Guardsmen sand bag near Miami to slow boil progression

Missouri National Guardsmen help load sand bags into a civilian-driven gator to be taken to the Teteseau Levee where other Soldiers are building a dam to add water pressure to significant boils that will slow them, if not stop them.
(Photo by Rachel Knight/Missouri National Guard)

By Rachel Knight
ngmo.pao@us.army.mil

MIAMI, Mo. - Missouri National Guardsmen began sandbagging near Teteseau Levee in Saline County at the break of first light on Tuesday.

Ten sand boils had been brought to the attention of Guard engineers and a plan was devised to begin building a secondary dam near the levee to build up water pressure to stop the boils from doing more damage, according to Staff Sgt. Randy A. Hargis Jr., of Pacific.

Fifty-five Soldiers from the 311th Brigade Support Battalion spent Wednesday, along with 12 engineers from the 220th Engineer Company (Horizontal) and 880th Engineer Team (Haul), sand bagging near Miami. Also assisting in the mission were Soldiers from the 548th Transportation Company in Trenton and the 1138th Transportation Company from Jefferson Barracks.

Hargis anticipates the Soldiers will place around 8,000 sand bags. Some of the bags are being filled at the site while others are being hauled in from Algoa Correctional Center in Jefferson City.

The dam, when completed, will be about 10 to 12 inches above the current water line and will provide about 10 feet of spillway between the levee and the dam, according to Staff Sgt. Herbert G. Krattli III of the 220th Engineer Company.

Krattli is familiar with the Missouri River as he grew up in Hermann, Mo., and has been working state of emergency missions since the Flood of 1993.

For more information about the Missouri National Guard, please visit www.moguard.com and our social media sites: www.facebook.com/Missouri.National.Guard; www.twitter.com/Missouri_NG; www.youtube.com/MoNationalGuard; www.myspace.com/missouri_ng; www.flickr.com/photos/missouriguard

Missouri National Guard Soldiers use a sheet of plastic to get sand bags from the top of the Teteseau Levee near Miami to Soldiers that pass the bags to the placers who are forming a dam to control boils.
(Photo by Rachel Knight/Missouri National Guard)