Projects
Grand Isle and Vicinity Hurricane Protection Project Rehabilitation of Hurricane Katrina Damage - 2005
Location of ProjectGrand Isle Louisiana
Name of Customer: US Army Corps of Engineers – Hurricane Protection Office
General Scope of Project: The job as bid consisted of 13 bid items with the majority of the value in mob/demob, pumping 151,000 CY of sand to reconstruct the dunes and beach and placing 31,000 tons of stone to rebuild the fronting breakwaters and jetties. Other ancillary items included placing sand fence and planting approximately 400,000 Bitter Panicum plants in the reconstructed areas of dune. The contract also called for installing, wooden pier timberwork for pedestrian dune crossovers and articulated concrete block paving for vehicle crossovers. The rehabilitation was to impact the full 7.8 miles of the island at a cost of $12.5 million.
Soon after construction started, it became apparent that there were going to be large variations in estimated quantities, as the initial beach surveys revealed a requirement of more than 550,000 CY of sand to achieve design template on the beach and dunes and more than 51,000 tons of breakwater and jetty stone to achieve design template. We partnered well with the Corps to revise all major quantities, increasing the contract value to approximately $16.5 million Sand fill increased from 151,000 CY to 258,000 CY and stone nearly doubled from 31,000 tons to 54,000 tons. The quantity of plants was reduced from over 400,000 plants to 150,000. The principal items of work in the original contract were complete during August 2008.
On the morning of September 1, 2008, Hurricane Gustav made landfall 35 miles west of Grand Isle covering the island with a 12 foot storm surge capped with 10-12 foot waves and causing widespread damage. Much of the dune was destroyed leaving the island with no protection, and Hurricane Ike was steaming towards the Gulf of Mexico. The Corps turned to BIS (via an undefinitized change order) to clear the roads of debris and sand and to effect emergency repairs.
These repairs consisted of marshaling resources to fill 2 CY sandbags for certain scoured areas and build a clay core for other dune sections ( a “burrito wrap”). BIS started an operation in a nearby clay pit and trucked material to the burrito operation while its original subcontractors worked with resources from the Louisiana National Guard and the Town of Grand Isle to fill sand bags.
These operations continued until September 10th when the storm surge from Hurricane Ike inundated HWY 1, the only access to or from the island. The storm surge again covered the island with water causing further damage to the island.
Almost immediately after Ike passed, BIS returned to the island to assess the damage. We performed surveys and worked with the Corps to develop a strategy to protect to the infrastructure on the island. Ultimately BIS was awarded a change order to provide 8500 lf of “burrito wrap core” for the westernmost end of the island. This work continued until November 2008.
In all, the contract had more than 12 modifications which increased the contract value from its original value of $12.5 million to $20.6 million. These modifications were negotiated in an efficient and timely manner eliminating possible delays and adverse schedule impacts. We weathered two hurricanes and completed this expanded work all within the original contract time earning an OUTSTANDING rating from the Corps.
