Dam Failure - Main Causes of Dam Failure

Main Causes of Dam Failure

Common causes of dam failure include:

  • Sub-standard construction materials/techniques (Gleno Dam)
  • Spillway design error (South Fork Dam, near failure of Glen Canyon Dam)
  • Geological instability caused by changes to water levels during filling or poor surveying (Malpasset).
  • Sliding of a mountain into the reservoir (Vajont Dam – not exactly a dam failure, but caused nearly the entire volume of said reservoir to be displaced and overtop the dam)
  • Poor maintenance, especially of outlet pipes (Lawn Lake Dam, Val di Stava Dam collapse)
  • Extreme inflow (Shakidor Dam)
  • Human, computer or design error (Buffalo Creek Flood, Dale Dike Reservoir, Taum Sauk pumped storage plant)
  • Internal erosion, especially in earthen dams (Teton Dam)
  • Earthquake

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