VICKSBURG, Miss. -- The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Vicksburg District has reopened the road over Arkabutla Dam at Arkabutla Lake, located in Tate and DeSoto counties in north Mississippi.
The road was recently closed for the installation of new piezometers on the top of the dam. The road along the dam’s base was also closed July 19 due to the discovery of a non-threatening sinkhole, and will remain closed until repairs are complete.
The road across the top of the dam will remain open for approximately two weeks until crews resume installation of piezometers on the top side of the dam. The new piezometers will measure groundwater elevations, pore water pressures and other key metrics.
Arkabutla, Sardis, Enid and Grenada lakes, the four Mississippi flood control reservoirs in the Vicksburg District’s area of responsibility, were authorized by the Flood Control Act of 1936, which provided a plan designed to address flooding that originated in the Yazoo Basin. The four reservoirs are used to hold runoff, or excess rainwater, as a flood-prevention measure. With approximately 3.2 million visitors each year, the north Mississippi lakes also contribute approximately $82 million into the local economy.
The USACE Vicksburg District is engineering solutions to the nation’s toughest challenges. The Vicksburg District encompasses a 68,000-square-mile area across portions of Mississippi, Arkansas and Louisiana that holds seven major river basins and incorporates approximately 460 miles of mainline Mississippi River levees. The district is engaged in hundreds of projects and employs approximately 1,100 personnel.
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Release no. 20-057