Groundbreaking kicks off Mississippi River floodwall replacement project
Written by Marine Log Staff
The Memphis Engineer District held a groundbreaking ceremony in Caruthersville, Mo., April 3, 2022, to celebrate a federally funded project to replace the Caruthersville Mississippi River floodwall. [Photo: Vance Harris/USACE]
A groundbreaking ceremony held by the Memphis Engineer District in Caruthersville, Mo., April 3, 2022, marked the start of a federally funded project to replace the Caruthersville Mississippi River floodwall.
Those in attendance at the ceremony included Missouri Rep. Jason Smith (8th District), Caruthersville Mayor Sue Grantham, Maj. Gen. Diana M. Holland (President, Mississippi River Commission and Commander, Mississippi Valley Division, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers), St. Francis Levee District of Missouri Vice President Mike S. Bernard, and members of both the Mississippi River Commission and St. Francis Levee District of Missouri.
Around 3,000 linear feet of floodwall will be replaced. The gravity wall sections will be replaced with inverted T-Wall sections and the floodwall will also be raised one foot in height. In addition, the close structure at Carleton Avenue will be permanently closed and an over-levee access ramp will be constructed to replace the closure structure.
Approximately $1.5 million of utility relocations were required to provide the construction contractor a workable construction site.
The St. Francis Levee District of Missouri and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have had to overcome design challenges that included minimizing impacts to a pedestrian walkway that is an important economic resource for the City of Caruthersville; determining the best temporary flood protection during construction; minimizing impacts to existing seepage features in the general vicinity of the floodwall; incorporating resiliency features for future flood events; and phasing of construction to minimize impacts to adjacent stakeholders.
The estimated contract award in April 2022 for this project is $20-25 million. Construction is estimated to start this summer, with completion in winter 2024.
