US Gulf:
Maintenance underway at Algiers Lock is scheduled to continue through May 26, shutting the site to navigation Monday through Saturday, 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Waits were counted up to 15 hours during the week.
Colorado Lock repairs, in progress since December 2022, are set to run through June 2, leaving navigation unavailable daily between 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. Intermittent delays were reported in a wide 7-36 hour range. Brazos Lock was shut for repairs on May 8-12, leaving travel unavailable between 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. Delays were counted up to 17 hours.
Intermittent closures were slated to continue at the Morgan City Railroad Bridge, located at the West Canal’s Mile 121, through the end of June. Leland Bowman Lock travel was unavailable on May 9-12, sources said. The shutdown was scheduled to repeat on May 16-18.
Work at Bayou Boeuf Lock, previously scheduled to last through May 19, was reportedly on hold since May 5 due to emergency repairs in the Vicksburg area, allowing daytime navigation to resume through the site.
Wait times at Port Allen Lock were noted up to 24 hours, while Corps data showed intermittent Bayou Sorrel Lock delays in a 6-11 hour range. Boats transiting Industrial Lock were delayed up to 56 hours.
Mississippi River:
Flooding persisted on the Upper Mississippi River, although conditions improved during the week.
Locks began slowly reopening on May 1, sources said, allowing tows to begin pushing north from St. Louis. Locks 16 and 17 remained shut at the start of the week, however, blocking travel at Mile 437. Those locks were expected to reopen as early as May 11, beating a previous May 15 forecast, potentially returning the river to full navigation before the end of the week.
The river gauge at Dubuque, Iowa, posted at a minor-flood 16.95 feet and falling slowly on May 10, was forecast to recede below action stage on May 15. A flood warning was in effect for the area on May 10. The St. Paul gauge was recorded just above the 10.0-foot action stage, at 10.1 feet and falling on May 10.
On the lower river, a flash flood watch was in effect on May 10 for parts of Mississippi and Tennessee due to a potential breach of the Arkabutla Dam, located in Mississippi’s Tate and DeSoto counties.
Ongoing revetment activities at Miles 503-507 could force travel delays, sources said. Work in the area was expected daily from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Rock placement efforts were scheduled to kick off at Miles 931-932 on May 13, limiting southbound travel daily from 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. through mid-July.
Illinois River:
Rising water levels on the Illinois River allowed lock operators to lower wickets at Peoria Lock and LaGrange Lock, freeing tows to transit both sites without locking. Waits at Peoria Lock stretched to nearly 10 hours while wickets were being lowered.
Planned repairs will completely block navigation through Brandon Road Lock, Dresden Island Lock, and Marseilles Lock starting on June 1, effectively closing the Illinois River to commercial transport through the end of September.
Intermittent 4-15 hour waits were recorded at Marseilles Lock during the week.
Ohio River:
Repairs to the JT Meyers Lock main chamber floating mooring system are scheduled to continue through Aug. 20, prompting intermittent shutdowns. The site’s secondary chamber is set to close Aug. 21 through Sept. 10 for miter gate repairs, after which the primary chamber will shut once more, from Sept. 11 to Nov. 17.
The primary chamber at Dashields Lock, closed since April 24 for maintenance and repairs, is scheduled to return to operation on May 20, seven days earlier than previously scheduled. The closure has inhibited travel to and from both the Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers, sources said. Delays were observed in a wide 7-36 hour range on May 10.
The Melville Lock secondary chamber was reported shut through Aug. 4 for maintenance. At McAlpine Lock, miter gate machinery repairs were expected block travel through the north chamber between May 15 and June 15, consigning travel to the south chamber.
The land chamber at Smithland Lock is due to close Sept. 22 through Oct. 22 for machinery repairs. The Greenup Lock main chamber will shut for planned repairs July 5 through Aug. 14, necessitating detours through the auxiliary chamber. Dam gate repairs at Winfield Lock, set to run July 10 through Sept. 15, were not expected to meaningfully affect navigation.
Guntersville Lock, located on the Tennessee River, was tentatively scheduled to end a period of intermittent daytime shutdowns on May 11. Kentucky Lock waits were counted above seven hours through the week. Wilson Lock travel topped out around eight hours, according to Corps data.