Photo By Renwick Martin | Homme Dam in Park River, North Dakota.... read more read more
On a breezy summer day near Park River, North Dakota, St. Paul District employees worked hard to complete their periodic inspection of Homme Dam. The inspection, conducted every five years, was done by a team consisting of various multi-disciplinary engineers and operations employees. “We look at all the different components that make up the dam,” said Scott Tichy, North Dakota section supervisor. “Including the control structure, the embankments, and the spillways.”
Part of the inspection included releasing water to lower the reservoir below the spillway crest. This allowed Sam Helgeson, structural engineer, to inspect the concrete on the spillway and assess its condition. Also on hand were geotechnical engineers, a geologist, hydraulic engineer, electrical engineer and mechanical engineer, who inspected the embankments of the dam. “The inspection is to see what kind of things have changed in the last five years, what kind of things might need some maintenance and whether we need an increase in funding to make sure the dam maintains its integrity and functionality,” Tichy said.
Homme Dam is a high hazard potential dam; this classification is given when there is probable loss of life in the event of a dam failure or mis-operation of the dam. Because of this, Homme Dam is subject to a more rigorous assessment every ten years.
“Annual inspections, which do not involve dewatering the stilling basin or a risk assessment, are completed by our engineering division at all of our high hazard dams and many of our low and significant hazard dams each year,” said Ryan Price, dam safety program manager. The hazard potential classification does not reflect in any way on the current condition of the dam. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Dam Safety Program uses a risk-informed approach to manage its portfolio of 694 dams, 32 of which are located in the St. Paul District boundaries. Of these, seven are
considered high hazard.
Critical to an effective Dam Safety Program is the focus on public safety, but it also requires continuous and periodic project inspections and evaluations. The Dam Safety Program seeks to ensure that USACE-owned and operated dams do not present unacceptable risks to people, property or the environment.
| Date Taken: | 11.24.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 11.24.2025 13:19 |
| Story ID: | 552238 |
| Location: | PARK RIVER, NORTH DAKOTA, US |
| Web Views: | 10 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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