MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- On U.S. Army Corps of Engineers contractors have completed maintenance work to cleanout Ditch 10 in Poinsett County, west of Trumann, Arkansas, 70 days ahead of schedule and $44,546 under budget.
The four-mile section of ditch cleaned out is part of a 15.7-mile system of drainage streams and ditches that carry excess storm water runoff south and away from the Northeast Arkansas area around and west of Trumann, Payneway, and Marked Tree. The water ultimately empties into the Mississippi River southeast of Marianna.
The prime contractor for the project was A-Rock Construction Company of Greenwood, Mississippi, and their sub-contractor Donald Bond Construction of Benton, Missouri, restored the channel to its specified dimensions and design.
“They performed excavation work within the right-of-way limits, cleared and removed snags, put erosion control features in place, and placed riprap stone where needed,” Loy Hamilton, the Corps’ Wynne Area Office Engineer said. “They removed a total of 251,223 cubic yards of dirt and materials from the channel. That’s equal to almost 14,000 large dump trucks.”
As is the case with all Corps of Engineers projects, safety is a top priority.
“The contractor’s team worked a total of 9,368 man-hours with zero accidents or lost time,” Hamilton said.
“Building and maintaining strong partnerships is one of the top priorities for the Memphis District,” Phillip Rogers, Senior Operations Project Manager said. “And this is a great example of working with our local partner to reduce flood risk in the area.”
The Corps’ local partner for this project was Drainage District No. 7. Doyle Hillis is the Director of Operations.
This $2.1 million maintenance job was 100 percent federally funded through the Mississippi River and Tributaries Project.
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