OMAHA, Neb. -- As part of the ongoing repairs to Missouri River Levee System L-536 in northwest Missouri, contractors for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers-Omaha District have returned the levee system to its pre-flood height.
“The L-536 team has worked resiliently to reach this major milestone, said Carlie Hively, L-536 project manager, USACE-Omaha. “Continually providing innovative solutions with a focus on the ability to construct a high-quality product through adverse winter weather conditions. Returning the system to full height is a great accomplishment for the team and the District, but we continue to press forward to provide the community with a fully repaired levee system as soon as possible.”
This is a critical milestone in the federal levee repair efforts and work will continue throughout the 2021 construction season to completely restore the L-536 levee system. Additionally, there is work to be completed by others along Mill Creek which will further reduce the flood risk. All levee systems eligible to PL 84-99 rehabilitation assistance within the Omaha District area of responsibility have now been returned to their full height following the historical 2019 flood.
“I'm tremendously proud of the entire team that has worked so hard to restore our federal levee systems. L-536 is another great example of their commitment and expertise,” said Col. Mark Himes, commander, USACE-Omaha. “We'll continue to keep pushing hard to bring all the federal levees back to their full level of flood risk reduction.”
Although significant strides have been made in repairing the over 350 miles of federal levees across the Lower Missouri River Basin that were damaged following the historic floods of 2019, a heightened level of flood risk remains for the communities and landowners behind these damaged levee systems as repair efforts remain ongoing. This risk is higher than it was prior to the flood event because the levees are comprised of a series of components that all function together to create a complete levee system, and until all of these components, (such as seepage berms and relief wells) are repaired, the system does not fully provide the same level of flood risk reduction as it did in its pre-flood condition.
The Omaha District remains focused on ensuring the safety of citizens and remain positioned to provide flood fight assistance to state, local and tribal government agencies, as appropriate. We will also continue working with our other federal partners to communicate the conditions on the river systems as we look towards the 2021 run-off season. When severe weather and/or heavy precipitation is forecasted, the public is encouraged to keep in contact with their local emergency managers for the latest conditions in their area.
Release no. 21-016