The Army Corps of Engineers is closing the main chamber of the Mississippi River Chain of Rocks Lock and Dam (Locks No. 27, near Granite City, Ill.) from Feb. 1 to Feb. 18 for maintenance and repair, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said.
During this periood, the auxiliary lock will open for traffic. Although February is usually fairly slow for grain movements on this part of the river, the industry expects some level of delays during the closure, the USDA said. Between 2016 to 2020, the average February total tonnage for grain movements through Locks 27 was 1.08 million tons, 4% of annual total tonnage through the lock.
The Corps also closed the Arkansas River Norrell Lock and Dam (Lock No. 1, near Tichnor, Ark.) to replace the lock interlock system between Feb. 2 and Feb. 6, 2021.
