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<br /> <br /> <br /> <br />10 <br /> Factoring for Human Factors in <br />Dam Safety Incidents and <br />Failures <br />By: Jennifer Williams, PE and Jason Boomer, PE <br />Introduction <br />Dam safety incidents and failures have been used by <br />engineers, owners, and regulators as a valuable source <br />of information to promote learning and advancement <br />in design, construction, surveillance and monitoring, <br />and emergency management. This will certainly be the <br />case with regards to one of the more recent events <br />that occurred at Oroville Dam in February of 2017. The <br />release of the Independent Forensic Team Report for <br />the Oroville Dam Spillway Incident (Forensic Report) <br />has highlighted, among other lessons, the need to <br />understand the importance of human factors and the <br />role they play in preventing dam safety incidents and <br />failures. As described in the Forensic Report, the field <br />of human factors spans multiple scales including <br />individuals, groups, organizations, industries, and <br />broader social, economic, and political context [1]. The <br />field of human factors is interdisciplinary and draws <br />from fields such as psychology, sociology, economics, <br />and political science, just to name a few [1]. In simpler <br />terms related specifically to dam safety, human factors <br />are the judgments, decisions, actions or inactions of a <br />person or group of people that influence the <br />performance and life cycle of a dam. Human factors, in <br />a sense, represent everything outside the realm of <br />physical science and technical aspects of engineering. <br />What are Human Factors? <br />Irfan Alvi1 was part of the six-person forensic team for <br />the Oroville Dam spillway incident serving as the <br />Human Factors specialist and has conducted multiple <br />presentations and webinars on the topic for ASDSO <br />(see ASDSO Training link: Human Factors in the <br />Oroville Dam Spillway Incident). A large portion of the <br />content of this article is taken from Alvi’s work, <br />particularly the Forensic Report, and organized into the <br />life cycle components of a dam. <br />Alvi identifies three categories of human factors that <br />are the primary drivers leading to the potential for <br />failure. <br />1. Pressure from Non-Safety Goals (e.g., delivering <br />water and power, reducing costs, meeting tight <br />schedules, and political pressures) <br /> 1 President & Chief Engineer, Alvi Associates, Inc. <br />Dam Failures due to Human Factors Do Happen! <br /> <br />Ka Loko Dam failed in 2006 due primarily to owner filling in spillway. Resulted in 7 fatalities, $25M settlement, manslaughter charge and reckless endangerment conviction of owner, 7-month prison sentence, and reported $46M in defense expenditures. <br /> Failure of Big Bay Dam in 2004 resulted in destroying 48 homes, washing out a bridge, and damaging 53 homes, 2 churches, three businesses and a fire station due primarily to inadequate seepage controls and recognizing warning signs. <br /> Oroville Dam spillway incident occurred in 2017 primarily due to inadequate design for foundation conditions of the primary and emergency spillways. Incident resulted in evacuation of 188,000 people and yet to be quantified environmental and economic impacts.