Army Corps shows progress in strengthening Hoover Dike

CLEWISTON, Fla.- Reinforced concrete and steel is being used to strengthen the aging Hoover Dike surrounding Lake Okeechobee.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has spent about $500 million in the past nine years to shore up the aging dike which protects residents around the lake from potentially deadly flooding.

The Corps is replacing culverts around the lake that could send excess lake water into nearby fields and canals. The old culverts date back to the 1930s and were failing.

“We’re replacing with a more modern structure that is designed to last nearly 100 years,” said Mike Weiner with the Army Corps.

The Corps releases water from the lake to take pressure off the dike but that water tends to become brown while flowing down rivers like the Caloosahatchee, upsetting visitors and residents alike. Yet the Corps defends the water releases.

“I don’t know that we feel under attack, we just feel we need to do more education,” said John Campbell, with the Corps.

The Corps says Congress has been generous with funding to repair the dike, but the next phase of construction will take until at least 2025, meaning releases into the Caloosahatchee will likely continue to occur in wet years.

“As much as the Corps of Engineers and other agencies value the environment, we value public safety as well,” Campbell said.

The total cost of repairs to the Hoover Dike is expected to exceed $1 billion, according to the Army Corps of Engineers.