The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District, awarded an $8.5 million contract Wednesday to close a breach in the L601 levee along the Missouri River near river mile 583, northwest of Bartlett, in Mills County Iowa.
USACE awarded the contract to Newt Marine Service out of Dubuque, Iowa.
The breach closure will ensure that a minimum level of protection is provided during repairs of critical infrastructure behind the levee, such as the I-29.
The initial breach closure is scheduled for completion in 30 days and the placement of all material in the breach is scheduled to be completed in 80 days.
“ The site was complicated by difficult access to the identified borrow area ,” said Jeremy Szynskie, Project Manager for USACE . “ To help with this, the contractor plans to bring 2-3 smaller dredges to the project and use sand from the area on the land side of the levee .”
The Omaha District continues to perform levee assessments as waters subside, and planning is still underway to repair the 50 breaches caused by the March high runoff event.
Final repairs will be made to the same level of flood risk reduction authorized by Congress, in place prior to March.