LIKE BRIDGES, WHEN DO LEVEES BECOME A SOCIAL POBLEM? Media Spotlight Levee Flaws in Isolation

Yesterday Peter Whoriskey of the WPost detailed the weaknesses in the dike surrounding Lake Okeechobee in Florida. If the dike failed, as might happen if a major hurricane hit the region, the lake would flood the surrounding area, affecting about 40,000 residents.

I have spotted a few of these kind of stories in the news, focusing on a specific region or area and the problems with dikes or levees designed to prevent catatrosphic flooding. But when do the media and advocates re-define these isolated features into a larger national problem that requires national legislation and funding?

I am reminded a few years back of the media reports of bridges collapsing, killing motorists as they traveled across the spans. Eventually these isolated incidents were redefined as a critical national problem by advocates and the media, prompting state and national funding for massive bridge repair projects.