Photo By Preston Chasteen | On July 29, 2018, Colonel Christopher A. Hussin, Commander, Tulsa District, U.S. Army...... read more read more
TULSA, Okla. - Tulsa District U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Commander, COL Chris Hussin, recently visited the “Mr. Pat” marine maintenance vessel as operations and maintenance personnel performed work on Tainter gates at Robert S. Kerr Lock and Dam 15, near Sallisaw, Oklahoma.
Tainter gates are a type of radial arm floodgate used in a variety of dams across the nation to control water flow. This style of gate was named for Jeremiah Burnham Tainter, a Wisconsin structural engineer who first came up with their design.
Tulsa District operates and maintains five lock and dam structures on the McClellan Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System and the O&M crew continually performs maintenance to keep the structures functional.
“This is hot, backbreaking work, and sometimes I know it may seem thankless. But we really appreciate all the effort you put into maintaining these structures day in and day out – you are truly some of the Unsung Heroes in the Tulsa District,” stated Hussin, as he addressed the maintenance crew.
“Mr. Pat” is a four deck, 82 foot long maintenance vessel, which facilitates the movement of a 150 foot barge and houses a 200 ton crane used for major repairs on the 137 mile Oklahoma portion of the MKARNS.
The vessel is designed and suited for year-round operations on the MKARNS. A captain and a crew of four can sleep on the boat which provides the crew access to three bathrooms, two showers and a full kitchen.
Tulsa District understands the importance of keeping the navigation system operational.
According to the Maritime Transportation Research and Education Center, the MKARNS impacts the regional economy by contributing $8.5 billion in sales, $289 million in taxes and 55,872 jobs to the national economy.
There are a total of 18 lock and dam structures on the 445 mile river system, stretching from the Mississippi River to the Port of Catoosa, just outside of Tulsa, Oklahoma, all measuring 110 feet wide and 600 feet long.
The navigation system is utilized to ship a variety of material like metals, grains, petroleum products, lumber and much more.
The MKARNS averages nearly 12 million tons of cargo shipped annually. The 2017 total shipped was more than 11.5 million tons and the Oklahoma portion of that is roughly half the annual total.
| Date Taken: | 09.06.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 09.06.2018 16:42 |
| Story ID: | 291673 |
| Location: | OKLAHOMA, US |
| Web Views: | 95 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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