Taum Sauk Dam Failure

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The breach occurred on the near right side of the reservoir as seen in this undated publicity aerial photo of the upper reservoir of the Taum Sauk plant. Source: Ameren

Over a billion gallons of water poured through this breach in the wall. Source: FERC

A broad swath of dense forest was washed away and scoured to bedrock by the escaping flow. Source: FERC

The upper reservoir of the Taum Sauk pumped storage plant in southeast Missouri breached at 5:13 AM CST, December 14, 2005. A wall of water 20 feet high moving at 3 miles per hour flowed down the Black River flooding Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park and threatening the towns of Lesterville and Annapolis as well as other communities downstream. Vehicles were washed downstream according to reports by the Missouri State Highway Patrol. The park caretaker's home at Johnson Shut-Ins was removed from its foundation and washed away. The five family members were inside the house that was surrounded by forest. The family survived, but the home and surrounding woods were gone.

Residents compared the damage to the 2004 Tsunami.

The Taum Sauk pumped storage plant is located in the St. Francois mountain region of the Missouri Ozarks, approximately 90 miles (145 km) south of St. Louis.

Missouri Governor Matt Blunt was flabbergasted when he visited the devastation that afternoon.

Low cloud levels prevented medical helicopters from flying to aid victims. It wasn't until the clouds cleared up that the helicopters could retrieve victims. Three victims, all children, were first taken to Farmington, then they were transported by ambulance to SSM Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital in St. Louis. A spokesperson for the family has informed the media that they do not want the conditions of the children to be disseminated.

[edit] Cause of failure

The current working theory is that the reservoir's berm was overtopped when the routine nightly pump-back operation failed to cease when the reservoir was filled. According to AmerenUE, the gauges at the dam read differently than the gauges at the Osage plant at the Lake of the Ozarks, which monitors and operates the Taum Sauk plant remotely. The stations are linked together using a network of microwave towers, and there are no operators on-site at Taum Sauk.

Ameren states that any speculation or reports in the media of possible causes are premature pending the outcome of official investigations.

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Bold text== References ==

Springfield News-Leader (Springfield, MO): Dam fails in southeast Missouri; situation called ’very dangerous’
Southeast Missourian (Cape Giradeau, MO): Taum Sauk Reservoir fails
Ameren Press Releases [1], [2]
Daily Journal (Park Hills, Missouri): Taum Sauk Dam Fails
National Weather Service, St. Louis Office: Taum Sauk Dam Failure
USGS Mid-Continent Geographic Science Center[3]
Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park damage updage page[4]
Ameren web pages on Taum Sauk and Johnson's Shut-ins restoration[5]