Now that enough debris has been cleared, dam operators can safely release water into the Feather River without using the facility’s badly damaged main spillway. “This is a pivot point in how we’re managing inflows into the river,” said DWR Acting Director Bill Croyle. Officials say that debris was enough to fill the Houston Astrodome and caused water levels to rise so high that they covered the power plant’s water outlets and threatened operation of the turbines. By Friday morning however, the waters around the power plant had receded at least 22 feet — enough to safely use the plant’s water outlets. But when the reservoir began to overflow with water, a second, emergency spillway began to erode as well.

Source: Los Angeles Times March 04, 2017 00:33 UTC