Kelly Barnes Dam was an earthen

embankment dam An embankment dam is a large artificial dam. It is typically created by the placement and compaction of a complex semi-plastic mound of various compositions of soil or rock. It has a semi-pervious waterproof natural covering for its surface ...

on Toccoa Creek in Stephens County, Georgia, United States, just outside the city of Toccoa. Heavy rainfall caused it to collapse on November 6, 1977, and the resulting flood killed 39 people and caused $2.8 million in damage. The dam was never rebuilt. A memorial to the dead stands downstream, by Toccoa Falls on the campus of Toccoa Falls College.

History

In 1899, a rock crib dam was built by E. P. Simpson on Tocco Creek to create a

reservoir A reservoir (; ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam, usually built to water storage, store fresh water, often doubling for hydroelectric power generation. Reservoirs are created by controlling a watercourse that drains an existing body of wa ...

for a small

hydroelectric Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is Electricity generation, electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies 15% of the world's electricity, almost 4,210 TWh in 2023, which is more than all other Renewable energ ...

power plant A power station, also referred to as a power plant and sometimes generating station or generating plant, is an industrial facility for the electricity generation, generation of electric power. Power stations are generally connected to an electr ...

that began operating that same year. The plant, now a historical site on the Toccoa Falls College campus called the Old Toccoa Falls Power Plant, produced 200 kW for the town of Toccoa, Georgia. The power plant was transferred in 1933 to the Toccoa Falls Institute, which decided to develop a more stable

electric power Electric power is the rate of transfer of electrical energy within a electric circuit, circuit. Its SI unit is the watt, the general unit of power (physics), power, defined as one joule per second. Standard prefixes apply to watts as with oth ...

source and built an earthen

over the original rock crib dam between 1939 and 1940. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the dam was again raised, creating Barnes Lake, a reservoir. The modifications provided power for Toccoa Falls Institute until 1957, when the power production was stopped, and the lake was thereafter used only for recreation.

Dam characteristics

The dam was modified several times, ultimately measuring high, long and wide at its crest. The dam had two uncontrolled earthen

spillway A spillway is a structure used to provide the controlled release of water downstream from a dam or levee, typically into the riverbed of the dammed river itself. In the United Kingdom, they may be known as overflow channels. Spillways ensure tha ...

s. The main spillway was long, wide and located on the left side of the structure. A low point on the right side and away from the dam could also be used as a secondary spillway when the reservoir levels became too high. The

was located about upstream from the Toccoa Falls and mostly consisted of residual soils and

silt Silt is granular material of a size between sand and clay and composed mostly of broken grains of quartz. Silt may occur as a soil (often mixed with sand or clay) or as sediment mixed in suspension (chemistry), suspension with water. Silt usually ...

. The dam sat on a foundation of silt and stable biotite gneiss (rock). Within the dam embankment were two

masonry Masonry is the craft of building a structure with brick, stone, or similar material, including mortar plastering which are often laid in, bound, and pasted together by mortar (masonry), mortar. The term ''masonry'' can also refer to the buildin ...

structures. One helped support a pipe that was used as a low-level spillway. The other contained a penstock (pipe) for the hydroelectricity power plant. Neither was being used at the time of the flood.Report of Failure of Kelly Barnes Dam and Findings – Conclusion
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Dam failure

On November 6, 1977, at 1:30 am, the Kelly Barnes Dam failed after four days of heavy rain: had fallen from November 2 to 5—half of that between 6 pm and midnight on November 5. The rain swelled Barnes Lake, which normally held of water, to an estimated of water. A total of of the dam failed, causing a peak of maximum discharge to burst downstream.
/ref> Wea00705 - Flickr - NOAA Photo Library

The flood killed 39 people and destroyed nine houses, 18 house trailers, two college buildings and many motor vehicles. Five houses and five college buildings were also damaged. Two bridges on Toccoa Falls Drive and a culvert at County Farm Road were completely destroyed. The embankments at Georgia State Route 17 were destroyed on either side of the bridge, and one of the bridge

abutment An abutment is the substructure at the ends of a bridge span or dam supporting its superstructure. Single-span bridges have abutments at each end that provide vertical and lateral support for the span, as well as acting as retaining walls ...

s at Highview Road was destroyed. The water-supply pipe for the city of Toccoa was damaged and the city's water supply was contaminated for several days. The cost of the damage was $2.8 million. After the flood, Georgia's Governor George Busbee called for an immediate investigation, which was carried out by a Federal Investigative Board of the

United States Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), founded as the Geological Survey, is an agency of the U.S. Department of the Interior whose work spans the disciplines of biology, geography, geology, and hydrology. The agency was founded on Mar ...

. Their report was released December 21, 1977, with no specific causes cited for the failure. The investigators had no engineering plans for the dam and records of construction on the dam were based on witnesses, pictures, and newspaper articles. The investigation did, however, cite several possible or probable causes. The failure of the dam's slope may have contributed to weakness in the structure, particularly in the heavy rain. A collapse of the low-level spillway could have also exacerbated this problem. A 1973 photo showed a , slide had occurred on the downstream face of the dam, which may have also contributed or foreshadowed the dam failure. Overall, the dam itself was in poor condition and lacked a sufficient design.

References

External links

Toccoa Falls College
Toccoa Falls College Dam Break Memorial Page

USGS Report on the Kelly Barnes Dam Failure ({{webarchive , url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071010082434/https://ga.water.usgs.gov/publications/ha613/index.html , date=10 October 2007)
WSB-TV video
Wilkerson Examines the Wreckage of the Toccoa Flood, Nov. 9, 1977. Walter J. Brown Media Archives and Peabody Awards Collection, University of Georgia Libraries. Web. 5 June 2016.
WSB-TV video
Residents of Toccoa Falls Explain How They Survived the Flood, Nov. 6, 1978. Walter J. Brown Media Archives and Peabody Awards Collection, University of Georgia Libraries. Web. 5 June 2016.
WSB-TV video
Memorial Service Is Held for Toccoa Falls College Students Who Were Killed in the Flood, Nov. 9, 1977. Walter J. Brown Media Archives and Peabody Awards Collection, University of Georgia Libraries. Web. 5 June 2016.
Toccoa Falls Power Plant
Toccoa Falls Power Plant historical marker Disasters in Georgia (U.S. state) Dam failures in the United States 1977 disasters in the United States Buildings and structures in Stephens County, Georgia 1977 in Georgia (U.S. state) Dams in Georgia (U.S. state) United States privately owned dams November 1977 in the United States Toccoa Falls College 1899 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state) 1977 disestablishments in Georgia (U.S. state)

History

Dam characteristics

Dam failure

See also

References

Further reading

External links