Posted on 07/10/2006 8:15:34 PM PDT by blam
Enormous new dam fails in Brazil
10 July 2006
From New Scientist Print Edition.
GIANT cracks have opened in one of the world's tallest dams, just months after completion. The cracks appeared after a tunnel collapsed on 20 June beneath the 200-metre-high Campos Novos dam in southern Brazil, and the reservoir rapidly emptied. At one point, 4000 cubic metres of water (more than enough to fill an Olympic-size swimming pool) were rushing downstream every second towards a second dam on the river Canoas.
"If this had happened during the rainy season, and the two reservoirs had been full, water would likely have poured over the lower dam and it might have been destroyed. That would have been a major disaster, with perhaps hundreds killed," says Patrick McCully of the International Rivers Network, a California-based group that campaigns against large dams. Between them, the two dams can hold more than 2 cubic kilometres of water.
The dam's owner, Enercan, a consortium of Brazilian power companies, has revealed little about the accident. It is reported to have been trying to patch holes in a leaking tunnel since October, before the second tunnel failed catastrophically last month.
Or the same contractors that did the "big dig" in Boston.
Facts are stubborn things.
Something that Socialists, with magical thinking, flexible models of truth, disdain for entrepreneurs, will never overcome.
The state now owns quantity one (1) useless slab of concrete in excellent condition, used only once.
It would be very interesting to see who his silent associate is. You can be sure he has one (or more), and I wouldn't be surprised if we didn't recognize the name.
Actually, Portugal was getting the perceived better deal. They were getting the established African trade routes to the Indies.
humblegunner,
Don't you have some "CrapGoo" to fix this?
"Frankly my dear, I don't give a cracking damn."
That would be our "CrapGrout" line.
We were in the midst of moving when that happened so I don't really remember it...do remember the Thompson Canyon flash flood in Colorado a little later that summer. Fortunately, with the Teton Dam failure, the folks downstream had a little notice but, from the looks of the photos, it was a melluva' hess.
Human beings never cease to amaze and entertain at the breadth of topics various individuals find the energy to become passionate about.....
With all there is right in the world and with the thousands upon thousands of topics to choose for making your own personal improvement in.... "..campaigns against large dams" is just amazing to me. :-)
The Teton failure had the advantage of large agricultural areas downstream, so the flood had area to dissapate. It still totally wiped out a couple of farming towns.
Now, I live not far from where the San Francisquito dam failed in the '20s. A failure in a similar area today would kill thousands.
St. Barthelemy. Also Saba.
Years ago, we were moving to Redding, CA. My only demand was we had to live above the Shasta dam. Having lived in earthquake country, I made it a rule never, ever to be below a dam.
I saw a program about this dam...it is huge...can't believe it's now failing....
LOL!
I read how they had to do the staging of concrete pours in order to build Hoover Dam; it's incredible. They actually embedded soft metal pipes in each "block", plumbed them to an on-site refrigeration facility, and ran icy cold water through them so the concret would not get to hot as it set. After each pour had cured, they cut the pipes off flush with the surface and caulked them up.
This complex system of heat mitigation is critical because if the temperature rises too much while the concrete is setting up, it will undergo thermal expansion and solidify in an expanded state. Then, as it cools off, it will contract and form all kinds of cracks and fissures severely weakening the overall structure.
Had they poured Hoover Dam in a single months-long flow of wet concrete, it has been calculated that the core of the dam would have remained wet for over a hundred years.
Wow, I'm impressed. There is now officially nothing liberals won't carp about to keep from getting a real job.
The "undamaged" picture shows green grass covering the upstream side - indicating the photo was taken before the lake filled in.
The "damaged" picture shows brown mud in the same area - indicating the lake was filled then drained.
Before looking for a conspiratorial explaination (like "photoshopping"), ask yourself what facts you're overlooking.
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