Corps awards $2.5 million contract for Lock and Dam 2 guidewall repairs

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, awarded a $2.5 million contract to Dubuque Barge and Fleeting Service Company doing business as Newt Marine Service out of Dubuque, Iowa, to make repairs to the upper guidewall at Lock and Dam 2, near Hastings, Minnesota.

Guidewalls are long extensions of the lock walls, in either the upstream or downstream direction, that are parallel to the lock wall. These walls serve primarily to guide the long tows into the lock and to provide mooring facilities for tows too long to be accommodated in a single lockage.

The repair work focuses on rebuilding the upper guidewall framework, which sustained damage from a tow barge collision in October 2023, ensuring the stabilization of the structure for future years. The work is scheduled to begin this winter and should be completed before the spring of 2025. The repair work will not impact navigation since the work will be completed during the winter closure.

The St. Paul District navigation program provides a safe, reliable, cost-effective and environmentally sustainable waterborne transportation system on the Upper Mississippi River for the movement of commercial goods and for national security needs. To do this, the district maintains a 9-foot navigation channel and 13 locks and dams from Minneapolis to Guttenberg, Iowa. Keeping this system open is vital to the nation’s economy.

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