PracticalEngineering SPONSORSHIP INQUIRIES\ \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\ Please email my agent at practicalengineering@standard.tv DISCLAIMER\ \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\ This is not engineering advice. Everything here is for informational and entertainment purposes only. Contact an engineer licensed to practice in your area if you need professional advice or services. All non-licensed clips used for fair use commentary, criticism, and educational purposes. SPECIAL THANKS\ \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\ Stock video and imagery provided by Getty Images, Shutterstock, Pond5, and Videoblocks.\ Video by Grady Hillhouse\ Edited by Wesley Crump\ Produced by Ralph Crewe\ Graphics by Nebula Studios MUSIC CREDITS\ \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\ Aural Imprints from Epidemic Sound\ Rhubarb from Epidemic Sound\ Woodland Expedition composed by Caleb Winters (https://beacons.ai/calebwinters)\ Magnified XY from Epidemic Sound\ All Parts Equal from Epidemic Sound\ Tonic and Energy by Elexive is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License\ Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6fBPdu8w9U