Ever since the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, the Mississippi River had been a main backbone of the American economy. The river and its steady influx of nutrient-rich sediments it provided made the River Delta a prime area for farming and an essential trading post. 

By the end of the 20th century, the Delta had become the heart of the US economy, the nation’s main gateway to the world. It was home to five of the country’s biggest ports, a key entry point for energy supplies, and the biggest hub for agricultural exports. 

But while the river had been a blessing, it had always been a threat as well. The catastrophic Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 was a stern reminder of its deadly, destructive force. The Army Corps of Engineers was charged with taming the river. To prevent future floods, the federal government ordered the world’s longest system of levees and floodways build.

But even with the new levees in place, the situation remained unstable. During its long history the Mississippi has changed its course several times, always seeking the shortest way to the ocean. 

In the 1950s, the levee system was extended to a complex control system, preventing the river from changing its path, forcing it to stay in its current channel. The Old River Control Structure was built as a bulwark against the river’s natural desire to carve out a new, shorter way to the Gulf of Mexico.

Since the 1980s, it was called out as America’s Achilles heel. Its failure would be not only catastrophic to the US and world economies - it would be a fatal blow to the 2 million Mississippi River Delta residents. 

Early warning came from the mastermind behind the control structure. Hans Albert Einstein, son to Albert Einstein and the engineer spearheading the construction, voiced an early warning about the flow of sediment. 

And rightly so. Over time, sediment and sand piled up along the river, dramatically narrowing its pathway. 50 years after the control structure’s completion in 1963, sand and sediment had covered more than half a mile of the riverbed, causing severe flooding upstream.

The Army Corps had to engage in an ever more difficult battle to defy nature. And with the effects of sea levels rising and coastal floods working against them, the engineers were put more and more on the defense. 

In 2057 the battle was lost. As the Midwest blizzard meltwater came racing down the river, it doubled its speed, finally hitting the slender channel left in between growing sandbars. High seawater pressed against floodwaters, and finally, the Mississippi had its way. 

Breaching the levees and overpowering the Old River Control System, the river claimed its new, shorter path to the Gulf, wiping out everything in its way, washing over farmland, streets, and pipelines, cutting New Orleans and its neighboring communities off from drinking water, shutting down ports, stopping domestic and international trade, throwing the US and world economies into chaos and condemning countries depending on American grain to famine and despair. In a matter of days, the Delta was transformed in a massive, toxic swamp, with millions of residents uprooted. 

The nation watched in shock and horror. The response was swift and decisive. 

With states upstream also flooded, and Louisiana’s closest neighbors - Texas and Mississippi - dealing with huge refugee populations, there was immediate consensus that none of these states could take in the millions of new refugees, nor did they have the resources to provide meaningful support. 

The Delta was cut off. Roads and bridges were blocked. Borders were closed - fenced off and guarded by state police and militia. 

The Gulf Coast was declared a disaster area, emergency laws were enacted, and the Mississippi River Delta was declared a Red District - the first of many to come. 

Its people were ordered to stay home - though most of their homes were gone. They were abandoned, and in time forgotten. 

The emergency laws were later challenged in court. Promises were made that the provision would be only temporary. 

As of today, no Red Zone has ever been recovered.