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dam-l Experts inspect damaged dams 9/28/99
Taipei Times, 9/28/99
Experts inspect damaged dams
By Chiu Yu-Tzu STAFF REPORTER
Following the US rescue team, which arrived in Taiwan last Wednesday, dam
construction experts from the US Army Corps Engineers (USACE,
美國陸軍工兵團) arrived in Taiwan yesterday morning for a three-day
comprehensive investigation of dams damaged during last week's devastating
quake.
Accompanied by officials from the Water Resources Bureau (WRB, 水資源處) of
the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA), five US reinforced concrete
experts, lead by Dr. Mary-Ellen Hynes, took a bird's-eye view of the damage
from helicopters over central Taiwan yesterday.
WRB officials said yesterday that they had inspected dams located near the
epicenter of last Tuesday's quake with the US team, including Tehchi
(德基水庫), Sun Moon Lake (日月潭水庫), and Shihkang (石岡壩). A reservoir
safety assessment would be complete within three days.
"The five-member US team will contribute valuable advice on repairing the
dams, which will be essential for dam safety in the future," said Lee
Tieh-min (李鐵民), the bureau's chief engineer.
Officials said that the 22-year-old Shihkang Dam, which used to supply
water to two million people in the Taichung metropolitan area, was
partially destroyed during last Tuesday's quake and its severe aftershocks
and could no longer store water. Its four water gates and three spillways
collapsed when the quake destroyed part of the superstructure, which also
sank more than 10 meters. There are also many obvious cracks in the dam's
foundation.
In two reservoirs near Sun Moon Lake, Shuishe Reservoir (水社壩) and Toushe
Reservoir (頭社壩), several cracks have been found. WRB officials said
experts would assess the two reservoirs today.
WRB officials said yesterday that they also had kept an eye on many newly
built reservoirs in mountain areas in the earthquake zone because
landslides had blocked off rivers.
It was reported that people in central Taiwan were worried by one of these
reservoirs, called the New Tsaoling Reservoir (新草嶺潭) in Yunlin County.
However, according to officials from the MOEA's Water Resources Department
(WRD, 水利處) who investigated the reservoir yesterday, people were not in
any immediate danger.
"We have not reached a decision on whether to dredge the rivers or not.
However, we will include opinions from the US experts in our assessment
after we process another field investigation later this week," said Hsieh
Hsi-chin (謝錫欽), deputy director of the WRD's Fourth River Bureau.
Hsieh said that observation meters had been placed by reservoirs to provide
constantly updated information.