ST. PAUL, Minn. – -- The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, is closing three of its locks and dams for winter maintenance Dec. 9. The closures will officially end the 2024 navigation season on the Upper Mississippi River between Hastings, Minnesota, and Lynxville, Wisconsin.
Lock and Dam 7, near La Crescent, Minnesota, and Lock and Dam 9, near Lynxville, will close to all river traffic Dec. 9 - Feb. 27, 2025. Additionally, Lock and Dam 2, near Hastings, Minnesota, will be closed Dec. 9 - March 14, 2025.
The maintenance at Locks and Dams 7 and 9 involves replacing the miter gate anchorages, or hinges, that hold the gates to the wall. The new anchorages will help ensure the lock system continues to provide safe, reliable navigation to shippers throughout the Upper Midwest. The St. Paul District maintenance and repair team will perform this maintenance.
Maintenance at Lock and Dam 2 is focused on repairing damages to the upstream guide wall that was damaged. The wall helps vessels safely enter the lock chamber. Dubuque Barge and Fleeting Service Company, from Dubuque, Iowa, is performing these repairs.
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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Release no. 24-075