At least 100 missing after Laos dam collapse

**Luigi** · 24-07-2018, 03:31 PM

BANGKOK (Reuters) - At least 100 people are missing after a hydropower dam in Laos collapsed, local media reported on Tuesday.

Officials have brought boats to help evacuate people in San Sai district of Attapeu province in the southeast of the country as water levels rise after the dam collapsed, ABC Laos news reported.

It did not provide further details about the incident.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-l...-idUSKBN1KE0WC

**Luigi** · 24-07-2018, 03:34 PM

Presume it's this one:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Houay_Ho_Dam

**Luigi** · 24-07-2018, 03:37 PM

**Luigi** · 24-07-2018, 03:38 PM

Hundreds missing after dam collapses releasing 5,000,000,000 litres of water

Several people are dead and hundreds are currently missing after a hydropower dam collapsed in Laos. The accident happened at a dam in southeastern Attapeu province late last night. It saw the dam release five billion litres of water – more than two million Olympic swimming pools – with ‘several human lives claimed, and several hundreds of people missing’, Laos News Agency said.

https://metro.co.uk/2018/07/24/hundr...-laos-7752148/

**Luigi** · 24-07-2018, 03:42 PM

Wrong guess by me in posts 2 and 3.

The BBC are reporting that it's Xepian-Xe Nam Noy dam.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-44935495

**David48atTD** · 24-07-2018, 04:24 PM

Laos dam collapse leaves several dead, hundreds missing after floods hit villages

Maybe this is it ... though not 100% sure.

At least 100 missing after Laos dam collapse-thumbnailimage-img-jpg

State media in Laos says several people are dead and hundreds missing after a dam wall collapsed in the country's south, sending
millions of tons of water into surrounding villages.

The Xenamnoy dam in Attapeu province, 550 kilometres south of the capital Vientiane, was reportedly built to hold 1 billion tons
of water, and is 1.6 kilometres wide.

A volunteer emergency organisation, Vientiane Rescue, said the dam wall broke last night after heavy monsoonal rains.

Reports on one media site said millions of tons of water had inundated surrounding land, washing away villages and homes.
Photos on an expat site on Facebook show nearby residents on the roofs of houses as the floodwaters threaten to submerge their
homes altogether.

Vientiane Rescue said it was sending a team of volunteers to respond to the disaster and help evacuate people stranded on rooves
and higher ground.

Only yesterday the Xepian Xenamnoy company warned the dam was dangerously unsafe because of overflows from the recent rains,
and said it was planning to release 5,000 million litres of water.

It urged residents to evacuate low-lying areas immediately.
It is unclear whether the ensuing floodwater was deliberately released or caused by the wall's collapse.

Vientiane Rescue said it was too early to know how many people have died in villages downstream from the dam.
The dam's management is yet to comment.
Last year, another dam burst in the Xaysomboun province north of the capital Vientiane, which flooded surrounding villages.

**Luigi** · 24-07-2018, 04:35 PM

^ Yeah, it's a bit odd. There's no major damn in Attapeu Province on Google maps, and Xenamnoy river is really just a small breakaway from the main river there.

https://www.google.com/maps/place/At...!4d107.1011931

a tributary does come from here, but google has it down as the Houay Ho Dam.

**Luigi** · 24-07-2018, 04:47 PM

Maybe it dries up from time to time?

**Neverna** · 24-07-2018, 05:16 PM

I bet the construction of dams in Thailand is much the same as in Laos. Fingers crossed there is no repeat elsewhere.

**HuangLao** · 24-07-2018, 05:21 PM

Originally Posted by Neverna

I bet the construction of dams in Thailand is much the same as in Laos. Fingers crossed there is no repeat elsewhere.

Agree.
Little overall construction/design/water capacity and run-off foresight towards possible looming disasters, accidents, and whatnot.

Nice report, Lu....

**harrybarracuda** · 24-07-2018, 05:31 PM

At least 100 missing after Laos dam collapse-00104c1e-800-jpg

At least 100 missing after Laos dam collapse-laos-dam-failure-aerial-pictures-1432300-a

At least 100 missing after Laos dam collapse-4e8854b100000578-5985583-image-56_1532423376295-jpg

**Neverna** · 24-07-2018, 05:39 PM

Website for the dam.

HHPC : A Leading Independent Power Producer in Laos

**Luigi** · 24-07-2018, 05:54 PM

^ That's for the one I first guessed at after the OP. Reports are for a different named dam. Suspect the reports are wrong and it is Huoay Ho Dam.

**Luigi** · 24-07-2018, 05:56 PM

If that is the correct dam, from the Wiki page:

It has installed capacity of 152.1 megawatts (204,000 hp), almost all of which is exported to Thailand.

Wonder if it will affect Thailand, especially Isaan, where a lot of the power may be used.

**Luigi** · 24-07-2018, 06:01 PM

**cyrille** · 24-07-2018, 06:02 PM

According to ‘The Guardian’ it was still under construction.

**Luigi** · 24-07-2018, 07:40 PM

Yeah, seems to be the case.

https://news.sky.com/story/dam-colla...-dead-11446938

The portion of the dam that collapsed on Monday is reported to be a "saddle dam", an auxiliary structure used to hold water beyond what is held by the main dam.

The $1.2bn (£915m) dam is part of a project by Xe-Pian-Xe Namnoy Power Company, a joint venture which is also known as PNPC.
A number of companies are involved, including Thailand's Ratchaburi Electricity Generating Holding, South Korea's Korea Western Power and the state-run Lao Holding State Enterprise.
The 410 megawatt capacity dam, close to the border with Cambodia, was meant to begin commercial operations by 2019.

It was to form part of a series of dams over the Houay Makchanh, the Xe-Namnoy and the Xe-Pian rivers in neighbouring Champasack province.

The plan was to export 90% of the electricity generated to Thailand, with the rest offered up on the local grid.

Environmental groups have long voiced fears about hydropower ambitions in impoverished and landlocked Laos, with around 10 dams in operation, another 10 to 20 under construction and dozens more in the planning stages.

In particular, concerns have been raised about the impact on the Mekong River, its flora and fauna and the communities that depend on it for their livelihoods.

As well as disquiet within Laos, several neighbouring nations are worried its ambition to become the "battery of southeast Asia" will disrupt vital ecosystems and their own river systems.

**Dillinger** · 24-07-2018, 08:08 PM

Originally Posted by HuangLao

Nice report, Lu

Try and contain your bromance in PM's please Jeff, he didnt even know what dam it was

**David48atTD** · 25-07-2018, 03:56 AM

**fishlocker** · 25-07-2018, 08:26 AM

Dam. Who did the math on that?

Sadly it wasn't. ....

the fish.

**fishlocker** · 25-07-2018, 08:30 AM

According to the Guardians it's still under construction.

Well see.

RIP.

**Fluke** · 25-07-2018, 08:48 AM

Originally Posted by fishlocker

According to the Guardians it's still under construction.

Well see.

RIP.

Its not under construction anymore though

**Latindancer** · 25-07-2018, 09:49 AM

A cool billion US dollars for a dam. Lucky it was 'only' the saddle dam that collapsed. I wonder how long it will be before they pay off the construction costs (including collapse) by flogging off electricity ?

**Luigi** · 25-07-2018, 10:58 AM

Originally Posted by Latindancer

A cool billion US dollars for a dam. Lucky it was 'only' the saddle dam that collapsed. I wonder how long it will be before they pay off the construction costs (including collapse) by flogging off electricity ?

While scanning the history of the project it looks like they were in a minor dispute about the costs and payment of resettling a few of the local villagers, and were being tight.

Gonna cost them a lot more now.

**Luigi** · 25-07-2018, 11:00 AM

Originally Posted by David48atTD

Thought the 2 guys trying to save their pickup/van were gonna get them out unscathed. Think they would have if the big truck driver didn't jump ship and let his truck saunter on down the road blocking their exit.

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