KPLU Local News
(2010-05-19)
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Howard Hanson Dam in the Green River Valley of South King County
US Geological Survey
Colonel Anthony Wright said the temporary repairs made last year have helped strengthen the dam, which was damaged in a 2009 storm. And - if a proposed $44 million emergency budget allocation is approved by Congress and the president - more short-term fixes will make the dam nearly as good as it was before, at least for a while.
But the earliest the budget is likely to be approved is mid-June. And, Wright said, it would be at least 90 days after that before work on the dam could begin, work that could take six to eight months.
"So, if you look at where we are right now," he said, "I think it is reasonable to assume that whatever I do will not be done at the beginning of flood season."
County officials had been hoping to have the next round of temporary repairs finished by then. Going into the winter with the dam at just over half its normal capacity - and with an estimated 1 in 25 chance of flooding - means the county may well have to spend more money on flood preparations, just in case.
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