By Andrew Selsky
[...]
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has determined that a large earthquake — which is expected to occur again in the Pacific Northwest sooner or later — could cause the spillway gates of a dam in Oregon to buckle, resulting “in a potentially catastrophic flood.”
[...]
Just last week, an earthquake early-warning system was launched in Oregon, operated by the U.S. Geological Survey. As in California, the . Washington state is expected to join the ShakeAlert system, which operates on an array of seismic sensors, in May.
[...]
“Structural analysis has shown a possibility of the spillway gates buckling under the force of a full reservoir during a large earthquake,” the Corps said in its statement. “Risk is high enough to warrant immediate actions.”
[...]
The Corps said it continues to evaluate the seismic performance of the spillway and other components of the dam to determine whether long-term modifications or changes to operations will be necessary. That includes the potential for major reconstruction to address seismic risk.
[...]