Posted on 11/10/2025 4:39:44 AM PST by texas booster
Polk County emergency officials Saturday night urged residents near the Carter Lake Dam in Camden to evacuate as a precaution after reports of a leak in the privately owned dam.
According to the Polk County Office of Emergency Management, the dam is located on private property and is owned by local property holders who are currently assessing the situation. Officials said there is an estimated 8-inch hole in the earthen embankment water is flowing out of.
In an update Sunday morning, Polk County officials said they were informed by the property owners that the damage did not worsen overnight. They said the owners intend to "pump water out of the lake and down the spillway with large-volume pumps to lower the water level 1 - 2 feet," roughly 14 million gallons, to better assess the damage. They said the water may run off into Dabbs Creek, which remains at a low level thanks to dry conditions.
As of 11 a.m. Sunday, officials said progress has been made in lowering the water level and the rate water is leaking through the hole has lessened.
"Property owners intend to seek assistance from an engineer for repairs. While this work is underway, it is recommended that persons residing in the area of concern avoid this area," the Polk County OEM said on social media.
Officials estimated it could take 24-48 hours to lower the lake enough for engineers to inspect both sides of the embankment.
Due to the damage, a Flash Flood Warning has been issued in the area until 6 p.m. Sunday.
(Excerpt) Read more at khou.com ...
"We used to go up there and swim and hang out," Ash said. "They closed it off years ago and I guess nobody knew what was going on up there."
Situational awareness is important at any age!
A ping out to the Texas Ping list, founded by Windflier.
Take care going through this region northeast of Houston.
Another special Texas winter edition for your perusal.
As always, please FReepmail me if you want on or off the Texas Ping list.
Blessings, and stay warm!
All I can say is, just dam.
Further north, in the small lake formed in the Pennsylvania Mountains upstream of a private dam, water was slowly rising when a drainage grate was plugged by debris.
https://youtu.be/CUUZC_iB2b8?si=cSg4X-pG2widmhCl
The mighty Trinity. It gets crazy sometimes. Brings the hogs up sometimes.
You might try damn-it. I bet some have used
that a few times in the last 24.
The Johnston Flood resulted when the privately owned South Fork earthen dam (Andrew Carnegie and James Fisk were among the owners) developed a similar leak. A previous owner had sold the metal pipes that created the spillway for scrap.
Adequate spillways are essential to an earthen dam. When an earthen dam is overtopped, as in this case, the flowing water “scours” the dam and widens the breach, and in the case of the Johnston Dam, until nearly the entire volume was released.
Interesting overview of the Oroville disaster in 2017:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jxNM4DGBRMU
I wonder what state this is in??
It’s near Moscow, Texas.
I’d be running. Just saw a documentary on the collapse of the St. Francis dam where 400 (low estimate) people were killed.
Mulholland and other officials claimed the leaking dam was “perfectly safe” hours before the catastrophic collapse.
Ditto for the Johnstown flood:
“The Great Flood of 1889, occurred on Friday, May 31, 1889, after the catastrophic failure of the South Fork Dam...The dam ruptured after several days of extremely heavy rainfall, releasing 14.55 million cubic meters of water. With a volumetric flow rate that temporarily equaled the average flow rate of the Mississippi River the flood killed 2,208 people[5] and accounted for US$17,000,000 (equivalent to about $590,000,000 in 2024) in damage.”
Not entirely correct. The dam was owned by the “Club”. Carnegie was indeed a member of the club, but the Club purchased the dam before Carnegie joined. Carnegie did not own the club or the dam. Also, I can’t find James Fisk on the Clubs membership list.
Go to South Fork Hunting and Fishing Club for details
Thanks
Moscow! Athens, Palestine, Florence, Paris, Naples…you can visit all those places without leaving Texas.
Sho nuff!
London, Odessa, Tokio...
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