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They didn't (and still don't) know the full extent of the damage to the concrete emergency spillway structure. If it failed, the areas evacuated would flood. It
by Gargoyle 10y ago
They didn't (and still don't) know the full extent of the damage to the concrete emergency spillway structure. If it failed, the areas evacuated would flood. It's still possible it might fail, they really won't know until morning.
- wtallis 10y agoThe concrete spillway is the main spillway. The emergency spillway is a concrete lip draining onto an unpaved hillside. It was partly because of the damage to the main spillway that they allowed the lake level to rise to the level of the emergency spillway, but when it appeared to be eroding alarmingly quickly, they opened the main spillway 100% in spite of knowing the lower half was already severely damaged.
- Gargoyle 10y agoRight. That concrete lip is holding back about 30 feet of water, which is what they feared could be released if it collapsed.