"Bluestone Dam badly in need of repairs, Corps says"

[Hubert Flottz]

Dam will not be able to hold as much water during renovations
CHARLESTON, W.Va. - The Bluestone Dam near Hinton needs a lot of work, the U.S. Corps of Engineers says. And during the repair period, it won't be able to hold back as much water as it does now.
By Rusty Marks
Staff writer

CHARLESTON, W.Va. - The Bluestone Dam near Hinton needs a lot of work, the U.S. Corps of Engineers says. And during the repair period, it won't be able to hold back as much water as it does now.

The problem: It's the dam that keeps places such as downtown Charleston flood free.

snip...

Hurst said engineers decided the volume of water when the dam is full could potentially build up enough force to push the concrete dam downstream and cause a failure. They also discovered boulders placed at the downstream side of the dam to slow down water coming from the structure aren't big enough to stay in place, which could lead to erosion at the bottom of the dam.

snip...

Hurst said that in a worst-case scenario where the dam fails, water would be about 15 feet deep in in Charleston. In Belle, the first town in Kanawha County that would be affected by a dam break, the effects would be catastrophic.

MORE...

http://www.wvgazette.com/News/200901180525

OMG!

[Lasher]

1. Hinton's up the river.

But maybe not for long.

I thought dams like that were made to, uh, last?

[Hubert Flottz]

2. Sounds like Hinton and everything downstream might be...

up shit creek!

My poor little baby sister lives in Hinton...I don't think she can swim!

[Lasher]

3. Just part of the Bush legacy, I guess

Crumbling infrastructure. I wonder when the last time was that this dam was inspected, and why the study was done at this time. I'll bet the Corps is getting this in line for some of the Obama stimulus money.

[Hubert Flottz]

4. I'll bet the study made the people in Belle feel secure...

I can just see it taking out all the chemical plants down the river and turning all that stuff loose on the world. Saint Albans don't stand a freakin' chance what with Massey's huge sludge dam upstream on the Coal and now the dam at Hinton ready to crumble too. I'm glad I've got two jon boats!

http://www.ohvec.org/galleries/mountaintop_removal/001/index.html

Hoooooooooooooly sheepshit Margo!

[Lasher]

5. Run on up here, brother.

I live way up on a hill and I've got venison in the freezer. Plus, I'll teach you how to catch fish.

[Hubert Flottz]

6. "I'll teach you how to catch fish"

Yeah...Right...BTW, I have lots of fat possums around these parts, but they won't last long due to Bush's 'CONomy.

Run down here, the 10 pounders are swimming around under the ice waiting for a Little Nukie for supper!

If that sludge impoundment of Donnie B's ever breaks it will kill everybody that's big enough to die downstream.

[MountainLaurel]

7. Unfortunately, this far predates Bush

Depending on who you read, it began in the 1960s when the U.S. financial industry made foreign investment more lucrative than domestic investment. Or when the military-industrial complex got out of control. Of course, that doesn't help the people in Belle, Hinton, et al.

[Lasher]

8. No it doesn't.

Neglect of our infrastructure has occurred during the past 8 years, and also before that time. For this to have predated the GWB presidency it would need to have gone on before, but not during, George W Bush's time in office.