Home / Media / News Stories

News Story Archive

Corps Connections

  • September

    U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Galveston District Commander Col. Rhett A. Blackmon (far left) awards the Matagorda Ship Channel Project Delivery Team with a group certificate of achievement during an award ceremony, September 29. (Starting second from left) Pictured are: Lisa Finn; Ashley Neil, Konstantinos Kostarelos; and Kari Gauntt. The team worked with the project's non-federal sponsor to design and provide oversight to improve navigation along the Matagorda Ship Channel.

    SWG holds FY22 4th Qtr awards ceremony

    District Commander Col. Rhett A. Blackmon and Deputy District Engineer Byron Williams recognized more than 100 “Champions of the Texas Coast” during the Fiscal Year 2022 Fourth Quarter Awards Ceremony, held September 29, 2022, at the Jadwin Building and virtually via WebEx.
  • U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Galveston District Commander Col. Rhett A. Blackmon brings employees up to speed on the events leading into the new fiscal year during a townhall meeting, September 29. Having officially taken command back in July, Blackmon shared his insights on learning about all the different projects, meeting with non-federal partners, and getting to know the District during his first two months at Galveston.

    SWG holds 4th Qtr townhall

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Galveston District held a townhall meeting, September 29, to address many of the trending topics within the District during the fourth quarter of Fiscal Year 2022.

  • August

    Kelsey Ciarrocca, a cartographer with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Galveston District's Real Estate Division, was recently named USACE’s “Innovator of the Year” for her pioneering work with real-time data and Smartsheet—a cloud-based program. In a nutshell, she took large amounts of data, which would normally take days to process, and made it digestible for USACE and other entities to better work together. On top of that, Ciarrocca made the information accessible within fractions of a second.

    Kelsey Ciarrocca named USACE ‘Innovator of the Year’

    Kelsey Ciarrocca really believes in working smarter, not harder. You could argue that her philosophy put the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Galveston District on the map.

  • July

    A Kemp’s Ridley sea turtle—the world’s rarest and most endangered sea turtle species—nests on a new beach near the corner of Seawall and 86th Street. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Galveston District’s beach renourishment project helped make the nesting possible by replenishing Babe's Beach with sand provided through the District’s routine maintenance dredging of the Galveston Channel.

    Kemp’s ridley sea turtle lays eggs on replenished beach

    Galveston’s beaches are no strangers to visitors, especially during the summer. Each year, more that 7 million people come to vacation here. This year, however, a very special visitor made Galveston it’s preferred summer getaway destination. A Kemp’s Ridley sea turtle—the world’s rarest and most endangered sea turtle species—nested on a new beach near the corner of Seawall and 86th Street.
  • Col. Kenneth Reed (far left) passes the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Galveston District command flag to Col. Rhett Blackmon (second from left) during a change of command ceremony at the Galveston District headquarters, July 15.

    Col. Rhett Blackmon takes command of Galveston District

    Col. Rhett A. Blackmon assumed command from Col. Tim R. Vail as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Galveston District commander during a change of command ceremony, held July 15 at the District’s headquarters in front of a crowd of family, District employees and distinguished visitors.

  • June

    U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Southwest Division Commander, Col. Kenneth Reed speaks to Galveston District employees during a townhall meeting at the Jadwin Building June 23.

    New SWD Commander holds townhall

    Galveston District employees heard directly from the Southwest Division Commander, Col. Kenneth Reed, during a townhall meeting at the Jadwin Building June 23.
  • U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Galveston District Commander Col. Tim R. Vail [far right] gets ready to present the District's "Employee of the Year" award to one of four nominees during a quarterly awards ceremony June 23.

    FY22 3rd Qtr awards ceremony recognizes District’s best

    District Commander Col. Tim R. Vail and DPM Byron Williams recognized more than 40 SWG employees during the Fiscal Year 2022 Third Quarter Awards Ceremony, held June 23, 2022, at the Jadwin Building and virtually via WebEx.
  • Members of the Galveston District's Hydrographic Survey Section get underway to conduct a hydrographic survey of the Galveston ship channel. The 'Hydro' team primarily assists marine construction by monitoring the condition of the navigation channels and determining how much material is removed after dredging work.

    Section in the Spotlight: SWG Hydrographic Survey Section

    It’s World Hydrography Day! What better way to celebrate than by highlighting the professionals of the Galveston District’s Hydrographic Survey Section?
  • Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works Michael Connor speaks at the Houston Ship Channel (HSC) Expansion--or Project 11--kick off event at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Galveston District headquarters, June 1. The Galveston District, Port Houston, and the Great Lakes Dock and Dredge Company are partnering to expand the channel. The HSC is a 52-mile-long channel with more than 200 public and private facilities alongside it. Expanding it is critical to safely and efficiently sustaining national energy security, domestic manufacturing growth, thriving U.S. exports, and expanding job opportunities.

    SWG celebrates Houston Ship Channel expansion kickoff

    The Galveston District, Port Houston and the Great Lakes Dredge and Dock Company jointly officially kicked off the Houston Ship Channel (HSC) Expansion—or Project 11—with a ceremony at the District’s Headquarters June 1.

  • May

    GALVESTON, Texas -- Lynn Alperin poses for a photo with a copy of her book, "Custodians of the Coast," at her home, April 7. The retired medical writer recently gifted the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Galveston District’s historical archives a signed copy of her book after learning there weren’t any copies left in its libraries. For a long time, Alperin’s book was considered required reading for incoming district commanders. Photo by Carlos Gomez

    Local author recalls writing definitive SWG history

    A concerned brow forms on Lynn Alperin’s face. Her petite stature holds court in the Galveston District Headquarters executive office where she scans the room and everything in it. Her tour guide, the office administrator, and even the deputy district engineer all give way as Alperin quietly examines the rows of bookshelves lining the room. They listen attentively as she relays a story about the last time she set foot in a district building. She doesn’t find what she’s looking for.

  • April

    GALVESTON, Texas -- Chris Lannutti, of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Galveston District, was named USACE Logistics Activity's "Employee of the Year" for 2021. “I was very appreciative and surprised,” said Lannutti, who serves as the District’s logistics management specialist. He credited his success to the efforts of his coworkers. With the departure of a teammate in 2020 and two retirements since then, Lannutti said keeping logistics up to par has been an all-hands effort.

    Chris Lannutti named Logistic Activity’s 2021 ‘Employee of the Year’

    Chris Lannutti is a nice, easygoing guy. He comes to work every day, tries his best, communicates as clearly as possible, and asks the right questions. That’s not just a typical workday for him; it’s his philosophy.

  • March

    WALLISVILLE, Texas -- USACE Galveston Natural Resource Specialists (from left to right) Eric Angle, Mark Tyson, and Brandon Moerhle spent all day Thursday, February 24, touring the Wallisville Lake Project on an airboat and picking up discarded and abandoned traps along the way. The park rangers collected more than a dozen traps, which entrap and kill aquatic and terrestrial wildlife and damage recreational boats on the lake.

    Crab trap roundup keeps fish and boaters safe

    A heavily bundled up man looks out over the murky waters of the Trinity River. A thick overcast is muting the sunrise sky to a washed out gray. His bright orange jacket stands out like highlighter marks on dull white paper. He waits for the thumbs up from his comrades on the airboat below. Within seconds, the mechanical lock gates create a stir in the still water. Salt and fresh water collide, waking up wildlife along the Wallisville Lake Project. Egrets and pelicans—the proverbial early birds—are getting their fill.
  • GALVESTON, Texas -- Rep. Lizzie Fletcher, of the U.S. House of Representatives, Texas District 7, speaks at the Winter 2022 Stakeholder Partnering Forum. Fletcher touched on flood resiliency and mitigation. The forum also serves as an opportunity for non-federal sponsors, customers and agency partners from along the Texas coast to network and exchange ideas on ways the Galveston District is able to improve value delivery to the nation across civil works and regulatory business lines.

    Galveston hosts Winter 2022 Stakeholder Partnering Forum

    The Galveston District hosted the winter edition of our biannual Stakeholder Partnering Forum (SPF) at the Texas A&M University Galveston Campus Feb. 23-24, 2022. The theme of the SPF was: “Environmental and Social Justice: Integral to Comprehensive Coastal Resiliency.”

  • January

    The theme for the annual observance never changes. Instead, it remains: “Remember! Celebrate! Act! A Day On, Not A Day Off.”

    District Observes MLK Jr. Day with Virtual Presentation

    The Galveston District officially observed Martin Luther King Jr. Day with a virtual presentation hosted by the district’s Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) office on Jan. 11, 2022.

  • October

    WALLISVILE LAKE, Texas (Sept. 29, 2021) – Reese Green, a combat injured veteran, poses with the 6-foot-plus alligator he hunted at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ (USACE) Wallisville Lake Project during the Lonestar Warriors Outdoors Gator Hunt. The event is a sponsored alligator hunt for combat injured veterans. In partnership with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department game wardens and Lone Star Warriors Outdoors, USACE Galveston hosted the hunt as a way to successfully manage alligator populations in support of environmental stewardship and maintain its wounded warrior outreach program.

    SWG Hosts Gator Hunt for Wounded Veterans

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Galveston District hosted the 7th Annual Lone Star Warriors Outdoors Gator Hunt at its Wallisville Lake Project location from September 28 through October 1. More than a dozen combat injured veterans took part in the event USACE co-hosts in partnership with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Anahuac Emergency Medical Services, and Lone Star Warriors Outdoors (LSWO)—a Texas-based nonprofit 501c3 organization.

  • August

    Kelsey Ciarrocca, a cartographer with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Galveston District's Real Estate Division, demonstrates an interactive, real-time map she helped develop for real estate acquisitions. Ciarrocca was recently named the Galveston District’s “Innovator of the Year” for masterminding a way to make the maps her real estate team uses more interactive and resourceful.

    Cartographer's Innovation Puts SWG on the Map

    There are people who like their jobs. There are even people who love their jobs. Then there are people who got out of their way—and out of their own pockets—to learn a new skill and make their jobs easier for their colleagues.
  • The Delta Variant is as much as 225 percent more transmissible than the original virus based on documentation from the United Kingdom’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies.

    District working to combat COVID spike

    Galveston District Commander Col. Tim Vail held a town hall August 2 with the entire workforce, to discuss new COVID-19 mitigations in light of the newest COVID-19 strain -- the Delta variant. Vail recommended the District workforce continue following all current Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Department of Defense (DoD) installation requirements on COVID-19 prevention.

  • July

    Outreach Specialist Ron Wooten receives a commander's coin from Galveston District Commander Col. Tim Vail during an awards ceremony held July 1, 2021, at the District's headquarters. Wooten earned the coin for being named the Galveston District’s “Volunteer of the Year." Wooten leads all senior leadership and stakeholder visits, where he goes above and beyond to coordinate all logistics aspects of high-profile visits. His photography skills also proved invaluable to the district’s public affairs mission, where he volunteers to provide photo support whenever necessary.

    District's FY21 'of the year' recipients named

    The Galveston District honored eight awardees for their exceptional contributions and work during Fiscal Year 2021 and in previous years. Commander Col. Tim R. Vail and Deputy District Engineer for Programs and Project Mangement Mr. Byron Williams presented the awards during a ceremony held at the District's Headquarters in Galveston on July 19, 2021, where they spoke about the accomplishments of the awardees.
  • U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Rangers attend an annual refresher training course as part of USACE Galveston District's Ranger Appreciation Week, July 13. Policy requires all USACE Rangers to receive eight hours of training annually on a variety of topics such as self-defense, tactical communications, policy, changes in policy, and cultural demographics.

    Galveston hosts park ranger training, appreciation event

    The Galveston District hosted an annual refresher training and appreciation event for Southwestern Division’s district Park Rangers July 13-15, 2021. Policy requires all USACE Rangers to receive eight hours of training annually on a variety of topics such as self-defense, de-escalation techniques, tactical communications, policy, and cultural demographics.

  • June

    Andrew Cook, an operations manager at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ (USACE) Galveston District, surveys the future site of a nourishment project on Babe's Beach in Galveston, Texas, June 7, 2021. To support this project, USACE is placing the dredged material from its required dredging in Galveston's ship channel to replenish Babe's Beach. The Galveston Park Board of Trustees, the City of Galveston, the Texas General Land Office, and USACE are partnering on Babe's Beach in an ongoing effort to maintain and protect Galveston's beaches at no additional cost to residents.

    Galveston District supports nourishment project at Babe’s Beach

    This summer, Galveston Island’s Babe’s Beach, is getting a new round of fresh sand. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Galveston District is partnering with the Galveston Park Board of Trustees, the City of Galveston, and the Texas General Land Office (GLO) in an ongoing effort to maintain and protect Galveston’s beaches – all at no additional cost to local residents. USACE is placing the Beneficial Use of Dredge Material (BUDM) or sand from its required dredging of Galveston’s ship channel to replenish this beach area. The BUDM is dredged and collected into a dredging ship, which is then pumped through pipes from the dredging ship onto the beach. This beach nourishment project is expected to take several months ending in late summer.