Markland Lock final repair work underway

Published Feb. 19, 2010

isruptions due to river and weather conditions have delayed repair work at the 1,200 foot Markland Lock, Warsaw, Ky. The lock will tentatively open later in March, weather permitting.

The Louisville Repair Station fleet was able to re-hang the middle wall gate leaf on Feb. 2 and the river wall gate leaf on Feb. 3. The Henry M. Shreve gatelifter crane departed up river immediately afterward for the Greenup Locks and Dam, Huntington District, on Feb. 4 to help with their ailing 1,200 foot chamber lock gate.

Once the fleet was reconfigured and the river dropped, the repair crew was able to set maintenance bulkheads downstream of the lower miter gate, place the poiree closure upstream of the lower miter gate, and dewater the area in between. The one-foot snowfall and 20 mph winds hindered the work, but the crew managed to caulk the closures and complete the dewatering on Feb. 15.

"While working 12-hour shifts seven days a week in sub-freezing temperatures and snow storms, the (intra-district and inter-district) repair crew has not lost sight of safety and quality in everything we do," said John Cheek, Chief, Physical Support Branch, Louisville District Operations Division.

The poiree closure, installed upstream of the lower miter gate, allows water to remain in the majority of the lock chamber and only the area in the vicinity of the lower miter gate to be dewatered. Structural limits of a dewatered lock chamber require work to stop at a certain lower gauge. Use of the poiree closure increases the allowable lower gauge from 23.4 feet to 27.5 feet, which in turn increases the amount of work time in the dewatered work area. The chamber would need to be rewatered or flooded purposely at 29 feet.

Each work stoppage or rewatering extends the completion date of the repairs.

Though subject to change, the current repair plans are:

  • Feb. 15-20: Clean the work area and align the miter gate leaves.
  • Feb. 21-22: Install and adjust contact blocks.
  • Feb. 23-24: Pour zinc backing between contact blocks and miter gate leaf.

Locking delays at Markland have been between six to 10 hours.