river formed by the confluence of Levisa and Tug forks at Louisa, Lawrence county, eastern Kentucky, U.S. The river, made navigable by a series of locks and dams, flows generally north for 27 miles (43 km) along the Kentucky–West Virginia border to the Ohio River near Catlettsburg, Ky., where the three states, Kentucky, West Virginia, and Ohio, meet. The Breaks of Sandy—5 miles (8 km) of gorge and rapids—are on Russell Fork, a tributary of Big Sandy.