Corps' Memphis district gets 2nd new commander in a month

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - The Memphis district of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has a new commander for the second time in about a month.

Col. Brian D. Sawser assumed command of the expansive district at a ceremony Friday in Memphis, the Corps said in a news release. Lt. Col. Robert W. Green had been named commander in mid-June, and the Corps had previously said Green would be handing over command to Sawser this month.

Sawser now leads a district that covers an area of 25,000 square miles (64,749 square kilometers) in parts of Tennessee, Mississippi, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois and Kentucky. He is responsible for flood damage reduction, navigation, environmental stewardship, emergency operations and other civil works along 610 miles (981 kilometers) of the Mississippi River and the White River. The district manages levees, tributaries, harbors and navigation channels connected to the river.

In addition to its Memphis headquarters, the district has field offices in Caruthersville, Missouri; Carlisle, Arkansas; and Wynne, Arkansas.

Sawser was commissioned in the Corps in 1999. Prior command assignments include command of a combat engineer company in the 54th Engineer Battalion, 130th Engineer Brigade, and the 39th Engineer Battalion, 101st Airborne Division, the Corps said.