Dams

Cullman, Alabama

The Project

The Duck River Reservoir project included the construction of a new roller-compacted concrete dam and reservoir for future water needs of Cullman County, Alabama. The cost of this project was approximately $100 million.

This project came about due to a significant storm that hit Cullman County, Alabama and prematurely filled the planned Duck River Reservoir. Water flooded the roller compacted concrete dam while it was still under construction, with seepage infiltrating components as a result of the premature filling.

The Challenge

MKA was tasked to evaluate the delay and repair costs attributed to the loss. In addition, MKA was asked to determine the cause and origin of the claimed leakage.

Our challenges included obtaining pertinent project documentation that detailed the construction of the dam including daily and weekly field reports and meeting minutes, inspection reports, construction schedules, and contract documents.

The Solution

MKA’s Heavy Civil Construction Consultants and Civil Engineers were retained to perform an investigation. They found that there were multiple causes for the seepage, many of which were unrelated to the actual storm event.

The Result

As part of providing a comprehensive report of findings, MKA delivered the appropriate cost allocations to the Client as well as to other responsible parties.