Officials from Franklin and Warren counties and the city of Washington met Tuesday night to discuss the protection of the Treloar levee.The plan is for the entities to draft letters to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Washington, D.C., to emphasize the need to fix dike strictures around the levee.“With all the infrastructure behind that levee that’s going to give them a major priority to fix this,” said Danny Kuenzel, board member with the Missouri Levee and Drainage District Association.The problems came about after a notch was cut in a dike, he said.“After several years of high water, the water started cutting behind the dike and circling and taking the riverbank away,” Kuenzel said. “So now the riverbank is probably 15 to 20 feet away from the base of the levee.”That means if there was an extreme high water event, there could be more erosion of the riverbank, putting the river in contact with the base of the levee, he explained.That could cause the base of the levee to fail, which could flood farmland, infrastructure, Highways 47 and 94, Marthasville and the Washington Airport, Kuenzel added.At this point, the levee is in good shape, but the dikes around it need to be brought up to specifications, he said.“If you were to have a couple of months of high water along the Missouri River that bank would probably be cut a lot further than what it is,” Kuenzel said.It is unclear how much the repairs may cost, but Kuenzel said it would be “pretty expensive.”“They normally will bring in riprap or shot rock from the riverside,” Kuenzel said.Entities that may sign off on the letter of concern to the Corps of Engineers may include Franklin and Warren counties, the city of Washington, the Washington School District and MFA Co-Op No. 2, which has an elevator facility protected by the levee, Kuenzel said.The plan is to channel the letter through U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer’s office, Kuenzel noted.“I think they’re going to get it fixed; I think it’s just a matter of time,” he said.Treloar, Mo.