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ASCE New Orleans Branch
2023 Lifetime Achievement Award Winner
Cecil Soileau, P.E.
Congratulations to the the ASCE New Orleans Branch 2023 Lifetime Achievement Award winner, Cecil Soileau, P.E. Mr. Soileau’s journey with ASCE began when he was a college junior in 1961, and he has been a lifelong member since 2003. During his impressive career in Water Resources Engineering, his achievements include conducting the first Floodplain Information Report in the US for St. Bernard Parish after Hurricane Hilda in 1964 and performing the first Flood Insurance Study (FIS) that included tsunamis in Hawaii after Hurricane Agnes in 1969.
He played a crucial role in designing hurricane protection systems and jetties in Grand Isle, along with assisting Rep. Lindy Boggs in securing funding for construction. Mr. Soileau also oversaw several critical projects along the lower Mississippi, such as conducting physical testing of the Old River Auxiliary Control Structure in 1975, conducting physical and numerical modeling of riverine control works in response to the 1973-74 floods that closed Southwest Pass, managing the dewatering of the Old River Control Structure, and participating in planning saltwater barriers at Belle Chasse in the mid-1980s.
In 1980 and 1987, the USACE Chief of Engineers selected Mr. Soileau to travel to Shanghai, China, to assist with navigation improvements in Shanghai Harbor. Later, he served as the Executive Secretary of USACE’s Committee on Tidal Hydraulics. In 2006, he developed a drainage plan for Harahan and River Ridge, which was eventually incorporated into the SELA project. In 2008, he was nominated to become a founding diplomate of the American Academy of Water Resource Engineers.