Barfuss, Steven L.

Crookston, Brian

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Article, Published VersionBarfuss, Steven L.; Crookston, BrianUnauthorized extreme activities and public safety atspillwaysHydrolinkVerfügbar unter/Available at: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11970/109405Vorgeschlagene Zitierweise/Suggested citation:Barfuss, Steven L.; Crookston, Brian (2018): Unauthorized extreme activities and publicsafety at spillways. In: Hydrolink 2018/2. Madrid: International Association for Hydro-Environment Engineering and Research (IAHR). S. 44-45. https://iahr.oss-accelerate.aliyuncs.com/library/HydroLink/HydroLink2018_02_Leisure_Hydraulics.pdf.Standardnutzungsbedingungen/Terms of Use:Die Dokumente in HENRY stehen unter der Creative Commons Lizenz CC BY 4.0, sofern keine abweichendenNutzungsbedingungen getroffen wurden. Damit ist sowohl die kommerzielle Nutzung als auch das Teilen, dieWeiterbearbeitung und Speicherung erlaubt. Das Verwenden und das Bearbeiten stehen unter der Bedingung derNamensnennung. Im Einzelfall kann eine restriktivere Lizenz gelten; dann gelten abweichend von den obigenNutzungsbedingungen die in der dort genannten Lizenz gewährten Nutzungsrechte.Documents in HENRY are made available under the Creative Commons License CC BY 4.0, if no other license isapplicable. Under CC BY 4.0 commercial use and sharing, remixing, transforming, and building upon the materialof the work is permitted. In some cases a different, more restrictive license may apply; if applicable the terms ofthe restrictive license will be binding.44 hydrolink number 2/2018According to the Canadian Dam Association(CDA), many drownings occur because thepublic is generally unaware of the dangersassociated with spillways and dam operations[3].However, there are also numerous instanceswhere victims ignored security and safetymeasures (e.g. signage, fencing, and safetybooms) in order to recreate in spillways. Forsome, trespassing and the efforts required toaccess spillways are part of the thrill they seek.One recent example occurred on Sept. 11, 2017when the first successful swim was made acrossthe turbine intakes at Hoover Dam[4]. Theseintakes first began operation in March 1937 andno previous swimmer had escaped the strongcurrents created by the operating turbines.Gratefully, officials noted that during this man’s30-min treacherous swim, only one of tenturbines was operating. Even then, the manreported great difficulty escaping the currentfrom the single turbine.  Although lawenforcement was glad that he survived, the manwas given a hefty penalty and concern exists that‘copycats’ may attempt this same suicidalactivity.There is clear evidence that many daredevils arehighly motivated by the excitement of extremeactivities and the attention and potential incomethat can come by posting photos and videos tosocial media. Many videos posted online ofextreme unauthorized activities at dams havegone viral. This of course only perpetuates theproblem, because many viewers want toexperience the same thrills that are presented ineach posting but may not realize they are riskingsevere injury or death.On the FEMA website in which “Public SafetyAround Dams” is discussed[5], it reads: “Thenature of public interaction with dams ischanging and guidance is needed to increasepublic safety around dams. Public interaction withdams is increasing for several reasons, includinglack of awareness of hazards, public interest in“extreme” sports, recreational vehicles improvingaccess, a perceived right of public access tosites, and the remote operation of dams. Damowners need to consider how the public interactswith and around their dam, and establish appro-UNAUTHORIZED EXTREME ACTIVITIES AND PUBLIC SAFETY AT SPILLWAYSBY STEVEN L. BARFUSS & BRIAN M. CROOKSTONPioneering research by the late Dr. Bruce Tschantz indicates that there are about nine times more deaths at damsthan deaths caused by dam failures[1]. Many of the deaths that occur at dams are a result of recreational activities.Although fishing, boating, and swimming may be considered normal and common activities at many dams, thedam’s spillway has become a destination for many thrill seekers who are climbing, jumping, diving, wakeboarding,surfing, snowmobiling, sledding, skating, and biking in these hydraulic structures[2]. A portion of theseunauthorized and hazardous activities are self-recorded and posted to social media.Figure 1.  Individuals engaged in unauthorized and hazardous recreational activities in spillways; biking(top) and spillway boogie boarding (bottom)45hydrolink number 2/2018EducationEducation is perhaps the most effective meansfor reducing injuries and deaths at spillways.Many States in the U.S. have implementededucational programs to help people under-stand the inherent risks associated with dams.Like driving a car and the associated driver’straining, those that recreate on and near damswill, through awareness and improvedjudgement, be safer when they are taught thedangers that are inherent at dams andpriate procedures, restrictions, and safetymeasures.” The site also has several referencesthat discuss the topic of this paper and theassociated recommendations for improvingpublic safety around dams.The authors believe that 1) Effective warningmethods, 2) educating the public and 3) thethreat of legal action are three methods that aremost effective for mitigating risk to the public asthey recreate near hydraulic structures. It isapparent that when dam owners do not havethese safety measures in place to protect and/orprevent the public from hazardous structures orhydraulic conditions (like the reverse current thatoften occurs at low-head dams), injury anddeath are much more prevalent. Although, thesemethods will not stop all individuals from illegallyaccessing a dam for recreational purposes, theywill however provide sufficient warning andprotection to most.Visual and audible warningsThe Canadian Dam Association has preparedspecific instructions for improving the safety atdams in the bulletin entitled, “Guidelines forPublic Safety around Dams (2011)”. The authorssuggest that dam owners and operators imple-ment signage, booms and buoys and audibleand visual signals to help protect the generalpublic from personal injury and possible death.Dam owners and those concerned with publicsafety at dams have observed that adequatewarnings of the dangers and penalties resultingfrom illegal access are effective deterrents.Other highly effective deterrents are securitycameras or periodic patrols of restricted areas.IAHRSteven L. Barfuss, PE is aResearch Professor of Civil andEnvironmental Engineering at UtahState University in Logan, Utah,USA and has been employed atthe Utah Water ResearchLaboratory at USU since 1987.His research includes the physicaland numerical modeling of dams, spillways, and energydissipation structures.  He has served as the UnitedStates Society of Dams, spillway subcommittee chairsince 2011. Brian M. Crookston, PhD, PE isan Assistant Professor at UtahState University and also serveson the IAHR Hydraulic Structuresleadership team. His research andconsulting interests are focusedon water conveyance and damsafety, including the design ofhydraulic structures, nonlinear spillways, flow acoustics,energy dissipators, scour, fish passage, dam breachesand flooding, and physical and numerical modeling ofhydraulic structures. Previously, Brian was a SeniorEngineer at Schnabel Engineering.Figure 2.  Drunk man receives hefty penalty for swim across Hoover Dam intakes spillways. Because most recreational activityinjuries and deaths occur to individuals ages 18-30, it is expected that providing education tochildren and teenagers will be most effective.Legal ActionAlthough social media is used to advertisemany of these hazardous activities, it can alsobe helpful in recognizing and discouragingthose who may view the post and want to copy-cat the stunt themselves. Authorities in NorthAmerica who find social media posts ofunauthorized activities at their dam haveimproved public safety by strictly warning theindividual(s) who originally posted the illegalactivity that, if others mimic or copy them, theywill be held legally responsible for any resultinginjuries or deaths that might occur at theirfacility. This approach has had great success inremoving social media posts. Signs thatexplicitly warn potential trespassers of specifichazards and penalties, such as how one mightdrown, hefty fines, and jail time also are helpfulin discouraging illegal recreationalists. nReferences [1] Tschantz, B.A. “Low head dams: What are they?”http://www.safedam.com/low-head-dams.html[2] Barfuss, S. and Crookston, B. (2018). “Public safety and unauthorized extreme activities at spillways”. 7th InternationalSymposium on Hydraulic Structure. Aachen, Germany[3] Canadian Dam Association (2011). “Guidelines for Public Safetyaround Dams”. Toronto, Canadian Dam Association.[4] https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/4435703/stag-do-brit-hoover-dam-swim-arrest/[5] FEMA (2017). FEMA webpage entitled “Public Safety AroundDams”. https://www.fema.gov/public-safety-around-dams

Unauthorized extreme activities and public safety at spillways

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Unauthorized extreme activities and public safety at spillways

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