During a historic winter flood response such as we are witnessing, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Vicksburg District is continually assisting levee boards, state and local government agencies along the Mississippi River in Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi to inspect and observe the levees, relief wells and seepage berms installed since the 2011 event.
A rain system passed over western Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri and southern Illinois that left 10 to 20 inches of precipitation over a thirty day period that filled an already saturated watershed. The resulting run-off entered the Arkansas, the Red and the Missouri rivers and made it's way past Vicksburg, Natchez and New Orleans during the month of January. The predicted/resulting crest of the Mississippi River at Vicksburg was 52 feet on January 15, 2016.
Public safety is our main priority and our systems are performing as designed. We will continue working with our local partners to monitor conditions and take any needed action to address any impacts in the Vicksburg District.
There are teams performing joint inspections and surveillance operations searching for cracks, seepage, sink holes, slides or any damage that might jeopardize the integrity of the levee system. Working along side levee board teams to correct problems as they are discovered.
Questions? Please e-mail us at: CEMVK-PA@USACE.ARMY.MIL or call us at 601-631-5000.