You know that spillway "THEY" said was perfectly safe...

[Friends just call me Ross]

Quote

BREAKING: Threat of Oroville spillway collapse prompts evacuation of Marysville, Yuba, Butte and Sutter counties

http://www.sacbee.com/news/state/california/water-and-drought/article132332499.html

Lake levels down, but risk remains

7:15 p.m.

Oroville Lake depths are decreasing rapidly as officials release a huge amount of water from its main spillway.

Lake levels have fallen about one-half a foot in the last two hours and stand at 901.35 feet, about four-tenths of a foot above the level where water flows through the emergency spillway, state figures show.

At that pace, water should stop spilling over the emergency spillway within several hours, giving officials a chance to more fully assess erosion.

Falling depths do not mean the areas below the dam are safe. The emergency spillway is essentially part of the dam and the concern is that it will fail, something that could happen even if water stops flowing over its top.

Quote

Officials emphasized that while erosion had carved a massive hole in the emergency spillway, the dam itself is structurally sound.

 

“Believe me, in the last several days there have been a lot of eyes on it,” said Bill Croyle, acting director of the water department. “Oroville Dam is not in any way a part of the damage that occurred.”

 

Officials have estimated it could cost $100 million to $200 million to repair the damage to the spillway and other features.

 

“This is not a drill. This is not a drill. Repeat, this is not a drill,” the National Weather Service said. Authorities urged residents to contact neighbors and family members and reach out to the elderly and assist them in evacuating.

 

By Sunday night, state officials determined the erosion rate had slowed, and experts were devising a plan to dump bags of rocks into the crevice to plug the hole and prevent further erosion, Honea said.

LA Times

 

[Tortuga]

My niece and nephew are evacuating.  The Yuba City Assembly Hall is in the voluntary evacuation zone...

[Tia]

5 hours ago, Tortuga said:

My niece and nephew are evacuating.  The Yuba City Assembly Hall is in the voluntary evacuation zone...

Bro. Richard

Any additional updates?

[Motherhen]

What are the chances? The area of the Oroville Dam is at the mid point of two larger earthquakes.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffKfOJOXls0

 

[Tortuga]

5 hours ago, CyreJay said:

Bro. Richard

Any additional updates?

My relatives are safe, the lake level is now below the emergency spillway level so it stopped overflowing, they are still filling in the hole caused by the emergency overflow, the news reports that over 188,000 people were ordered to evacuate as a precaution. There are more storms predicted starting on Thursday.

 

We are too far away to be affected and I know only a few friends in that area and I haven't contacted them yet. The evacuations were just a precaution and I have't seen anything in the news about any flooding yet.

[Tortuga]

When I see news reports of people being evacuated I like to observe how the evacuations are managed, the logistic issues, individual preparation and government response.

 

Almost every time I see an evacuation in progress there are huge lines at the gas stations. I'm glad we are reminded to always keep at least a half a tank of fuel in the vehicle.

 

When the news show people in an evacuation center they usually have nothing with them, so I try to think of all the things I wish I would have and how I would use them if I was in the same situation.

 

You can learn a lot about how to prepare for an emergency by watching other emergencies as they develop.....

[Tia]

Wonderful!

I am so relieve to hear it was just a precaution to evacuate   -

Have to keep an eye on Thursday!

5 minutes ago, Tortuga said:

When I see news reports of people being evacuated I like to observe how the evacuations are managed, the logistic issues, individual preparation and government response.

 

Almost every time I see an evacuation in progress there are huge lines at the gas stations. I'm glad we are reminded to always keep at least a half a tank of fuel in the vehicle.

 

When the news show people in an evacuation center they usually have nothing with them, so I try to think of all the things I wish I would have and how I would use them if I was in the same situation.

 

You can learn a lot about how to prepare for an emergency by watching other emergencies as they develop.....

This is so true!  I try to keep my vehicle gassed up as well!

[vern]

They are not out of danger.... the concrete spillway is still dirt to water.... i don't see how that is good;  hopefully the damn doesn't fail(well technically the dam is fine).  looks like it would cause a lot of destruction.  (Not sure where the flood area would be as no ones put anything online with graphics as far as i could tell);  but it looks like it could cause problems in woodland; sacramento; the delta.

[Motherhen]

Here's a follow up to the earthquake forecast for the Oroville Dam area.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWuXne-dfzQ

 

[Luisabola]

Makes you think go bags would be handy for the brothers and sisters affected. Imagine if they lost their homes (I sincerely hope they don't) but at least they'd have insurance documents, id's, and enough food and water for a few days. I really must get mine sorted. 

[Tortuga]

The mandatory evacuation order has been lifted, people can return home.

[Friends just call me Ross]

[GStorrs46]

I appreciate this update on this dam that has made the national news this past week. When they first reported it I was amazed they had let the leak in the spillway get that bad. And it was obvious to me that without immediate action it would only lead to disaster. That is what I understand did in fact happen. Am I correct in in my information. At any yet, It reminds me of the story of the old Johnstown flood, that took place in the 19th century. In that  case they ignored the pressure on the dam until it produced the worst disaster in the 19th century. I can only hope that now officials have all been woken up to the dangers involved.

 

GStorrs46

[Tortuga]

They stopped the water going down the spillway,  now they can see how much damage was done....

[Friends just call me Ross]

Proof of the power of water in motion:

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Friends just call me Ross]

 

[Friends just call me Ross]

[Tortuga]

I wouldn't mind doing a little gold panning downstream just in case....

[hatcheckgirl]

 

7 hours ago, Friends just call me Ross said:

Proof of the power of water in motion:

 

Is that a guy in the middle near the big hole?  (Richard, thought you said "downstream" for panning, not right in the thick of it!)

[pnutts]

Maybe he is fishing

[vern]

its a good thing there was natural granite there.... otherwise that damn would of been toast.

[Motherhen]

I don't think this is going to be fixed any time soon. 

 

 

 

[outwalkin]

On 2/28/2017 at 5:29 AM, hatcheckgirl said:

Is that a guy in the middle near the big hole?  

If you zoom in you'll also see 2 people in the hole. I think they are all roped in. 

[Friends just call me Ross]

They were able to move over 1.2 million cubic yards of debris from the bottom of the main spillway at Oroville Dam.

The main spillway was reopened yesterday and will remain open for the next for or five days.

The five turbines had to be shut down to be safe.

 

[Tortuga]

On 2/27/2017 at 9:47 PM, Tortuga said:

I wouldn't mind doing a little gold panning downstream just in case....

Some recent news reports say that the flooding has exposed a lot of gold in the area. I guess I'm not the only that thought of looking for gold