Breaking Ground on Helena Floodwall Replacement Project

RKE Contractors joined the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Helena Improvement District, and City of Helena-West Helena representatives for the groundbreaking of the Helena Floodwall Replacement Project in downtown Helena, Arkansas.

For nearly a century, flood risk management infrastructure has helped protect Helena’s residents, businesses, transportation routes, and riverfront. The city’s original floodwall was constructed in 1933 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers following the Great Flood of 1927 and the passage of the Flood Control Act of 1928. After serving the community for generations, the aging floodwall is now being replaced to continue providing flood risk reduction as part of the larger Mississippi River and Tributaries (MR&T) Project.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers awarded RKE Contractors the contract to replace approximately 1,600 linear feet of the existing floodwall in downtown Helena. The new floodwall will consist of an inverted T-type concrete wall made up of individual concrete T-wall monoliths and a continuous sheet pile cutoff wall.

The project will be constructed in multiple phases. Phase 1, the base contract, will replace approximately 550 linear feet of floodwall, with subsequent options providing for an additional 1,050 linear feet.

The Helena Floodwall is part of the Mississippi River and Tributaries Project, an interconnected system of levees, floodwalls, floodways, channel improvements, and tributary basin features designed to reduce flood risk throughout the Lower Mississippi Valley.

Working within a constrained and historically significant riverfront corridor, the project represents an important partnership between the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Helena Improvement District, the City of Helena-West Helena, and RKE Contractors. Together, these organizations are working to replace critical infrastructure and help protect the Helena community for generations to come.

RKE Contractors is proud to be part of this important project and looks forward to contributing to the continued protection and resilience of the Helena community.