New Orleans Schools Get More Insurance Money for Katrina Damage

Lawyers for the Orleans Parish School Board have garnered another $17 million in insurance proceeds to help cover damage done by Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath.

District officials said Thursday the money is slated to go toward $2 billion worth of citywide school construction and renovation already underway as part of the master plan for rehabilitating New Orleans, La., public schools.

The Times-Picayune reports the money comes from a legal settlement with Westchester Surplus Lines Insurance, one of four insurance companies on a $200 million policy that covered the school system’s infrastructure before the storm.

The deal still needs approval from the Board.

Interim Superintendent Stan Smith says the district has already managed to get about $60 million from private insurers and the National Flood Insurance Program.