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SEA OF JAPAN - On Monday, August 20 of 2018, Gas Turbine Systems Technician 3rd Class Skye Rochon (left), from Rayne, directs Gas Turbine Systems Technician 3rd Class Matthew Fioramonti, from Loxahatchee, Florida, and Relgious Program Specialist 1st Class Ryan Pena (right), from York, Pennsylvania, on the flight deck of the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Antietam (CG54) during a crash and salvage training drill. Antietam is on patrol in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operation supporting security and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.

Under the direction of Mayor Charles “Chuck” Robichaux and Police Chief Carroll Stelly, the city’s award winning drain clearing system instituted over the past year as part of the city’s culvert cleaning system has gained state-wide attention.
The summer months have been busy for city workers as Rayne welcomed numerous city officials and mayors to learn what the new system can provide for their community’s own drainage system.
“Since we were awarded last year at LMA for our new drain cleaning system,” states Robichaux, “we’ve had many mayors and city officials call us to come by and examine the ABC’s of what they need to institute a similar system for their city. So far, we’ve welcomed two groups and have calls for additional municipalities to come by.”
Rayne welcomed a number of cities during the week of the 2018 LMA Convention held in Lake Charles. City representatives of Ville Platte and Bogalusa took notes during an afternoon visit to the Frog Capital.
In August, Robichaux and his staff welcomed the cities of Abbeville, Eunice and Kaplan when they shared the specifics of the drain cleaning system.
“It’s ours to share,” stated Robichaux during the August visit by the three Acadiana cities. “If we can help others throughout the state, why not help our neighbors.”
The rather simple, low-cost approach to clearing badly clogged city drains of everything from sediment to car tires has proven effective to prevent flooding in this flood-prone region of the state.
LMA’s subsidiary, LaMATS, has taken a role in promoting Rayne’s home-grown technology statewide as part of its mission to provide technical service and advice to Louisiana municipalities.
LaMATS Executive Director Cliff Palmer applauds Robichaux’s initiative and generosity in sharing the culvert-clearing system with neighboring cities and communities.