Val di Stava Dam Collapse
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The Val di Stava Dam Collapse occurred on July 19, 1985 when a tailings dam above the village failed. It resulted in one of Italy's worst disasters. The collapse released 200,000 m³ of tailings which flowed down the valley at speeds of up to 90 km/h until it reached the Avisio River 4.2 km away. The disaster killed 268 people, destroyed 62 buildings and demolished 8 bridges.
[edit] Cause
An investigation in to the disaster found that the dams were poorly maintained and the margin of safe operation was very small. A pipe in the upper dam which was used to drain water had begun to sag under the weight of sediment. This allowed water to escape from either end of the pipe and drainage of the dam became less effective.
Pressure on the bank of the upper dam increased because less water was being drained but the same amount was still being pumped into the dam. The increased pressure resulted in the water penetrating the bank of the upper dam as this was the direction of least resistance. Eventually this reached a critical point causing the bank to liquefy.
The tailings from the upper dam then flowed into the lower dam which took only 30 seconds to fail under the immense pressure.
[edit] External links
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