Canal St. sinkhole to impede traffic for 3-6 month

Dionne Johnson

9 years ago

A major sinkhole has now formed near the foot of Canal Street in Between Harrah’s and Canal Place near where an underground tunnel was built in the 60s.The large area caved in sometime around 3 p.m. in an area that had already been shut off to traffic due to concern over a wall near a hidden underground tunnel built in the 60s but never utilized.“This is nothing short of incredible,” said Mayor Mitch Landrieu, who explained that it seemed that a massive leak seeped into the ground and compromised a wall at the location.Landrieu estimated that it would take 3-6 months to fix the problem and that engineers would be working on a traffic flow plan. Until that time, the lakebound lanes of Canal Street near the foot of Canal St. will be closed.Cedric Grant, the executive director of the Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans said the repairs would likely cost between $3 million and $5 million.