MARSEILLES, Ill. — No single factor figures into the crash of seven loaded commercial barges into the Illinois River dam two years ago, causing millions of dollars in damages to the structure and flooding a couple hundred homes nearby, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers spokesman maintains.

Approximately 1,500 residents were evacuated in the wake of the April 18, 2013, heavy rainstorm and river flooding. The Illinois River is a major Midwest shipping lane for agricultural and other products headed for Chicago and New Orleans. Andrew Barnes, senior project manager with the Corps’ Rock Island District, said last week the high-water incident did not have much impact on shipping on the river, except for when it first occurred.

“There was some impact then, but from about the middle of May 2013 on, there really was no effect,” he told those attending a public meeting in Marseilles.

Five of the eight gates on the dam were heavily damaged when a string of barges owned by Ingram Barge Co. of Nashville, Tenn., smashed into the structure while headed downstream. Barnes noted at the Feb. 24 public hearing on progress of repairs to the dam that a “very complicated series of events” caused the mishap.

“It’s not going to be a simple thing to unravel and, ultimately, assign blame, which I guess is what will happen,” he said. “The cause of this is under litigation, so I can’t really comment on pending litigation.

“I’ve always tried to stay very focused on repair of the dam. It’s our main priority, to get the dam back in its full operation and get life back to normal for the residents of Marseilles, and the litigation will proceed at its own pace.”

Lawsuits naming Ingram Barge were filed in county and federal court by residents and other landowners, claiming the barges contributed to the flood by impeding the flow of water through the gates of the dam. The federal government also has filed court papers accusing Ingram of negligence and having unseaworthy vessels. Barnes said it could be several years before the complaints are settled.

He also said the impact of the barges on the dam increased the high-water level in the flooding river. The last of the sunken barges were removed from the gates of the dam in mid-June 2013.

“The Illinois River is different from other rivers,” Barnes said. “Higher-water events are becoming more common on the Illinois.”

The Marseilles locks, also a federal installation on the river, are 2.5 miles downstream from the dam and not connected with or affected in any way by the incident, Barnes pointed out. Repairs to the dam include replacing three gates and repairing two others. The repairs should be under way this month and completed in February 2017.

“We’re staging the repairs to ensure six operable gates,” he said.

The $19.9 million contract for the permanent repairs was awarded last fall to Massman Construction Co. of Kansas City, Mo., Barnes said. The work is to be carefully staged to reduce the risk of flooding in the community and surrounding area.

Unforeseen weather incidents could affect the construction schedule, he said. He did not say whether Ingram Barge would be sharing in the cost of the repair project.

In addition, he noted the repairs will bring all eight gates back to their original function when they were installed in the 1980s to replace an even earlier set of gates. He said the new gates are probably stronger than those prior to being damaged.

“I think they’ll be a little better,” he said of the replacements. “The damaged ones took a direct hit from the barges.”

The Massman contract also includes repair of one pier at the dam, removal of the 45,000-ton temporary rock dike just downstream of the structure and replacement of the two-way communication equipment between the dam and waterway locks downstream. The timetable includes mobilization at the site during March and delivery of the new replacement gates in May.

The Corps is also eyeing other needs on the river caused by the high water, including repair of the earthen dikes at the north shore to restore them to the original design, protection of the municipal wastewater treatment plant  downstream from the dam, damages to the Marseilles Elementary School building and possibly raising the level of the earthen dikes.

The hydroelectric plant development project on the river about three blocks downstream from the dam is not a Corps endeavor and is not included on the list.