Port of New Orleans’ cargo volumes at 80% of past levels

Port of New Orleans’ cargo volumes at 80% of past levels    Officials at the Port of New Orleans say cargo levels are up to 80 percent of normal volumes before the city was devastated by Hurricane Katrina and subsequent flooding.
   The port reported that daily gate moves at the Napoleon Avenue Container Terminal topped 800 twice during the second week of January, which is 87 percent of the pre-Katrina average of 920 gate moves per day. Daily moves are now averaging around 750 per day at the terminal.
   Stevedores also report that nearly 1,000 import containers are scheduled to come into the terminal the week of Jan. 23.
   “These are remarkable figures,” said Gary LaGrange, the port’s president and chief executive officer, noting some predictions immediately after the hurricane that no ships would be able to call the port for six months. “Well, here we are not even five months out and our recovery process is on pace with our own demanding schedule.”
   Terminal operators say breakbulk volumes are also improving, and predict that during the first quarter of this year breakbulk volumes will reach about 65 percent of pre-Katrina levels.