Cofferdam Performance

Hurricanes Harvey & Irma - 2017

Greg Hammer
Senior Geotechnical Engineer
CELRH-DSPC-GS DSMMCX

Third Workshop on Case Histories in

Dam Safety Risk-Informed Decision
Making

2018 USSD Annual Conference

Miami, Florida
03 May, 2018

US Army Corps of Engineers

BUILDING STRONG®
Risk Assessment for
Cofferdam Design
 PURPOSE;
Cofferdam design considerations for Herbert Hoover
Dike (HHD) and Addicks & Barker dams modifications
 CONTEXT;
Risk assessment for design crest elevation
 SCOPE;
Cut & cover construction to replace outlets

2 BUILDING STRONG®
 Background
 Risk applications for Dam Safety initiated in early 80’s
 Risk has been a part of cofferdam design much longer
 No agency has clear guidance for cofferdam design
► USBR – “5 times construction period” (you hope!)
► USACE – ER 1110-2-8152, 1995, use risk guidance

3 BUILDING STRONG®
 Considerations
 Risk Implications –
► D/S consequences, Life loss, Project Costs, Site Loss
• ACE/ Pfailure for Dam Overtopping
• ACE/ Pfailure for Cofferdam
• Consequences of Breach of Dam/ Cofferdam
 Damage ($)
 Loss of Life
 Project site loss – Equipment, Personnel, Sitework

{ACE – annual chance of exceedence}

4 BUILDING STRONG®
 Considerations
 Environmental Risks
► Construction period –
• Schedule – On time, or extensions needed?
• Probability of success?

► Seasonal issues?
• Winter cold concerns
• River/ lake icing
• Rainy season or Hurricanes

5 BUILDING STRONG®
 Considerations
 Design Efficiency & Effectiveness

► Cofferdam reliability – stability/ integrity

• Pfailure of structural failure modes
► ACE Overtopping(height) vs Construction Cost
► Landside protection?
• Channel considerations – Backwater/ Tailwater
 ACE/Pfailure of Downstream cofferdam

6 BUILDING STRONG®
Herbert Hoover Dike
Lake Okeechobee

 143 mile perimeter

embankment
 730 sq mile surface area
 Approx. 30 miles across
 Avg. water depth is 9 feet

7 BUILDING STRONG®
 Herbert Hoover Dike
Inflow from • Inflow exceeds discharge
Kissimmee capacity
Valley River
Basin
• One foot of rain on 5600 sq.
mile basin can raise pool by 3-
4 feet
• Max discharge yields approx.
0.1 feet drawdown

• Wind can have a significant

effect on the lake levels
across the project such that
the reported lake elevation is
an average of 8 gages

LEGEND
Flow From Spillways
Herbert Hoover Dike
Spillway

BUILDING STRONG®
 Herbert Hoover Dike
 Potential Failure Modes -
► Seepage & Piping along
Outlets and Foundation
► Overtopping/ Overwash
erosion

 Relatively low consequences,

which vary by location around
perimeter of the lake, seven
different consequence zones

Combination of life and economic consequences

with likelihood of failure considered unacceptable
9 BUILDING STRONG®
Herbert Hoover Dike

10 BUILDING STRONG®
 Herbert Hoover Dike

“SLOSH”

Cofferdam design
must consider
Wind effects (incl
direction) + Pool
elevation

Sea Lake and Overland Surges from Hurricanes

11 BUILDING STRONG®
Herbert Hoover Dike

12 BUILDING STRONG®
Herbert Hoover Dike

13 BUILDING STRONG®
Herbert Hoover Dike

14 BUILDING STRONG®
Herbert Hoover Dike

15 BUILDING STRONG®
Herbert Hoover Dike

north west

east south

NW NE

16 BUILDING STRONG®
Hurricane Jeanne - 2004

17 BUILDING STRONG®
Hurricane Jeanne - 2004

18 BUILDING STRONG®
 Herbert Hoover Dike

Hurricane Wilma (Oct 2005) – debris

on slope due to surge & runup
19 BUILDING STRONG®
Hurricane Irma

20 BUILDING STRONG®
“Lake Okeechobee's water
level drops below targeted
range, raising water supply
concerns” (April 2017
headline)

21 BUILDING STRONG®
 Record Pool EL ~18.7

Low
pool

Hurricane Irma RWS ~17.2

22 BUILDING STRONG®
 Herbert Hoover Dike
Flooding potential exists from downstream of
the dike also, requiring landside cofferdams

Lake Okeechobee

23 BUILDING STRONG®
 Herbert Hoover Dike

Lake
Okeechobee

24 BUILDING STRONG®
 Herbert Hoover Dike
Coffer design has been adjusted over the
course of the project based upon;

- Evaluation of wind and pool probabilities

- Cost considerations
- Occurrence of elevated pool events &
extended construction periods
- Consequence locale considerations

25 BUILDING STRONG®
Addicks & Barker Dams

Addicks

Barker
Houston

26 BUILDING STRONG®
 Addicks & Barker Dams
 Potential Failure Modes -
► Spillway erosion
• Abutments lower than dam crests
► Seepage & Piping along outlets and Foundation
• Replace outlets

 Extremely High Incremental Risk

► City of Houston, Population at Risk ~ 1 M

Combination of life and economic consequences with

likelihood of failure considered unacceptable
27 BUILDING STRONG®
 Addicks & Barker Dams

 Replace Outlets – Cut & Cover Construction

 Cofferdam considerations –
► Construction cost versus cofferdam elevation
► Consequences versus cofferdam elevation
• Consequences higher for lower cofferdam elevation
► ACE pool/ Pfailure versus cofferdam elevation
• ACEpool higher for lower cofferdam elevation

28 BUILDING STRONG®
Addicks & Barker Dams

Stage Duration
Curves

29 BUILDING STRONG®
 Addicks Dam
• Addicks
Design

30 BUILDING STRONG®
 Barker Dam
Barker Design

31 BUILDING STRONG®
Addicks Dam

32 BUILDING STRONG®
 Barker Dam

Cofferdam Acceptance –
31 Jul 2017

Flight Date –
19 August

33 BUILDING STRONG®
Hurricane Harvey – August 2017
Addicks & Barker
dams; 35-40” rain

34 BUILDING STRONG®
Addicks Dam

Record
Pool @
EL 109.09,
30 August
35 BUILDING STRONG®
Addicks Dam

36 BUILDING STRONG®
Addicks Dam

37 BUILDING STRONG®
Barker Dam

38 BUILDING STRONG®
 Barker Dam
Record Pool @ EL 101.56
30 August

39 BUILDING STRONG®
Barker Dam

40 BUILDING STRONG®
 Takeaways
 HHD – Team was tracking path of storm to monitor
potential impacts to construction zones. In general, the
track of Hurricane Irma (along west coast of Florida),
resulted primarily in a rain event over the upstream basin.
Storm path uncertainty and severity has led to use of
higher cofferdam crest elevations.

 Addicks & Barker dams – The occurrence of a relatively

remote event validated the decision that the cofferdam
would effectively need to replace the dam itself during
construction.

41 BUILDING STRONG®
 A Little Help from Others
 Dan Blaydes
 Scott Shewbridge
 John Kendall
 Bobby Van Cleave
 Calvin Barefoot
 Timothy Willadsen
 Almur Whiting

42 BUILDING STRONG®
 Questions?

 gregory.g.hammer@usace.army.mil

43 BUILDING STRONG®