Construction crews and heavy equipment are working nearly around the clock to complete emergency river levee repairs before this winter’s rain.

Nearly one-mile of the Kent Shops-Narita levee along the Green River just west of downtown Kent was severely damaged by heavy rain and flooding in November 2006.

An $8 million repair began earlier this month and is now in full swing. More than 25,000 truckloads of dirt and rock will be moved before the project is complete in September. Crews are working 16 hour days, six days a week.

“This levee protects thousands of homes and businesses and arterials that are vital to both Kent residents and the region,” said Julia Patterson, King County Flood Control Zone

District board chair.