The big machines did not end up in the water as the result of some bizarre accident. They were driven to that spot intentionally as crews worked to remove the last remaining pieces of the Hydroelectric Dam.

Most of that dam, along with the little dam downstream, was ripped out last year. But a portion of the Hydroelectric Dam remained below the surface of the water. City Engineer Tony Trotter said the last section of the dam is about 3 to 4 feet high, and still below the water.

Breaking up and digging out that section isn’t the only thing construction crews will be doing in and around the river over the next couple of weeks.

Trotter said the concrete that lines the bank on the west side of the river near the site of the dam will also be removed.

A structure called a J-hook that will extend out into the water will also be created. The structure gets its name from the fact that when viewed from above it will look like the letter J. Fish are known to congregate around J-hooks where they have been created in other rivers and bodies of water.

The Hydroelectric Dam was built in 1918 and provided electricity for downtown street lights. It was shut down in 1971 when city officials decided it was too old to run efficiently.

Over the years, several plans for restarting the dam were considered and ultimately discarded.

A 2016 master plan for the Des Moines River in Webster County called for both dams to be removed for safety and environmental reasons.

In December 2018, the City Council hired Rachel Contracting, of St. Michael, Minnesota, to remove both dams. The company was paid $274,784 to remove the little dam. It has a $1,186,302.86 contract for removing the Hydroelectric Dam and related work.

The little dam and most of the Hydroelectric Dam were removed between January and March 2019. The company returned in September 2019 to take out more of the Hydroelectric Dam.

The frame of one of the gates that allowed water to pass through the dam remains standing as a reminder of the structure’s former presence.