Contact: Nola Leyde (206) 764-6896

Seattle -- Known for it's wet weather in the west and rising rivers east of the cascades, it is not surprising to see flood damage reduction structures in place throughout Washington, Idaho and Montana. Would your community’s flood damage reduction structures protect you and your property in a flood?

A good maintenance program before flooding begins is the key to protecting life and property when rivers rise and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is available to assist county emergency management officials to ensure flood damage reduction.

Under its Rehabilitation and Inspection Program (PL-84-99) the Corps provides engineering inspections and reviews of structural modifications for eligible flood control projects to make certain the structures are well-maintained and capable of providing the level of flood protection they were designed to provide for your communities.

After a flood, the Corps has authority to supplement local efforts in the repair of both federal (Corps-constructed, locally-operated and maintained) and non-federal (constructed, operated and maintained by non-federal interests) flood control structures damaged by flooding if they are active in the Corps Rehabilitation and Inspection Program.

Although the Corps makes regular inspections of flood control projects, but does not inspect or rehabilitate inactive projects. Many county elected officials are not aware of a number of flood control projects in an inactive status in their jurisdiction.

To be eligible for the rehabilitation and inspection program, active state or county registered public sponsors for the flood control projects (levees, dikes, channels, etc.) must request an Initial Eligibility Inspection, upon which the Corps will inspect the project to determine if it provides at least a 10-year level of flood protection for a community or a 5-year level of protection for agricultural crops for three or more farmers, be maintained and operated to Corps standards prior to the onset of flooding and be deemed active at the time of the flood.

If a flood control project is inactive, or is not part of the Corps’ Rehabilitation and Inspection Program, the Corps is not authorized to provide rehabilitation assistance following a flood.

Having your flood control structures active in the rehabilitation and inspection program will enable the Corps to assist communities prepare for the next flood season.

To request an Initial Eligibility Inspection or for additional information, contact Doug Weber,

Rehabilitation and Inspection Program Manager for Seattle, at (206) 764-3406 or douglas.t.weber@usace.army.mil.