JACKSON, MS — Blake Palmer, PE, joins Garver as a Transportation Project Manager and member of Garver’s Hydrology and Hydraulics (H&H) team, bringing over a decade of experience in hydraulic design, river engineering, and floodplain management to Garver clients in Mississippi and across the region. A Mississippi native and graduate of Mississippi State University who has worked in the state throughout his career, Palmer also brings a deep understanding of the state’s geography.

“H&H services are incredibly important — more so in Mississippi than in other states — because of the unique soils, which vary from highly expansive clays to sandy soils that tend to erode quickly, and the wide flood plains, particularly in the Delta region," said Mark Hammons, Garver Transportation Senior Project Manager and H&H Practice Leader. "Wide flood plains often mean multiple bridges at highway crossings. The hydraulic analysis needed to determine the flow and velocity distributions for that is crucial. You need someone who knows what they’re doing, who can accurately model all that. We’ve got that person in Blake Palmer. His expertise and knowledge of the region make him a reliable and valuable asset.”

Palmer’s experience in hydraulic modeling began at the Mississippi Department of Transportation (MDOT), where he worked for nearly eight years. During that period of his career, he came to know Garver, working with Hammons and Garver Transportation Senior Project Manager and Southeast Region H&H Leader Keith Quick.

“I’m very pleased to be part of Garver,” he said. “I’m a people person, and I look forward to interacting with clients and listening to their needs — knowing that I’ve got the support of a firm-wide H&H team, to serve those clients.”