Pittsburgh District restores full service at Emsworth and Dashields

Corps' successful concurrent closure, unified command heralded as a model for future efforts

The Pittsburgh District of the US Army Corps of Engineers has completed critical maintenance on two adjacent Ohio River locks and dams and both facilities are now open for full service. The main chamber at Emsworth and Dashields locks and dams re-opened at 6:30 p.m., Saturday, July 25 and Dashields work was completed on July 24, as originally scheduled.

The 110 ft by 600 ft main chambers at both Dashields and Emsworth locks and dams were closed to address critical repairs to the lock structures. The small chambers remained in service throughout the maintenance cycle.

Pittsburgh District crews repaired the main chamber's emptying valves that are used to lower water levels in the lock. Crews discovered severely deteriorated emptying valves that required an additional day of work to repair. The condition of the valves was hard to determine until the lock chamber was dewatered, but several had stopped functioning prior to the closure. Those are not restored to service, increasing the reliability of the navigation structures.

A repair fleet from a neighboring Corps district in Huntington, W.Va., conducted the maintenance work at Dashields that included repairing three 110- to 125-ton miter gates in the main lock chamber. These are large gates that open and close when vessels are locking through and which contain the water during a lockage.

"We were very pleased with the Concurrent Closure planning," said Don Fogel, Chief of the Maintenance Brach for the Pittsburgh District. "We were able to complete all of the repairs in a truncated timeframe."

The work at both locks was needed to reduce the risk of unscheduled closures and increasethe reliability of the navigation facilities. Both Emsworth and Dashields have been assessed as having a high risk of breakdown according to thedistrict's asset management program.

"It's not easy keeping these aging structures operational," Pittsburgh District Engineer Col. Michael Crall said of the 80-plus-year-old navigation structures. "The repair and lock crews deserves a big slap on the back for their skilled and professional work," he added.

The district ran 24-hour maintenance operations for the duration of the closure.

"Taking a 30-day schedule and compressing to 19 days was very challenging," said Doug Christian, Chief of Field Maintenance Section for the Pittsburgh District. "We managed to accomplish everything we needed to get done."

Crall applauded the towing industry for their cooperation and assistance during the maintenance cycle. The towing industry provided helper boats that pulled barges from the small 56 ft x 360 ft auxiliary locks at Dashields and Emsworth one at a time. Their work helped shorten very long delays, which approached up to 15 hours for a 15-jumbo-barge lockage.

"I cannot overstate the gratitude the district has for the support of the towing industry and its clients during this maintenance closure," said Crall. "This was an extremely tight schedule with many moving parts; it was complicated work. Its success would not have been possible without industry's help."

The practice of closing two adjacent navigations structures at the same time is a fairly new method employed by the US Army Corps of Engineers to support the economic health of the region by minimizing maintenance downtime and saving industry money. The method has never been applied to two navigation facilities with such close proximity to each other. Dashields and Emsworth are separated by only seven river miles.

In 2006, the Pittsburgh District assisted the Huntington District with a concurrent closure of the Ohio River Meldahl and Greenup locks and dams which are roughly 100 miles apart.

Because of the short pool between Emsworth and Dashields, the district operated the two locks as one facility and used a unified command staff with both Corps and industry representatives. "That's the kicker," said Richard Lockwood, Chief of Operations, Pittsburgh District. "This is the first time we've had industry representatives working along side of us in a command center. They greatly helped manage helper boats and barge traffic."

The success of the concurrent closure and integration of a unified command center will be a model for future dual closures.

"This was an exceptional effort by both Pittsburgh and Huntington districts," said William R. Chapman, Chief of Division Operations for the Cincinatti-based Lakes and Rivers Division. "This closure truly set the standard for future concurrent closure efforts. I commend the districts and their partners for their collaborative efforts."

The recreational boating community heeded the district's advice to avoid using either facility if possible during the closure. Recreational traffic at both locks was light throughout the maintenance period. "We know this was a huge inconvenience to the recreational and passenger vessel community," said Crall. "We appreciate their cooperation and recognition that this work will help ensure we continue to enjoy the many benefits these structures provide."

"This was a resounding success and from the concurrent Closure standpoint we were able to restore the facilities to a standard of reliability." Fogel added

The concurrent closure cut the work timeframe from 38 days to 20 days. The towing industry worked with its clients, such as power suppliers, to stockpile material prior to the closures and minimize deliveries during it. The Corps also took advantage of a miner's holiday, when deliveries of coal are typically light. Coal represents 74 percent of the commodities delivered via the rivers.

Mariners approaching Emsworth are still encouraged to contact the lock for availability information prior to arrival at (412) 766-6213. More information about the concurrent closure is available at www.lrp.usace.army.mil/CLOSURE.html

These navigation structures not only provide reliable river commerce, but also provide water supplies for drinking and sanitation; encourage economic development within the region; and provide water supplies for local fire departments.

The Pittsburgh District's 23 locks and dams on the Ohio, Allegheny and Monongahela rivers comprise the oldest, largest and most fatigued navigation system in the Corps' inventory.

Please contact Dashields at (724) 457-8430; Emsworth at (412) 766-6213.

For issues that are not immediate, mariners may contact Pittsburgh District’s Public Affairs Office at 412-395-7500 or CELRP-PA@usace.army.mil

Q&As

Q: Why now?

Q: Will the locks be completely shut down and out of service?

Q: What are you doing that is so critical?

Q: If this work is so critical, why haven’t you done it sooner?

Q: When will your last lockage happen prior to closure?

Q: When will the main chamber locks open?

Q: How big is the auxiliary chamber compared to the main chambers?

Q: Why is it going to take so long to lock through?

Q: This is the first I’ve heard of this concurrent closure. What have you done to get the word out to boaters?

Q: Why do you have to do both at the same time?

Q: The Forrest L. Wood Fishing Tournament starts July 30. What if you don’t get the work done when FLW needs to begin preparing for the event?

Q: Where are these locks?

Q: What if our plans on the river extend beyond July 6 and we want to lock through later that night?

Q: What safety considerations are there?

Q: What is a lock?

Q: Why now?

A: Several factors contributed to the decision to do the work at this time.

-This is critical maintenance work. Both Dashields and Emsworth have been assessed as having a high risk of breakdown according to the district’s asset management program.

-We have to do this work while we have the funding and availability of two district maintenance repair fleets. Unscheduled closures due to breakdowns are increasing due to the age and fatigue of our facilities and the lack of funding that has been available to address it.

-The Huntington District maintenance repair fleet was available to assist our repair fleet with the work, which will cut the maintenance timeframe from 38 days to 19 days.

-This time period coincides with the miners’ holiday which should reduce commercial traffic on the rivers. Coal accounts for 74% (2006 data) of the commodities that lock through our facilities.

Q: Will the locks be completely shut down and out of service?

A: No. The much smaller 56 ft wide by 360 ft long auxiliary chambers will be open at both facilities, but commercial traffic will have priority to lock through as usual.

Q: What are you doing that is so critical?

A: At Emsworth L/D, we will be repairing the 110 ft by 600 ft main chamber lock emptying valves that are necessary for lowering water levels in the lock. Dewatering of the chamber is necessary to complete this work. At Dashields, we will be repairing three miter gates in the main lock chamber; these are large gates that open and close when vessels are locking through and which contain the water during a lock.

Q: If this work is so critical, why haven’t you done it sooner?

A: The district obtained the necessary funding to perform this work in the Year 2009 Federal Budget. Scheduling and budgeting for large maintenance projects begins three years from the actual maintenance date. Coordination with our partners and industry begins two years prior to the actual maintenance period.

Left: Example of Miter Gates closing at Emsworth Locks and Dam on the Ohio River.

Q: When will your last lockage happen prior to closure?

A: We will stop locking vessels through both Dashields and Emsworth main lock chambers starting at 12:01 a.m., July 6. The smaller auxiliary locks will remain open to commercial and passenger vessels first and then recreational boaters. There will be intermittent closure of the Emsworth auxiliary lock chamber for the first couple of days while crews set a bulkhead necessary to dewater the main chamber. After this task is completed, the auxiliary chamber will be available for use for the duration of the closure.

Q: When will the main chamber locks open?

A: The main chamber locks at both Dashields and Emsworth are scheduled to open up for use at 11:59 p.m., July 24. This is subject to any changes to the schedule due to weather, condition of the facilities or any other unforseen circumstances.

Q: How big is the auxiliary chamber compared to the main chambers?

A: The small chambers are 56 ft wide by 360 ft long; the main chambers are 110 ft wide by 600 ft long.

Q: Why is it going to take so long to lock through?

A: Because of the size of the auxiliary chamber, commercial tows have to lock through on barge at a time. Commercial tows with 15 jumbo barges will have to break down into three separate tows that will take 15 lockages to pass through the much smaller auxiliary chamber. Once they begin locking through either Dashields or Emsworth, they will continue locking through until they are cleared from the opposing facility. In other words, we are considering Dashields and Emsworth and the seven-mile pool between them as one lock. One 15-jumbo barge tow could take up to 15 hours to lock completely through as compared to the typical two hours it usually takes when the main chamber is available.

Q: This is the first I’ve heard of this concurrent closure. What have you done to get the word out to boaters?

A: We’ve taken several actions to inform boaters and the general public.

-Banners announcing the closure are visible at locks on all three rivers and lock staff at every lock on all three rivers have been passing out flyers to mariners that inform them of the closure.

-We’ve sent this information out to our partnering agencies, marina owners, recreational boating groups, and boating organizations such as the power squadrons.

-We have asked partnering agencies and organizations to post this information on their websites and to make their members aware of this maintenance action.

-We sent out a navigation notice to alert commercial, passenger and recreational river users.

-We distributed this information to media and invited them to a media availability event at Emsworth Locks and Dams.

-We’ve placed three banners announcing the closure at the Three Rivers Regatta, one on each of the rivers. 

Q: Why do you have to do both at the same time?

A: We don’t. But doing both lock repairs at one time will save money and cut the work timeframe in half.

Q: The Forrest L. Wood Fishing Tournament starts July 30. What if you don’t get the work done when FLW needs to begin preparing for the event?

A: We will not delay or interrupt the Forest L. Wood tournament. We have prioritized the work to do the most critical maintenance first. If we don’t finish all of the maintenance work, we will have to come back and do it another time.

Q: Where are these locks?

A: These are the first two locks on the upper Ohio River as you head downstream out of Pittsburgh. Specifically, Emsworth is at river mile 6.2 and Dashields is at river mile 13.3. These locks are approximately seven miles apart.

Q: What if our plans on the river extend beyond July 6 and we want to lock through later that night?

A: We strongly recommend that you arrive at the appropriate lock well before the 12:01 a.m., July 6. Contact the lock before you arrive. If most recreational boaters wait until the last minute, we will have a bottle neck that will not only delay mariners, it will put the Corps maintenance crews behind schedule. There is a great deal of work to do in 19 days and every minute counts.

Q: What safety considerations are there?

A: For safety reasons, we strongly advise recreational boaters to contact either Dashields at (724) 457-8430; Emsworth at (412) 766-6213 or by Marine Radio Channel 13. We will have a 24/7 command center and 24/7 staffing at the locks to respond to any emergency or urgent need. We have also coordinated closely with US Coast Guard, Pa. Fish & Boat Commission and other river users to provide additional water safety support and awareness. Boaters should check Navigation Notices before going on the rivers. They are available at www.lrp.usace.army.mil under Popular Links. Navigation charts are also available at that website.

Q: What is a lock?

A: A lock is like a water elevator that takes boats from one level of the river to a higher or lower level. Each dam on a navigable river – such as the Allegheny, Monongahela or Ohio – has at least one lock chamber to provide safe and reliable navigation for commercial and recreational river traffic. These locks allow for year-long navigation by providing a minimal 9-foot navigation channel.  Locks provide navigation access through the dam complex, by which vessels are lifted or lowered from one pool to the next. 

The lock chamber is essentially a concrete box fixed into the riverbed with two matching gates at each end that close at an angle directed upstream against the river flow.  The gates can open or close only when the water level is the same on both sides. One set opens to let the watercraft enter and then closes to allow the water level in the chamber to be raised or lowered depending on the direction of travel. The other set of gates then opens to let the boat leave.  Raising or lowering from one pool level to the next is called a “lift.”  The lift of the locks in the Pittsburgh District ranges from 8 to 22 feet depending on the length of the pool.  Pool length varies from as short as 7 miles between locks up to 42 miles between locks.