The Tulsa-West Tulsa Levee Safety Project
The Tulsa-West Tulsa Levee Safety Project is a flood risk management effort between the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Tulsa District and the sponsor, Tulsa County Drainage District 12. The project aims to address significant needs for the 80-year old levee along the Arkansas River from Sand Springs to Tulsa.
The project began with a feasibility study appropriated by the Supplemental to the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018.
The Tulsa-West Tulsa Levee System was constructed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Tulsa District, and turned over to Tulsa County Drainage District 12 for operation and maintenance after completion in 1945.
The major features of the project include installation of a filtered berm, modern toe drains to improve drainage, and reduce the potential of erosion.
The Tulsa & West Tulsa Levees A & B have been given a rating of a Levee Safety Action Classification 1, indicating a very high risk and the need to take immediate action. The TWT levees protect neighborhoods, parks, industrial areas and downtown Tulsa. The Tulsa-West Tulsa Levee Safety Project addresses major performance deficiencies caused by long term degradation of the foundation, construction materials and engineering systems that have exceeded service life.
Past performance has been demonstrated during significant floods along the Arkansas River. Flood events have occurred in 1923, 1959, 1975, 1986, 1993, 1998, 2007 and most recently, 2019 when more than 2000 sandbags were needed at the Charles Page Floodway and Sandy Park Areas, 15 portable pumps were placed along the 11 mile corridor, large equipment was brought into multiple areas to slow or stop flooding, and engineering solutions were being improvised in the field to equalize hydrostatic pressure and slow the movement of water through and under the levee.
This project was approved based on potential life loss, which was predicted to be as high as 40 residents in the event of a night breach and 33 in the event of a breach during daylight hours depending upon key locations.