By Col. Christopher Hall
Commander, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers St. Louis District
 |
| St. Louis flood wall during the '93 flood. |
Twenty years ago today the Mississippi River reached its highest
point in recorded history on the St. Louis gage. The river was only a few feet
from the top of the St. Louis flood wall, and had already overwhelmed many
smaller levees throughout the region. The Flood of 1993 claimed dozens of
lives, incurred billions of dollars in damages, and forever changed many
communities along the river.
In our collective memory, the unprecedented flood has come to
represent the risk we live with along these dynamic rivers. The Flood of 1993
is a shared experience of people coming together in a crisis, a motivation to
lower our flood risk, and a historic lesson of living along the Mississippi
River.
 |
| Corps of Engineers employees after the flood wall breach. |
For some, the Flood of ‘93 calls to mind long hours of working
tirelessly to save towns, businesses and homes. The St. Louis District had nearly 400 employees in the flood fight, including
143 people deployed to the field. They spent weeks working shoulder-to-shoulder
with local communities to shore up levees as the river kept rising. For some,
the crest represented a hard-won victory as the river slowly receded off the
levee. For others, no amount of fighting could keep the river back.
I joined the St. Louis District in 2011, and in that
time I’ve seen a few floods. In June of this year, we reached the fourth
highest recorded stage since the Corps put a river gage on the Eads Bridge more
than 150 years ago. Most of today’s Corps leaders
in St. Louis cut their teeth on the Flood of ’93. When I visited our flood
fight teams in the field in June, I was consistently impressed with the passion
and professionalism they put into their mission. They put everything into a
flood fight.
 |
| Lock 24 during the '93 Flood. |
To this day we are invested professionally and
personally in serving the region improving safety, economy and quality of life.
The 13 million sandbags may be long gone, but the lasting partnerships built
with the communities and states we serve stands as a lasting real impact of the
flood fights.
For others, the Flood of ‘93 is a daily motivation twenty years
later. The greatest flood has made some communities reexamine how they can
lower their risk of flooding by reducing the chance as well as the consequences.
The St. Louis District has been tackling the monumental task of
rehabilitating the Metro East levees, replacing aging infrastructure and
addressing the underseepage that arose during the ’93 flood. These Illinois
levees, from Alton south to Columbia, protect thousands of lives and billions
of dollars of property, industry and infrastructure. The Corps of Engineers has
invested more than $120 million towards this effort, and is nearing completion
of the effort to withstand a flood even greater than what we saw in 1993. Many
other communities have also reinvested in their flood infrastructure, fixing or
upgrading levee systems.
 |
| City of Alton during the '93 flood. |
Lowering flood risk is a shared responsibility and has as much to
do with preparedness in our communities as the levee itself. Responsible land
use, emergency planning and education can all help reduce flood risk to a
community. No matter how high we build a
levee, the risk remains. We continue to find ways with our partners to lower
that risk at the federal, state, and local levels.
During every flood since, the question is invariably asked, “Will
this be another Flood of 1993?”
The river will come up again, and that record flood will be
exceeded. What is most important when remembering the Flood of 1993 is what
we’ve learned since. The last two decades have seen major advances in
technology, giving us faster ways to track, communicate and respond in an
emergency. Technology has helped reshape how we prepare for, respond to and
recover from floods.
We have also learned from personal experience what to look for
when the levees are put to the test. Our engineers have experience and shared
knowledge to draw from fighting the greatest flood in our region’s history.
The Corps of Engineers has been in St. Louis in one form or
another since the 1830s. We not only have experience in the extremes of the
dynamic Mississippi River; we are a part of the region’s history and its
people. I consider myself privileged to be a part of that tradition, serving
the people of the St. Louis area and the nation.
When the river rises again, the Corps of Engineers will be prepared
to work with our neighbors and partners, to bring our resources and expertise
to bear, and to continue fulfilling our commitment to the safety, economy and
quality of life of the region and the nation.
