Main spillway and auxiliary spillway at Oroville Dam taken on Saturday, Feb. 11, 2017. about 3 p.m. (William Croyle/California Dept. of Water Resources)
Officials say the “auxiliary” spillway at Oroville Dam could fail at any time and are ordering emergency evacuations from Oroville to Gridley. The California Department of Water Resources urged residents of Oroville to head north, toward Chico. Residents elsewhere downstream should follow the orders of their local law enforcement, the department said. Officials have set up an evacuation shelter at the Silver Dollar Fairgrounds in Chico.
The auxiliary spillway is separate from the main dam structure. It’s essentially an ungated 1,700-foot-wide notch in the rim of the reservoir, which began overflowing Saturday morning, days after the dam’s concrete-lined main spillway began to crumble.
Here are some photos of the evacuation, and the main and emergency spillways.
There’s heavy traffic as Oroville Dam evacuees look for safe refuge . (Dan Brekke/KQED)Marilyn McKinney, Carolyn Garrett and Philip Haar at Chico fairgrounds after evacuating due to the Oroville Spillway problem. Neighborhood ‘was like zombie apocalypse’ with people rushing to leave, Haar said. (Dan Brekke/KQED)
Video from 12:30 today. Water released over Lake Oroville spillway at 100K cfs. Lake level 6' below Emerg. spillway. pic.twitter.com/DKbe1mwgZi
— California Governor's Office of Emergency Services (@Cal_OES) February 13, 2017
55,000 cubic feet per second of water was discharged from the Lake Oroville damaged spillway on Sunday morning. (Kelly M. Grow/ California Department of Water Resources)Water flows down the auxiliary spillway at Oroville Dam on Saturday. (Florence Low/California Department of Water Resources)Damaged main Oroville Dam spillway with eroded hillside. Feather River Fish Hatchery showing rearing runs and spawning facility. Photo taken on Feb. 11, 2017, about 3 p.m. (William Croyle/California Dept. of Water Resources)Feather River after officials began using Oroville emergency spillway. (Craig Miller/KQED)Water flows into the Feather River after officials began using emergency spillway for Oroville Dam. (Craig Miller/KQED)Water flows into the Feather River after officials began using emergency spillway for Oroville Dam. (Craig Miller/KQED)Water from the Oroville Dam Auxiliary Spillway flows into the Feather River and carries debris in the river, just downstream from the damaged main spillway. Photo taken Feb. 11, 2017. (Dale Kolke/California Department of Water Resources)California Department of Water Resources photos taken Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2017, show extensive damage to the Oroville Dam spillway and severe erosion to area adjacent to spillway structure. (Kelly M. Grow/Department of Water Resources)A concrete section eroded on the middle section of the spillway. (Kelly M. Grow/California Department of Water Resources)
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