U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Whistleblower Says NOLA Emergency Pumps are Defective

By Aaron Poehler

Published on October 11, 2007

Civil engineer Maria Garzino has filed for federal whistleblower status with the U.S. Office of Special Counsel after charging that the current system has not been tested properly and contains defective pumps, placing New Orleans residents at risk should flooding recur. The pumps in question were manufactured by Moving Water Industries Corp. (MWI) of Deerfield Beach, Florida, a company owned by J. David Eller, a previous business partner of former Florida Governor Jeb Bush.

According to Garzino's allegations, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers officials overlooked widespread problems with MWI's pumps so that the contractor would earn a $5 million financial incentive for delivering the pumps before the 2006 hurricane season. Though Garzino alerted her superiors as to the substandard nature of the pumps delivered by MWI, testing requirements were altered without the contracting officer's approval, allowing MWI to collect the incentive. Garzino also alleges that no work was done to correct the problems she identified after her departure from New Orleans.

Eller has contributed more than $140,000 to Republican candidates and political causes since 1993, and is currently under investigation by the FBI for his role in the sale of $74.3M worth of pumps and other equipment to Nigeria.

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