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If I lived downstream of that, I’d have been done packing up my most treasured possessions and finding somewhere to wait it out.
I don't think that's good.
That is pretty scary looking video.
That is why I had to lighten things up a bit here by posting these reviews.
Quite a little canyon being eroded out there, how long has this been going on? Last I saw was yesterday morning, but it’s hard to tell what’s current and what isn’t. They’re going to have another issue and a big one with blockage due to that erosion diverting flow of the river itself soon. That will lead to flooding in Oroville, no matter what else happens up above.
This is info I gathered from the Sacramento Bee.
The auxiliary spillway which is accessed at a higher level than the main concrete one in the video is the one to be avoided at all costs. That one is the one that was causing dangerous erosion of the hillside back to the dam.
Since the evacuation and prior to the latest storm, the water level in the lake has been lowered almost 50 feet.
Last I read, engineers believe that by lowering the lake 50 feet and by using the main spillway at the greatest capacity it can be used safely, the level will not rise to the level of the auxiliary spillway.
The sideways overspill you see on the main spillway is the result of the huge crack/sinkhole that was there and which they attempted to shore up. One would assume they knew that what’s happening would happen and are okay with it.
The water flow through the main spillway can be controlled, but if they limit it too much, the level may rise to the auxiliary which they want to avoid at all costs.
In any case, if I lived downstream, I’d be outta there.
Days ago when they throttled the spillway down for a look, they saw a large cavern under the concrete, extending uphill toward the lake. I suspect what you saw was that section falling in. I’ll look for the video showing that cavern...