Mercedes-Benz Superdome Suffers Minimal Damage From Hurricane Isaac

SMG Senior VP/Stadiums & Arenas Doug Thornton said that the Mercedes-Benz Superdome “sustained no major interior or exterior damage from Hurricane Isaac and is expected to be ready” for the Rutgers-Tulane football game Saturday, according to Jeff Duncan of the New Orleans TIMES-PICAYUNE. The roof suffered "no visible damage and there were no visible leaks in the building after a preliminary inspection Wednesday.” Stadium officials “still had not had time to conduct an exterior assessment because of dangerous weather conditions.” Thornton in an e-mail said that unlike during Hurricane Katrina in '05, the dome “never lost power or water pressure during the storm,” so there was no "food spoilage or plumbing problems." Duncan noted the hurricane's impact included minor wind damage to “sheet metal flashing around the exterior electronic video boards on the metal pylon along I-10” and minimal damage to the "advertising panels on the pylon.” There also was damage to "advertising panels and sheet metal flashing around the Poydras Street video board” (NOLA.com, 8/29).

NFL TO MONITOR SITUATION: The Saints are scheduled to open the season at home next Sunday against the Redskins, and ESPN's John Clayton reported while the NFL anticipates that Isaac will be “moving on from there," the league is likely "going to stay in touch with the Saints.” Clayton: “The NFL would like to be able to have the game going. They think there’s enough time to try to do some of the cleanup, but if not then they’ll make preparations to do something else” (“NFL Live,” ESPN, 8/29).