OMAHA, Neb. -- The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District, awarded a $12 million contract for a second initial breach repair to Levee L575 to protect critical infrastructure along the Missouri River near Hamburg, Iowa Friday.
The purpose of the breach repair is to provide temporary flood protection at the specified breached area of the levee. The contract was awarded to Newt Marine Services, Dubuque, Iowa. This particular stretch of levee has suffered extensive damage during this year’s high runoff event.
“This is one of four priority sites identified for initial breach closures,” said Jeremy Szynskie, project manager, Omaha District System Restoration Team. “The initial repairs will stop the flow of water through the levees so repairs can be made to areas behind the levee such as I-29 and the City of Hamburg, Iowa. The repairs will also reduce the risk of flooding during normal storm events before the rest of the levees can be evaluated and repaired.”
In parallel to repair efforts, the Omaha District has begun planning of the permanent levee repairs to bring the levees damaged by the March flood to the same level of authorized flood risk reduction that the systems had prior to the flood.
The Corps of Engineers expects that the majority of the breach repair fill material will be dredged from the riverbank near the site. The work is anticipated to be completed by 80 calendar days after Notice-to-Proceed.
There are more than 500 miles of levees on the Missouri, Platte and Elkhorn rivers, and tributaries that have experienced significant flood damage. Due to the magnitude of damage along these levees, repair of the levee system efforts will take an extended period of time to execute. Levees must be active in the Public Law 84-99 program to be eligible for federal funding for repairs.
Omaha District’s focus remains on ensuring the safety of citizens and communicating the conditions on the river systems to all of our partners and stakeholders. The Corps continues to provide flood fight assistance to state, local and tribal government agencies.
For regular updates on the repair efforts to flood control structures in the Missouri River Basin, visit the Omaha District’s System Restoration web page at: https://www.nwo.usace.army.mil/Omaha-District-System-Restoration-Team/.