OROVILLE, California: Thousands of northern Californians were told to leave their homes on Sunday evening, as an emergency spillway in the country’s tallest dam was in danger of failing and unleashing uncontrolled flood waters on towns below
The emergency spillway of the Oroville Dam in Northern California could fail within an hour unleashing uncontrolled flood waters from Lake Oroville, the California Department of Water Resources said on Sunday afternoon.
People in downstream areas need to leave the area immediately, the department said.
Officials earlier Sunday stressed the dam was structurally sound and said there was no threat to the public.
Residents of Oroville, a town of 16,000 people, should head north toward Chico, and other cities should follow orders from their local law enforcement agencies, the Butte County Sheriff’s office said.
