Background: Lake Lewisville Dam was constructed in 1955 and is 125 feet tall and 33,000 feet wide. The $21,756,500 project was payed for by the cities of Dallas, Denton, University Park, and Highland Park. The Issue: Lake Lewisville Dam, before early 2015, was already rated the 8th most dangerous dam in the nation by the Army Corps or Engineers. Afterwards, the heavy rains and flooding caused the infrastructure to be severely damaged. Several sand boils formed. Sand boils are whirlpools of sand and water that signified seepage under the dam creating a tunnel that could, if untouched, lead to the eventual rupture of the dam. Such a breach would unleash a devastating 2.5 billion tons of water down the trinity river, flooding downtown Dallas and affecting over 431,000 people. Many have compared the 1889 flooding in Johnston, PA to the flooding that would result if the Lake Lewisville Dam were to collapse. However, the destruction from the floods in Johnston are minor compared to the predicted destruction that would follow the Lake Lewisville Dam collapse. Although some of the sand boils have been dealt with through great difficulty, there have been other problems - in particular, a gaping hole was discovered in the dam on June 23rd, as the result of a "slide". Full dam repairs would take an estimated 50-500 million. The Army Corps of Engineers are still pondering solutions to fix the dam's weakened state, but they have yet to find a solution that works. While the dam is still weak, many sit in harms way and do not realize it.
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