Lake Peigneur[1] is a brackish lake in the U.S. state of Louisiana, 1.2 mi north of Delcambre and 9.1 mi west of New Iberia, near the northernmost tip of Vermilion Bay. With a maximum depth of 200 ft, it is the deepest lake in Louisiana. Its name comes from the French word "peigneur", meaning "one who combs."
Previously, it had been a 10 ft freshwater lake, popular for recreation, until human activity caused an unusual disaster on November 20, 1980, that changed its structure and the surrounding land.[2][3]
Drilling disaster
In petroleum geology, the formation of a salt dome often pushes terrain upward from the surrounding land, while also creating a subterranean salt dome trap, holding petroleum deposits. A salt dome trap below Lake Peigneur caused upward thrust of the overlying soil, resulting in the formation of Jefferson Island, located near the southeast side of the lake.