CE 595 Disaster Management

Dam Safety
y
- Lecture 1 -

Prof. K.P.P. Pathirana

Dams
A dam
d
iis a b
barrier
i b
built
ilt across a water
t course tto h
hold
ld b
back
k or control
t l th
the
water flow.

Purpose:
Hydro Power Generation
Irrigation
Water Supply
Flood Control
Recreational

Classification of Dams according

g to their function
Storage dams
Diversion dams
Detention dams
Types of dams
Embankment Dams - Earthfill Dams,
Dams Rockfill Dams
Gravity Dams
Concrete Arch Dams
Buttress Dams

Earthfill dam
Gravity dam

Concrete
arch dam

Buttress dam

Rockfill dam

Rockfill dam

Typical Earthfill dam section

Central clay core

Upstream membrane

Diaphragm wall

Key Features of dam:

Dam foundation
Upstream slope
C t/ Wave
Crest/
W
wallll
Downstream slope
Abutments
Spillway(s)
Low-level outlet
Downstream channel
Reservoir rim

Victoria Dam

Power
intake

Right
Ri
ht
Abutment
Spillway

LLeft
ft
Abutment

Spillway
Sp
ay
Bottom
Outlet

StillingBasin

Spillways

There are two main types of spillways:

Controlled and Uncontrolled Spillways
p
y

A controlled spillway has mechanical

structures or gates to regulate the rate of
flow.

An uncontrolled spillway, in
contrast,
co
t ast, does not
ot have
a e gates;
when the water rises above the
crest of the spillway it begins to be
released from the reservoir.

Chute spillways

Labyrinth spillways

Bell-mouth spillway
-morning glory spillway-

Emergency spillway

The fuse plug is designed to overtop and wash out in case of a large
flood, greater than the discharge
capacity of the spillway gates.

Breaching sections

Causes of dam incidents in USA (Ref. National academy Press, 1983)

IncidentCauses

Numberof
i id
incidents

Embankment Concretedam Others

d
dam
i id
incidents
i id
incidents
12

%ofall
i id
incidents

Overtopping&Flow erosion

71

56

Slopeprotectiondamage

13

13

Embankmentleaking,piping

37

37

13

Foundationleaking,piping

66

54

11

Sliding

35

33

Deformation

37

32

Deterioration

11

Earthquakeinstability

Faultyconstruction
l
i

Gatefailure

Total

285

240

38

100

Hydraulicallyrelatedcauses

102

78

21

36

25

23
12

13
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1

Leading Causes of Dam Failures

Overtopping: 1/3 of all dam failures globally

Foundation defects: 1/3 of all dam failures
Piping and Seepage: 1/5 of all dam failures
Other reasons

Overtopping of dams
O
Overtopping
t
i occurs when
h reservoir
i llevell exceeds
d th
the h
height
i ht
of the dam.
This can be caused by an inadequate spillway or settlement
of dam crest.
Water level rises rapidly and without adequate warning.
eg: - Flash floods
Heavy rains
Landslide into a reservoir
Collapse of upstream dam

Affect the structural integrity

g y of the dam or q
quickly
y erode the
land on either side of the dam.
In earth dams, the main cause of failure is erosion caused
by overtopping or a failed
f
spillway.

Failure of an earth dam by overtopping

Foundation defects
Defects can occur in the foundation supporting the dam.
The ground underneath can settle unequally.
unequally
Dams built on slopes much be properly designed to
avoid issues with instabilities or landslides.
Earthquakes can trigger foundation failures.
The main cause of concrete dam failures is a problem
with the foundation.
High uplift pressures and uncontrolled seepage can also
lead to foundation failures
failures.

Piping and Seepage

Embankment dams which are generally semi-permeable
p or leaks
mayy lead to failures when too much water seeps
through the structure.
Failure can occur when the structure becomes
weakened
eakened from internal erosion (Piping).
(Piping)
This can occur along hydraulic structures, spillways,
conduits or cracks.
Evaluate whether seepage is increasing or decreasing
with time and reservoir water level.
Transport of fines from the core can lead to sinkholes
and eventual collapse of dam.
Such seepage or leakage can even be caused by an
animal burrowing in and around earth dams.

Other reasons
Structural weaknesses due to improper maintenance or
q
materials or unsound designs,
g , mayy
built with inadequate
lead to catastrophic dam failure.
Aging of dams.
Sabotage

Major Dam Failures

Partial failure of a
spillway gate

F l
Folsom
dam
d

Northern California,
USA
17th July 1995

Folsom Dam is a concrete gravity dam on the American River in Northern

California and it is 100 m high concrete and 430 m
m, long flanked by
earthen wing dams. It was completed in 1955.
Power generation 199 MW

On July 17, 1995, a spillway gate failed, and nearly 40% of Folsom
Lake drained before it could be repaired
repaired.
Nearly 1,100 m3 flowed through the broken gate.

The gate rotates on giant brass and steel pivot pins.

Corrosion on the bearing surfaces, caused by an inadequate and not sufficiently
waterproof lubricant, greatly increased friction in the gate's pivot bearings, which
seized up as the gate was being lifted
lifted.
The gates are raised with an electric motor which engages a chain drive attached
to the gate, through a very high-ratio reduction gear set.
The drive motor to continue lifting the gate despite the seized pivot bearing.

Aging of dams

F il
Failure
off a spillway
ill
structure
t
t

Teton Dam Failure

Teton Dam is an earth dam, when filling for the first time, the dam

suffered a catastrophic failure on June 5, 1976.

It released nearlyy 300,000
,
acre feet of water,, then flooded farmland and towns
downstream with the eventual loss of 14 people and caused hundreds of millions
of dollars in property damage downstream. More than 200 families were left
homeless.

Teton Dam Failure (Continue)

On June 3, 1976 several small seepages were noticed in the north
abutment wall. This led to more frequent inspections of the dam.
On June 4, 1976 wetness was noticed in the right abutment and small
springs
p g were beginning
g
g to appear.
pp
On June 5, 1976 the first major leak was noticed between 7:30 and
8:00 a
a.m.
m The leak was flowing at about 500 to 800 liters per second
from rock in the right abutment.
By 9:00 a
a.m.
m the flow had increased to 1
1,100
100 to 1
1,400
400 liters per second
and seepage had been observed about 40 meters below the crest of
the dam.

Teton Dam Failure (Continue)

At 11:00 a.m. a whirlpool was observed in the reservoir directly
upstream from the dam and four bulldozers were sent to try to push
riprap into the sinkhole near the dam crest.
p by
y the rapidly
p y expanding
p
g
Two of the bulldozers were swallowed up
hole, and the operators were pulled to safety by ropes tied around their
waists.
Between 11:15 and 11:30 a.m. a 6 by 6 meter chunk of dam fell into the
whirlpool and within minutes the entire dam collapsed.
The Investigation Panel had quickly identified piping as the most
probable cause of the failure.

Vajont Dam - Italy

The Vajont
Th
V j t Dam
D
i completed
is
l t d iin 1959 iin th
the valley
ll
of the Vajont river under Monte Toc, 100 km north
of Venice, Italy.
One of the tallest dams in the world, it is 262 m
high, 27 m thick at the base and 3.4 m at the top.
A 1963 landslide caused the overtopping of the
dam and around 2,000 deaths.
- Warning signs and negative appraisals during the
early stages of filling were disregarded - caused
by "the failure of engineers and geologists.

On 9 October 1963 at approximately

pp
y 10:35 p
pm,,
the combination of 'drawing-down the reservoir'
and heavy rains triggered a landslide of about
260 MCM of forest, earth, and rock, which fell
into the reservoir at up to 110 km per hour
hour.
The resulting displacement of water caused 50
MCM of water to over-top the dam in a 250 m
high wave.
The flooding in the Piave valley destroyed the
several villages,
villages killing 2
2,000
000 2,500
2 500 people and
turning the land below into a flat plain of mud.
The dam's structure was largely undamaged.

The owner of each dam is responsible for its safety, people living in
downstream areas of the dam and their properties.

Dam owners should ensure that for each of their dams:

- Operated and maintained in a safe manner.
- Dam hazard categories are known and regularly reviewed.
- Appropriate surveillance programs are implemented.
- Emergency action plans are prepared and tested
tested, and inundation
maps are provided to appropriate agencies to assist downstream
emergency planning.
- S
Suitably
it bl qualified
lifi d and
d experienced
i
d personnell are engaged
dd
during
i
dam inspections.
- Suitable corporate governance structure and internal reporting
processes are in place.
- Dam safety are undertaken at the appropriate time, and
- Dam risk profiles are available and risks are being addressed on a
priority and regular basis.

An emergency in terms of dam operation is defined as a

condition which develops unexpectedly
unexpectedly, endangers
- the structural integrity of the dam and/or
- safety of lives and properties at the dam site as well as in the areas
do nstream of the dam
downstream
dam, and require
req ire immediate action.
action

Uncontrolled or excessive release of large amount of water

has great potential for loss of lives and damage to property in
the downstream areas.
Such situation can occur:
- sudden release of water after extreme storm events
- breach of dam due to earthquake, landslide and/or
sabotage
- breach as a result of ageing of dam

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