Laos Hydro Dam Collapses

[bsacbob]

As you may know Laos has suffered a huge amount of rainfall in the last weeks, news breaking of the Xepian-Xe Nam Noy Dam in Attapeu Province breaching, billions of litres of water flooding the area with it taking several villages, reports indicate 7 people dead and hundreds missing. A tragic event in a region that is already in turmoil since recent unrest along the Cambodian border with threats of war breaking out between the two countries.

Some latest video news clips of events.

Obviously a huge relief operation is being put into place and will post further details as we have them.

 

[Ally]

Wow! Terrible tragedy unfolding

 

[bsacbob]

Chain of events leading the failure of the dam as reported by the BBC.

The dam that collapsed is an auxiliary dam called "Saddle Dam D". It is part of a network of two main dams and five subsidiary dams in the Xe-Pian Xe-Namnoy hydroelectric power project.

The dam was 90% complete and had been set to start operating commercially next year.

SK Engineering & Construction, a South Korean company with a stake in the project, said fractures were first discovered on the dam on Sunday, before it collapsed:

• Sunday 21:00 local time (14:00 GMT) - The dam is found to be partially damaged. The authorities are alerted and villagers near the dam start to be evacuated. A team is sent to repair the dam - but is hampered by heavy rain, which has also damaged many roads.
• Monday 03:00 - Water is discharged from one of the main dams (Xe-Namnoy dam) to try to lower water levels in the subsidiary dam.
• Monday 12:00 - The state government orders villagers downstream to evacuate after learning that there could be further damage to the dam.
• Monday 18:00 - More damage is confirmed at the dam.
• By Tuesday 01:30, a village near the subsidiary dam is flooded, and by 09:30 seven villages are flooded.

Ratchaburi Electricity Generating Holding, the main Thai stakeholder, said in a statement that the dam "was fractured" after "continuous rainstorms " caused a "high volume of water to flow into the project's reservoir".

As a result, water "leaked to the downstream area and down to Xe-Pian River" about 5km (three miles) away, it added.