What problems

did the French

engineer,

Ferdinand de

Lessup run into

when building the

Panama Canal?

diseases such as malaria, cholera, and the yellow fever killed thousands while the french attempted to build the canal.

Their plans were hasty and ill-prepared. The French failed to realize that although a sea-level canal worked in Egypt, it would not be possible in Panama. Due to the difference in sea levels between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, a sea-level canal in Panama would not be possible. During their attempt to build a canal in Panama, the French lost 20,000 workers and millions of dollars before they abandoned construction.