Oil Patch Bits: Milestone achieved: 5,000 dives on single project

Global Diving & Salvage Inc. said that on May 15 it achieved the notable milestone of performing 5,000 dives at the Olmsted Locks and Dam Project. Global has been on the project since 2009, with divers routinely battling near zero visibility and strong river current in order to provide support to the in-water construction activities. Global will continue to work into the next phase, the installation of the navigable pass section that includes the wicket gates.

The Olmsted Locks and Dam, also known as the Locks and Dam 52 and 53 Replacement Project, is a new facility being built between Kentucky and Illinois, just south of Paducah, Kentucky, on the Ohio River, approximately 17 miles upstream from the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. Olmsted Locks and Dam will greatly reduce tow and barge delays through the busiest stretch of river in America’s inland waterways. Olmsted Locks and Dam is being constructed using “in the wet” techniques, with Global divers assisting with a wide variety of tasks, including: preparation of the river bottom, cutting piling to grade and assisting with the setting of the massive precast concrete shells into position.