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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia [show wikipedia page here]

A dam is a barrier across flowing water that obstructs, directs or slows down the
flow, often creating a reservoir, lake or impoundments. Most dams have a
section called a spillway or weir over or through which water flows, either
intermittently or continuously, and some have hydroelectric power
generation systems installed.

Dams are considered "installations containing dangerous forces"

under International Humanitarian Law due to the massive impact of a possible
destruction on the civilian population and the environment. Dam failures are
comparatively rare, but can cause immense damage and loss of life when they
occur; in 1975 the failure of the Banqiao Reservoir Dam and other dams
in Henan Province, China caused more casualties than any other dam failure in
history. The disaster killed an estimated 171,000 people[1] and 11 million people
lost their homes.

The reservoir emptying through the failed Teton Dam

Contents
1 Main causes of dam failure
1.1 Deliberate dam failure
2 List of major dam failures
3 See also
4 References
5 External links

Main causes of dam failure

Common causes of dam failure include:

Sub-standard construction materials/techniques (Gleno Dam)

Spillway design error (South Fork Dam, near failure of Glen Canyon Dam)
International special sign for
Geological instability caused by changes to water levels during filling or poor surveying (Malpasset Dam). works and installations containing
Sliding of a mountain into the reservoir (Vajont Dam – not exactly a dam failure, but caused nearly the dangerous forces

entire volume of said reservoir to be displaced and overtop the dam)

Poor maintenance, especially of outlet pipes (Lawn Lake Dam, Val di Stava dam collapse)
Extreme inflow (Shakidor Dam)
Human, computer or design error (Buffalo Creek Flood, Dale Dike Reservoir, Taum Sauk pumped storage plant)
Internal erosion or piping, especially in earthen dams (Teton Dam)
Earthquakes

Deliberate dam failure

A notable case of deliberate dam failure (prior to the Humanitarian Law rulings) was the British Royal Air Force Dambusters raid
on Germany in World War II (codenamed "Operation Chastise"), in which three German dams were selected to be breached in order to impact on
German infrastructure and manufacturing and power capabilities deriving from the Ruhr and Eder rivers. This raid later became the basis for
several films.
Other cases include the Chinese bombing of multiple dams during Typhoon Nina (1975) in an attempt to drain them before their reservoirs
overflowed, the typhoon produced what is now considered a 1-in-2000 years flood, which few if any of these dams were designed to survive.

List of major dam failures

Dam/incident Year Location Fatalities
Marib Dam 575 Sheba, Yemen Unknown Unknown causes, possibly neglect. The consequent failure of th
Puentes Dam 1802 Lorca, Spain 608 1,800 houses and 40,000 trees destroyed.[2]
Holme Valley, United
Bilberry reservoir 1852 81 Failed due to heavy rain.
Kingdom
South Yorkshire, United
Dale Dike Reservoir 1864 244 Defective construction, small leak in wall grew until dam failed. M
Kingdom
Iruka Lake Dam 1868 Inuyama, Aichi Prefecture 941 Under the influence of heavy rain from late April, this soil dam c
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(then Owari Province), Japan Inuyama, Iwakura, Kasugai, Tsushima Yatomi, and to Komaki. 8
Lax regulations and cost cutting led to an insufficient design, wh
Mill River Dam 1874 Williamsburg, United States 139
making national headlines. This dam break led to increased reg
South Fork Dam 1889 Johnstown, United States 2,209 Blamed locally on poor maintenance by owners; court deemed i
Walnut Grove Dam 1890 Wickenburg, United States 100 Heavy snow and rain following public calls by the dam's chief en
Gohna Lake dam 1894 Garhwal, India 1 Failure of a landslide dam. Authorities had been able to evacuat
Austin Dam 1900 Texas, United States 8 Extreme current caused failure.
Hauser Dam 1908 Helena, United States 0 Heavy flooding coupled with poor foundation quality. Workers m
Broken Down Dam 1908 Fergus Falls, United States 0 Design flaw. Four downstream dams and bridge destroyed. Mills
Austin Dam 1911 Austin, United States 78 Poor design, use of dynamite to remedy structural problems. De
Czech Republic
Desná Dam 1916 (then Desná, Austria- 62 Construction flaws caused the dam failure.
Hungary)
Transylvania County, United
Lake Toxaway Dam 1916 0 Heavy rains caused the dam to give way. Dam was later rebuilt
States
San Diego County, United
Sweetwater Dam 1916 0 Over-topped from flooding; partial failure.
States
San Diego County, United
Lower Otay Dam 1916 14 Over-topped from flooding.
States
Tigra Dam 1917 Gwalior, India 1,000 Failed due to water infiltrating through foundation. Possibly more
Gleno Dam 1923 Province of Bergamo, Italy 356 Poor construction and design.
Llyn Eigiau dam
1925 Dolgarrog, United Kingdom 17 The outflow from Llyn Eigiau destroyed Coedty reservoir. Contra
and Coedty reservoir
St. Francis Dam 1928 Santa Clarita, United States 600 Geological instability of canyon wall that could not have been de
Secondary Dam of
1935 Molare, Italy 111 Geological unstable base combined with flood.
Sella Zerbino
Horonai Dam 1941 Ōmu, Hokkaido, Japan 60 A torrential rain struck around Horonai River area. This is the da
Nant-y-Gro dam 1942 Elan Valley, United Kingdom 0 Destroyed during preparation for Operation Chastise in World W
Edersee Dam 1943 Hesse, Germany 70 Destroyed by bombing during Operation Chastise in World War
Möhne Dam 1943 Ruhr, Germany 1,579 Destroyed by bombing during Operation Chastise in World War
Kameoka, Kyoto In heavy rain, it swallowed the muddy stream of the village of th
Heiwa Lake Dam 1951 117
Prefecture, Japan area of 80 houses damaged, according to local official confirme
Whangaehu River, New
Tangiwai disaster 1953 151 Failure of Mount Ruapehu's crater lake.
Zealand
Taisho Lake Dam 1951 Ide, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan 108 Under the influence of heavy rain, outburst with a Ninotani Lake
According to dam workers testimonies, the grounds had serious
Vega de Tera 1959 Ribadelago, Spain 144
contention wall collapsed letting out nearly 8 million cubic meter
Malpasset dam 1959 Côte d'Azur, France 423 Geological fault possibly enhanced by explosives work during co
Kiev, Ukraine (then Ukrainian Impoundment of the clay slurry reservoir (storing the waste of th
Kurenivka mudslide 1961-03-13 1,500
SSR of the Soviet Union) 2,000 fatalities.
Panshet Dam 1961 Pune, India 1,000 Dam wall burst due to pressue of accumulated rain water.[5]
Baldwin Hills Reservoir 1963 Los Angeles, United States 5 Subsidence caused by over-exploitation of local oil field. 277 ho
Spaulding Pond Dam
1963 Norwich, United States 6 More than $6 million estimated damages.
(Mohegan Park)
Strictly not a dam failure, since the dam structure did not collaps
Vajont Dam 1963 Monte Toc, Italy 2,000
into the lake; water escaped in a wave over the top of dam. Vall
Swift Dam 1964-06-10 Montana, United States 28 Caused by heavy rains.
A tailings dam at Plakalnitsa copper mine near the city of Vratsa
Mina Plakalnitsa 1966 Vratsa, Bulgaria 107
suffered widespread damage, the official death toll is 107, but th
Central Java
Sempor Dam 1967 Province, Republic of 2,000 Flash floods over-topped the dam during construction.[8]
Indonesia
Certej dam failure 1971 Certej Mine, Romania 89 A tailings dam built too tall collapsed, flooding Certeju de Sus w
Buffalo Creek Flood 1972 West Virginia, United States 125 Unstable loose constructed dam created by local coal mining co
Canyon Lake Dam 1972 South Dakota, United States 238 Flooding, dam outlets clogged with debris. 3,057 injuries, over 1
Banqiao and Shimantan Extreme rainfall, beyond the planned design capability of the da
1975 Zhumadian, China 171,000
Dams 1986 and 1993.
Teton Dam 1976 Idaho, United States 11 Water leakage through earthen wall, leading to dam failure. 13,0
Laurel Run Dam 1977 Johnstown, United States 40 Heavy rainfall and flooding that over-topped the dam. Six other
Kelly Barnes Dam 1977 Georgia, United States 39 Unknown, possibly design error as dam was raised several time
Machchu-2 Dam 1979 Morbi, India 5,000 Heavy rain and flooding beyond spillway capacity. Old estimates
Wadi Qattara Dam 1979 Benghazi, Libya 0 Flooding beyond discharge and storage capacity damaged the m
Rocky Mountain National
Lawn Lake Dam 1982 3 Outlet pipe erosion; dam under-maintained due to location.
Park, United States
Heavy flooding coupled with poor quality of the dam wall, lack o
Tous Dam 1982 Valencia, Spain 8
possibly 40 fatalities and 25 disappeared but in the coming days
Val di Stava dam 1985 Tesero, Italy 268 Poor maintenance and low margin for error in design; outlet pipe
Upriver Dam 1986 Washington state, United 0 Lightning struck power system, turbines shut down. Water rose

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States overtopped(rebuilt).
Kantale Dam 1986-04-20 Kantale, Sri Lanka 180 Poor maintenance, leakage, and consequent failure. Destroyed
Split-Dalmatia
Peruća Dam detonation 1993 0 Not strictly a dam failure as there was a detonation of pre-positio
County, Croatia
Merriespruit tailings
1994 Free State, South Africa 17 Dam failed after a heavy thunderstorm. The dam was in an unac
dam
Problems started after two weeks of constant rain, which severe
Saguenay Flood 1996 Quebec, Canada 10
protecting the city was poorly maintained.
New Hampshire, United
Meadow Pond Dam 1996 1 Design and construction deficiencies resulted in failure in heavy
States
Opuha Dam 1997 Canterbury, New Zealand 0 Heavy rain during construction caused failure, dam was later co
Over-steepened dam failed by sliding on weak clay foundation,
Doñana disaster 1998-04-25 Andalusia, Spain 0
which is the main water source for the Doñana National Park, a
Shihgang Dam 1999-09-21 Taiwan 0 Caused by damage sustained during the 921 earthquake.
Martin County coal Failure of a coal slurry impoundment. The water supply for over
2000-10-11 Martin County, United States 0
slurry spill worst environmental disasters ever in the southeastern United S
Vodní nádrž Soběnov 2002 Soběnov, Czech Republic 0 Extreme rainfall during the 2002 European floods.
Zeyzoun Dam 2002 Zeyzoun, Syria 22 2,000 individuals displaced and over 10,000 directly affected.[11
Strictly not a dam or dike failure. The original Peat soil surround
Ringdijk Groot-Mijdrecht
2003 Wilnis, Netherlands 0 became lighter than water during the 2003 drought. The real ca
(nl)
Around 1,500 residents had to be evacuated.
Hope Mills Dam 2003–05 North Carolina, United States 0 Caused by heavy rains. 1,600 people evacuated.
Silver Lake Dam 2003-05-14 Michigan, United States 0 Heavy rains caused earthen dam and bank to wash away. 1,800
Big Bay Dam 2004 Mississippi, United States 0 A small hole in the dam grew and eventually led to failure. 104 b
Camará Dam 2004-06-17 Paraiba, Brazil 3 Poor maintenance. 3000 people homeless. A second failure hap
Shakidor Dam 2005 Pasni, Pakistan 70 Sudden and extreme flooding caused by abnormally severe rain
Computer/operator error; gauges intended to mark dam full wer
Taum Sauk reservoir 2005 Lesterville, United States 0
lower reservoir withstood the onslaught of the flood.
Campos Novos Dam 2006 Campos Novos, Brazil 0 Tunnel collapse.
Gusau Dam 2006 Gusau, Nigeria 40 Heavy flooding. Approximately 500 homes were destroyed, disp
Ka Loko Dam 2006 Kauai, United States 7 Heavy rain and flooding. Several possible specific factors to inc
Lake Delton 2008-06-09 Lake Delton, United States 0 Failure due to June 2008 Midwest floods.
Koshi Barrage 2008 Koshi Zone, Nepal 250 Heavy rain. The flood affected over 2.3 million people in the nor
Kingston Fossil Plant
2008-12-22 Roane County, United States 0 Failure of a fly ash slurry pond.
coal fly ash slurry spill
Algodões Dam 2009-05-27 Piaui, Brazil 7 Heavy rain.[14] 80 people injured, 2000 homeless.
Sayano–Shushenskaya Not a dam failure, but rather the power station accident where th
2009-08-17 Sayanogorsk, Russia 75
Dam hall and causing the ceiling to collapse. The dam itself was unaf
Situ Gintung Dam 2009 Tangerang, Indonesia 98 Poor maintenance and heavy monsoon rain.
Kyzyl-Agash Dam 2010 Qyzylaghash, Kazakhstan 43 Heavy rain and snowmelt. 300 people were injured and over 10
Hope Mills Dam 2010 North Carolina, United States 0 Sinkhole caused dam failure. Second failure of the dam, will be
Testalinda Dam 2010-06-13 Oliver, Canada 0 Heavy Rain, low maintenance. Destroyed at least 5 homes. Bur
Delhi Dam 2010-07-24 Iowa, United States 0 Heavy rain, flooding. Around 8,000 people had to be evacuated
Lower Silesian
Niedow Dam 2010-08-07 1 Heavy rain, over-topped from flooding.[15]
Voivodeship, Poland
Ajka alumina plant
2010-10-04 Ajka, Hungary 10 Failure of concrete impound wall on alumina plant tailings dam.
accident
Kenmare
2010-10-08 Topuito, Mozambique 1 Failure of tailings dam at titanium mine. 300 homes had been re
Resourcestailings dam
Failed after 2011 Tōhoku earthquake. 7 dead and 1 unknown. J
Fujinuma Dam 2011-03-11 Sukagawa, Japan 8
worldwide since 1930.[16]
Campos dos Campos dos
2012-01-04 0 Failed after a period of flooding.[17] 4000 people displaced.
Goytacazes dam Goytacazes, Brazil
Ivanovo Dam 2012-02-06 Biser, Bulgaria 8 Failed after a period of heavy snowmelt. A crack in the dam wen
Köprü Dam 2012-02-24 Adana Province, Turkey 10 A gate in the diversion tunnel broke after a period of heavy rain
Dakrong 3 Dam 2012-10-07 Quảng Trị Province, Vietnam 0 Poor design, Typhoon Gaemi flood surge.
Masvingo
Tokwe Mukorsi Dam 2014-02-04 0 Downstream slope failure on a 90.3 m (296 ft) tall embankment
Province, Zimbabwe
Tailings dam collapse due to negligent operation; reservoir was
Mount Polley tailings
dam failure
2014-08-04 British Columbia, Canada 0 dam breach a few months before[24] and fundamental design fla
resulted in complete exoneration of Imperial Metals, the dam op
Germano mine tailings Mariana, Minas One tailings dam collapse. One village destroyed, 600 people e
2015-11-05 17
dams Gerais, Brazil river's mouth.

See also
Grout curtain
List of hydroelectric power station failures

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Structural integrity and failure

References
1. ^ Osnos, Evan. "Faust, China, and Nuclear Power," The New Yorker, 14. ^ "Breaching of the Algodões dam and the threat of mega-projects" .
Wednesday October 12, 2011. Retrieved Movement of Dam Affected People. 29 May 2009.
at http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/evanosnos/2011/10/faust- Retrieved 6 January 2012.
china-and-nuclear-power.html on October 12, 15. ^ Ereignisanalyse Hochwasser im August und September 2010 und im
2011. Archived March 13, 2016, at the Wayback Machine. Januar 2011 in Sachsen, chapter 9 (pdf, 16,34 MB)
2. ^ La rotura del pantano de Puentes 16. ^ "Archived copy" . Archived from the original on 2012-05-11.
3. ^ "Arizona's 1890 dam disaster killed more than 100 people" The Daily Retrieved 2011-05-18.(JPN)
Courier. "Archived copy" . Archived from the original on 2015-11- 17. ^ "Brazil dam burst forces thousands from homes" . BBC. 5 January
18. Retrieved 2015-01-30. Retrieved 30 January 2015. 2012. Retrieved 6 January 2012.
4. ^ 40 años de la tragedia de Ribadelago, en la que murieron 144 18. ^ "Bulgarian Dam Collapsed over Unrepaired Crack since 2003" .
personas (in Spanish) NoVinite. 6 February 2012. Retrieved 26 February 2012.
5. ^ July 12, 1961 – Lest We Forget 19. ^ "Cover Kozan Dam Explosion" (in Turkish). Haberler. 8 March 2012.
6. ^ https://sgorigrad.com/history#tragedy1966 Retrieved 11 March 2012.
7. ^ https://web.archive.org/web/20120728074246/http://zgorigrad.com/trag 20. ^ "Holding Ozaltin conscience" (in Turkish). Emlak Kulisi. 10 March
ediata 2012. Archived from the original on 20 May 2013.
8. ^ Wohl, Ellen (2013). Mountain Rivers Revisited . John Wiley & Sons. Retrieved 11 March 2012.
p. 338. ISBN 1118671562. 21. ^ "Former tailings pond engineers for Mount Polley say they made
9. ^ "Certej 1971, tragedia uitată a 89 de vieţi îngropate sub 300 de mii de warnings" . CBC News. Retrieved 2017-12-28.
metri cubi de nămol" . Adevărul. 31 August 2013. 22. ^ "Mount Polley mine tailings breach followed years of government
Retrieved 30 March 2013. warnings" . CBC News. Retrieved 2017-12-28.
10. ^ "No One Had a Tongue to Speak" . 12 May 2014. 23. ^ "First Nations chief: Warning about B.C. tailings pond 'ignored' -
Retrieved 12 May 2014. Macleans.ca" . Macleans.ca. 2014-08-05. Retrieved 2017-12-28.
11. ^ "Syria – Collapse of Dam/floods OCHA Situation Report No. 24. ^ "Red flags raised years before B.C. mine-tailings spill, consultant
4" (PDF). ReliefWeb. Retrieved 26 February 2012. says" . Retrieved 2017-12-28.
12. ^ Chanson, Hubert Chanson Hubert (2009). "Embankment Overflow 25. ^ "Design failure caused Mount Polley tailings breach, expert panel
Protection Systems and Earth Dam Spillways" (PDF). Dams: Impacts, concludes" . Retrieved 2017-12-28.
Stability and Design. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-09-02.
13. ^ "Kauai Dam Breach Killed 7 People Five Years Ago, But Criminal
Charges Against Dam Owner Still Pending." Hawaii
Reporter. http://www.hawaiireporter.com/kauai-dam-breach-killed-7-five-
years-ago-but-criminal-charges-still-pending/123 Retrieved 24 July
2013.

External links
A list of dam failures and incidents in the United States Dam Safety.org
Chronology of major tailings dam failures from 1960 WISE Uranium Project
Chanson, H. (2009) Application of the Method of Characteristics to the Dam Break Wave Problem Journal of Hydraulic Research, IAHR, Vol.
47, No. 1, pp. 41–49 doi:10.3826/jhr.2009.2865 (ISSN 0022-1686). Available as a pdf at [1]
Dam Failure and Flood Event Case History Compilation Bureau of Reclamation
Mount Polley mine: Ex-engineers warned tailings pond 'getting large'

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