Officials dedicate Harlan Kentucky Flood Control Project
Channel: nashvillecorps
Date: 2019-10-25

Officials dedicate the Harlan Flood Control Project at the divide cut in Loyall, Ky., during a ceremony Oct. 25, 1999. The ceremony culminated over a decade undertaking to provide the maximum level of flood protection to the towns of Harlan, Baxter, Loyall and Rio Vista in Harlan County, Kentucky. 

The project began in 1989 and included three phases. In phase one the Corps of Engineers constructed four 2,000-foot tunnels through Ivy Hill to divert flows from Clover Fork around Harlan’s central business district. In phase two the Corps of Engineers constructed a 4,000-foot flood wall adjacent to Highway 421 and Martins Fork at Harlan, Ky. Three highway floodgates, one railroad floodgate, and an 875-foot levee segment provided protection for rising waters. In phase three the Corps of Engineers diverted a 3,800-foot stretch of the Cumberland River around the city of Loyall and constructed a 6,000-foot levee system to protect the cities of Loyall and Rio Vista. Bridges were constructed at Highways 840 and Park Street. The Corps also constructed a 2,000-foot floodwall, railroad track relocation, and two highway floodgates and one railroad floodgate upstream of Loyall.