The Huntington District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) announces the start of construction on the Magnolia Levee Dam Safety Modification Project.
Magnolia Levee was designed and built by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and completed in 1938. USACE operates Magnolia Levee for flood damage reduction. The levee is located in Stark and Carroll Counties of Ohio. It is an appurtenant structure to Bolivar Dam and located seven miles to the east of the dam on Sandy Creek of the Tuscarawas River. As a whole, the Muskingum Area system of dams and levees has prevented $7.9 Billion in flood damages through fiscal year 2022.
Although the majority of Magnolia Levee was raised to offer additional flood protection in the 1950's, the section of the levee that is slated to be repaired lacked the real estate to extend the toe of the levee and sufficient distance towards the land side (i.e. into the Village). Therefore, an I-wall was placed on top of the levee at this location.
Lessons learned from Hurricane Katrina have taught the Corps of Engineers that I-wall instability could be an issue at Magnolia during extreme flood events when the I-wall gets loaded by the lake behind Bolivar Dam. Based upon the most recent risk assessment of Magnolia Levee in 2019, USACE considers this levee to be a high-risk levee among the more than 700 dams and levees because of unacceptable levels of risk associated with the sand and gravel foundation and I-wall instability. The levee is generally considered to be safe under normal conditions but has an unacceptable risk of failure if there is a flood event larger than the 2005 record flood.
Upcoming construction to remediate the levee will likely begin in the Spring of 2025 and progress throughout the year. The project generally includes:
• Excavation of the ponding area channel from State Route 183 to the pump station
• Installation of temporary steel sheet piling and groundwater dewatering system
• Placement of gravel and stone for 350 linear feet South of State Route 183
• Placement of a double concrete box culvert and gravel and sand fill in the ponding area next to the pump station
• Extension of drainage pipes in the pump station ponding area covered by gravel and sand fill
• Driving of steel piles next to the I-wall atop the levee embankment
• Placement of additional concrete next to the existing I-wall to serve as a buttress
While the Contractor’s work may cause some temporary inconveniences, the project is a long-term investment in the safety of the Village of Magnolia from significant flooding. Possible inconveniences could include noise from construction equipment (especially while driving piles), noise from generators, changes in traffic patterns, and large vehicle traffic. However, the Contractor currently plans to limit construction activities to the daytime hours.
This project is scheduled to be completed in Spring 2026.