The Fairfax County community of Belle Haven, which was ravaged by Hurricane Isabel in 2003, is vulnerable enough to frequent flooding to qualify for millions of dollars worth of federal protection, according to early findings by the Army Corps of Engineers.

The corps told the riverside residents near Alexandria this week that they meet cost-benefit standards for federal funding to build a $13 million combination levee and flood wall. More than 200 buildings there were damaged when the hurricane struck, said corps Project Manager Stacey Underwood.