(The following story by JJ Velasquez appeared on the Victoria Advocate website on October 21, 2009.)
VICTORIA, Texas — A 500-yard-long logjam on the San Antonio River at the Victoria-Refugio county line has been removed, and water is now flowing downstream, Raquel Espinoza-Williams, a spokeswoman for Union Pacific, said.
Union Pacific, which owns the bridge where the logjam occurred, had started cleanup earlier this month, when the problem arose because of heavy rainfall.
Union Pacific, which contracted Bylar Maintenance for the logjam removal, stopped the process after the San Antonio River Authority expressed concerns about the company’s approach to the cleanup.
The San Antonio River Authority manages the river, which spans 240 miles and flows through five Texas counties, including Goliad and Refugio.
Union Pacific had originally planned to break up the debris to allow for stream flow. The SARA suggested removal of the debris would be the most responsible approach so as not to cause problems to downstream bridges.
Union Pacific started its cleanup work on Oct. 10, and the debris was removed by Oct. 13, Espinoza-Williams said.
The organization has also opened a channel to prevent future logjams.
It also plans to install bridge deflectors at each pier.
The deflectors will allow debris to flow past the piers.
“At this point, we have removed the debris that were against the bridge,” Espinoza-Williams said. “The water is flowing, and we’re taking precautions to help prevent this in the future.”