LAKE CHARLES, La. (AP) — The Army Corps of Engineers has refurbished the gates at a 52-year-old saltwater barrier in Louisiana, but tells recreational boaters that some work remains.
It says that means it will have to close the Calcasieu Saltwater Barrier gates intermittently, sometimes causing backups for boaters in the Lake Charles area. A news release says the intermittent closures are expected to last until July 27.
The barrier was built after the channel for the Port of Lake Charles was deepened in the early 1950s. The deeper channel increased shipping but let Gulf of Mexico saltwater move inland, damaging wetlands and threatening rice irrigation.
The saltwater barrier was completed in 1968.