KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- To build a levee, KC Water Services and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must first squash the ground with a 19-ton weight.
Just of Hickman Mills Drive and 71 Highway, a large crane is dropping the weight thousands of times to compact the ground so it will be strong enough build a levee in the area.
"This is very unusual," said Richard Gaskin, who has been with KC Water for 30 years. "This is the first time I've seen method of compaction utilized on a project.
"I've never seen a project like this," said Jake Owen, who has been with the Army Corp of Engineers for 17 years.
The 19-ton weight will be dropped nine times in every spot, then move to a new spot a few feet away.
They are doing this on a large chuck of land that is about the size of two football fields.
The alternative to compacting the soil with a 19-ton weight is to remove the top layer of soil and replace it with something much harder.
That would be much more expensive.
It will take the crane a little more than a month to cover the area and finish the compaction.
The levee project should be finished by the end of 2020.
This project is funded in part with GO bonds Kansas City voters approved last year.
