Herbert Hoover Dike Modification – 5 & 5A

The Herbert Hoover Dike is a 143-mile earthen dam that surrounds Lake Okeechobee, the heart of the Kissimmee-Okeechobee-Everglades system. The original dike was constructed with gravel, rock, limestone, sand, and shell. The project reduces impacts from flooding as a result of high lake levels for large area of south Florida.

Since 2007, the Army Corps has made a significant investment in projects designed to reduce the risk of catastrophic failure of the aging structure. One of those projects is removing and replacing water control structures (culverts).

Thalle Construction is currently replacing the existing dike culverts 5 and 5A on Lake Okeechobee. This entails replacing the culverts with a triple 10 x 10 cast in place concrete box with a liner pipe. To successfully achieve this replacement, construction activities include construction of a surcharge mound, demolition and removal of existing structures, installation of temporary earthen and sheet pile cofferdams for dewatering and excavation, by-pass pumping, construction of a new cast-in-place reinforced concrete structures – consisting of foundation, headwalls, and three encased 10-ft diameter steel-lined culvert barrels; installation of combination flap/slide gates and manatee screens; an internal drainage system and cutoff wall will be constructed within the embankment; construction of a control building with telecommunications; and final surface treatments such as riprap, asphalt, sod and limerock.