Posted on 05/27/2008 6:25:50 PM PDT by blam
China earthquake: 80,000 being evacuated from under dam
By Richard Spencer in Beijing
Last Updated: 1:24AM BST 28/05/2008
Attempts are being made to complete the evacuation of 80,000 Chinese below a natural dam formed by landslides in the Sichuan earthquake.
Satellite images show how the Jian valley has filled with water after a landslide blocked the river's flow
The blockage, on the Jian river above the devastated town of Beichuan, is one of many that formed when landslides were triggered by the quake two weeks ago.
Almost 2,000 soldiers, armed with dynamite and using a mechanical digger landed by helicopter, hope to have dug a tunnel through the dam to release some of the water by next month and so ease the pressure.
But in a measure of their concern that this might not be quick enough, the authorities have drawn up contingency plans to move more than a million people further downstream if there is a likelihood of the dam bursting.
The new reservoir, called Mount Tangjia Lake, is one of 34 so-called "barrier lakes" created by landslides. In addition, the authorities said at least 69 man-made dams were in serious danger of bursting.
The lake's water level is rising by more than three feet a day and now contains 34 billion gallons.
While Beichuan itself is virtually deserted, apart from rescue teams, residents have remained or in many cases returned to surrounding villages, preferring their wrecked homes to the refugee camps in the city of Mianyang.
"The Tangjia quake lake should be our most urgent task," Hui Liangyu, China’s vice premier, said after visiting the site. "It is threatening millions of lives in the area downstream and any negligence will cause new disasters to people who have already suffered the quake."
Liu Ning, the water resources ministry’s chief engineer who is supervising the operation, said people were being moved for their own safety as forecast rains threaten to swell the lake further.
“It’s better for them to complain about the trouble that the evacuation would bring than to shed tears after the possible danger,” Mr Liu said.
A strong aftershock of 5.4 magnitude struck Sichuan yesterday, followed about 30 minutes later by a stronger shock which measured 5.7 magnitude and rocked the neighbouring Shaanxi province, injuring 63 people.
He Yongnian, the former deputy director of the China Seismological Bureau, said aftershocks could “last for two or three months” complicating relief efforts.
Xinhua, the state news agency, reported that 420,000 houses had collapsed in Qingchuan county, Sichuan province, but it is likely this figure refers to the total number of home destroyed in the main earthquake.
In Beijing, Guo Weimin, a cabinet spokesman, said that the confirmed number of deaths stood at 67,183, with a further 20,790 missing.
evokes too many untoward analogies.
to walk on water!
Or up hill.
Very scary! I’ve been reading little snippets here and there about evacuating a million people - but it was sort of theoretical. I guess it’s really happening now.
Prayers for all of them.
Amazing video of the destruction and rescue operations, taken right after the earthquake in Beschuan (it’s pretty graphic.)
http://blog.donews.com/zegna/archive/2008/05/25/1296249.aspx
They ain’t gonna shake this bad publicity by the Olympics. I read yesterday they actually asked for international help for the victims. I might be a little on the naive side, but that news is huge.
Yikes, not good.
Here are snips from the AP article also:
********************************************
Downstream, officials rushed to evacuate people in the path of potential floodwaters. Xinhua said emergency workers labored into the night to try to get 80,000 people out. Another group of about 80,000 have already been moved out of the valley, it said.
At Tangjiashan lake, hundreds of troops were working around the clock to dig a channel that would divert the rising waters before they breach the top of the rubble wall. Officials fear the loose soil and debris wall could crumble easily if the water starts cascading over the top, and send a torrent flooding down into the valley.
The lake now holds 34 billion gallons of water and was rising by more than 3 feet every 24 hours, Xinhua reported.
Tangjiashan is the largest of some 35 lakes created by rubble blocking rivers in the quake zone. Some rising floodwaters have already swallowed villages, though only Tangjiashan was posing a risk of another big catastrophe.
(snip)
About 5 million people were left homeless by the quake, and many are living in tents or makeshift camps clustered throughout the disaster zone.
You think they stopped working on those carriers, and that under-mountain naval base.
bttt
That is truly a raw and amazing video. Thanks.
dawn53 -- thank you for that link in #8; it has to be the most poweful and chilling one I've seen yet. My prayers and sympathy go out to all those afflicted in this disaster.
I am afraid those soldiers couldn’t dig the channel as quickly as we expect with only several earthmovers transported by helicopter.
Good news is the aftershock didn’t have any damage or negative effect on the dam of “barrier lakes”. Maybe the dam made by landslide is big and stable enough for such magnitude aftershock.
Decision needs to be made as soon as possible!
Thank you for the link. It’s hard to imagine the situation even after seeing such a video. Terrible.
I'm not knowledgeable about these things by any means, but I do know that the main problem with such natural structures is seepage. Water will soak its way into the dam, and dissolve and move the earth and pebbles around, allowing more movement and seepage. It may take anywhere from a few days to several weeks, but the water will channel through and blow out the other side. If the outflow is gradual enough, and the other dams downstream have managed to drop their retention levels to handle the increase then all should survive. Without extensive engineering evaluation, no one can yet tell just how damaged those downstream dams are; I pray they hold for the duration. I saw somewhere that the people were being moved downstream; I hope they also mean up to higher ground.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.