PUD commissioners updated on cracked Wanapum spillway

BEVERLY - Grant County Public Utility District commissioners received an update on the cracked Wanapum Dam spillway, but few answers to specific questions during a meeting Tuesday.

Director of Hydropower Dawn Woodward read a brief report and showed commissioners a diagram of the dam and the approximate location of the crack. She also told commissioners what the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission expects from the PUD in this type of situation and how the PUD plans to comply.

She said that by using an unmanned mini submarine on loan from Chelan County PUD, engineers could see water coming through the crack in 90-foot thick spillway, and that lowering the water level by 20 feet reduced the 2-inch crack by about an inch.

She said the PUD plans to hire construction crews with experience repairing damaged dams to assess the problem and possibly fix it.

Crews are inspecting the dam and damaged spillway daily and communicating those updates to FERC regulators in Portland and Washington D.C.

She would not answer any questions or clarify any information from the public after her brief update.

She did not answer Commissioner Dale Walker's question about exact location of the crack. FERC laws prevent her from discussing that.

She did not answer Commissioner Bob Bernd's question about what caused the crack or when she would know what caused it. The PUD is focused on the stability of the dam and safety of the workers and public first, Woodward explained.

After the meeting, Walker said she wants to know within two weeks what caused the crack.

PUD Public Affairs Officer Chuck Allen said the PUD is looking into all possible causes, but refused to talk about specific possibilities.

Commissioners, Woodward, Wanapum Dam Plant Manager Mark Beattie, and PUD attorney Mitch Delabarre went into an executive session to discuss possible litigation after the meeting. Bernd said the meeting would last about 10 minutes, but it lasted for more than an hour.