New Orleans’ levees face a hard test as storm bears down

New Orleans residents are warily eying the levees that protect their city from a swollen Mississippi River as Tropical Storm Barry approaches the Gulf Coast.
Never in the modern history of New Orleans has water from the Mississippi River overtopped the city’s levees. That could change this weekend if it turns out forecasters are underestimating the storm’s flooding threat.
On Thursday, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers models weren’t calling for water from the river to rise above Ne