Dam failure analysis, inundation mapping — American Electric Power

Roanoke River, Virginia

With vast experience producing Emergency Action Plans using dam failure analyses and Geographic Information System (GIS)-based inundation maps, Mead & Hunt was the ideal choice to perform American Electric Power’s Dam Failure Analysis.  We started at their Leesville Development on the Roanoke River, using the NWS-FLDWAV model to simulate dam failures and failure-induced flooding.  For the Smith Mountain Dam, we simulated failures for an arch dam more than 200 feet high and impounding approximately a 43,000-acre reservoir, and the smaller Leesville dam.  We chose the FLDWAV model for its ability to simulate the passage of the floodwave down a 100-mile stretch of the Roanoke River valley, including reverse flows in several tributaries along the affected reach.  Combining model outputs with GIS-based map data and cross section information, we developed inundation maps showing inundation flood levels for both dams, which resulted in a series of 32 tiled maps for Smith Mountain and a series of 19 tiled maps for Leesville.