Watch a Live Feed of California’s Failing Oroville Dam
The Oroville Dam is critically damaged, and 188,000 people have been ordered to evacuate the area.
Due to dangerously high water levels and the damage to California's Oroville Dam auxiliary spillway, 188,000 people near Lake Oroville have been forced to evacuate their homes. Butte County Emergency Services are on edge, hoping the spillway will hold.
Currently, the dam is releasing vast amounts of water, but the auxiliary spillway was not able to keep up with the demand and has begun eroding.
The Oroville Dam auxiliary spillway is compromised and may give way
If the spillway were to suddenly give way, a 30-foot wall of water would come rushing downstream. In attempts to ease the damage, the main waterway is cranking out 100,000 cubic feet per second when normal flow is 55,000 CFS. Unfortunately, there is still a lot of pressure being forced onto the dam, and the auxiliary spillway is still getting pummeled with water. The erosion of the auxiliary spillway has wiped out nearby service roads, and created a hole in the chute measuring 250 feet by 170 feet by 50 feet.
We will keep you posted on any other updates from the upstate California dam. In the meantime, however check out this live stream of the ongoing incident:
