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June 24, 2019Tarkio, MO |  By: Molly Gardner

Levee repaired on Little Tarkio Creek

(Photo courtesy of modot.org)

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Service partnered with Holt County last week on the emergency repair of a levee that was in danger of failing and flooding the town of Fortesque. State Conservation Engineer Marty Comstock says the NRCS was contacted by Holt County for levee district number 14 along Little Tarkio Creek so that flood waters would not breach.

"...under NRCS' emergency watershed protect program that we have the ability to assist communities with recovering from natural disaster.  We were contacted by the local levee district - owners of levee district number 14 - that they were having some issues with the stability of one of their levees.  That was still intact but flows were kind of eroding the slope of it.  They needed assistance to stabilize so it did not breach."

Comstock says crews were able to assess the damage and fix the levee in less than a week.

"We pretty quickly assessed the site with them, entered into an agreement, getting some construction plans.  Then they contacted a contractor and got to work that very day we got that agreement in place with them. And within like five days they had the rock placed and got the levee stabilized."

If the levee was not fixed in time, in peril was $2 million worth of homes, businesses and infrastructure, including 15 homes, a grain elevator, grain storage facilities and roads. Work was completed on the Thursday, June 20th.