The Ohio River is closed today, after the failure of hydraulics that open and close the lower gate at Lock 53 near Brookport, Ill., according to the Waterways Council Inc., which notes that closure was preceded in mid-September by an obstruction found in the main chamber at the lock that did not allow the gates to close properly. It also said an early September failure of the wooden wickets at nearby Lock & Dam (L&D) 52 also highlighted critical, but aging, lock and dam infrastructure on the inland waterways system.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is attempting to fix the problems as vessels shipping key commodities wait in a growing queue that is currently 46 miles long.
In service since 1928, Locks and Dams 52 and 53 on the Ohio River are to be replaced by the Olmsted Lock and Dam which was authorized in 1988, but will not open until next year. Once Olmsted is finished, Locks and Dams 52 and 53 will be removed.
The Council said the failures at L&D 52 and 53 are occurring during the low-water season on the Ohio River. The Corps raises the dams located at the locks to maintain pools of stable water for navigation, municipal and industrial water supply, recreation, and other purposes.
As a result of the emergency outage at L&D 53, more than 65 towboats laden with harvest season grain and other commodities are backed up like a massive truck wreck along an interstate corridor. Power plants, manufacturing plants and municipalities that draw water from the Ohio River have been advised by the Corps that the pools of water they depend on may be lost within a week.
Other back-ups have occurred up and down the Ohio River, including locks at Smithland, Cannelton, Meldahl and Dashields.