ITT Industries (www.itt.com) donated $250,000 to the Red Cross (www.redcross.org) and is offering dewatering pumps and reverse-osmosis filtration systems to aid Hurricane Katrina recovery efforts in affected areas in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. In addition, the company sent night-vision equipment and personnel to assist in round-the-clock search and rescue efforts.
ITT has installed more than 70 large turbine pumps in New Orleans over the years as part of the city”s flood control system. Together, these pumps are capable of pumping up to 2 billion gallons an hour. To supplement these systems in the hurricane”s aftermath, ITT has prepared a fleet of more than 100 large submersible pumps, routinely rented for dewatering projects, to help remove the floodwaters from New Orleans. Developed just prior to the “Great Midwest Flood of 1993,” these engine-driven pumps can each remove 20,000 gallons of water per minute. The company has also readied numerous smaller units capable of pumping between 100 and 15,000 gallons of water per minute.
To help provide potable water to victims of Hurricane Katrina, ITT has prepared chlorination and UV disinfection equipment. This equipment can provide up to 250,000 gallons of water per day. The company provided similar systems to Iraq and following the tsunami in Sri Lanka to provide clean drinking water.
ITT night vision equipment and training personnel are already in Louisiana, enabling searches to continue around the clock. The company donated 22 night-vision goggles to police agencies and has offered training in mission applications. Further, ITT imagers are providing real-time satellite imagery to rescue and relief operations.
— Flow Control Staff