Please join us for the ASCE-Nebraska Section February geotechnical monthly meeting on February 8, 2024.
Hosted by the NE-ASCE Geotechnical Institute Chapter
(Bryan Kumm, Geotechnical Technical Group Committee Chair & Kristle Beaudet Co-Chair)
Presenter
Mr. Mark Ahlstrom, P.E. with the US Army Corps of Engineers
Topic: Contribution of Static Liquefaction to the Fort Peck Dam Construction Failure
Program:
5:30 - 6:30 pm Social (with wine, beer, and spirits)
6:30 – 7:30 pm Dinner
7:30 – 8:30 pm Presentation
Menu:
Fiesta Buffet Dinner: Chicken Fajitas, Beef Tacos, Spanish Rice, Pinto Beans, Corn, Tortilla Chips & Salsa, Guacomole, Sour Cream, condiments, Tres Leche, cookies, and other mini deserts.
ABSTRACT
Fort Peck dam, on the Upper Missouri River in eastern Montana, is the 5th largest manmade reservoir in the United States and stores at normal pool, and stores almost 20 Million acre-feet of water at flood pool. During construction in late 1938, the dam suffered a catastrophic upstream slide that claimed the lives of 8 construction workers. This presentation will review the history of the dam and dam site, the unique construction techniques of the time which contributed to the failure, and some of the lessons learned from the failure. We will also consider the role that static liquefaction of the hydraulic fill core may have played in the failure and compare the Fort Peck failure to the recent static liquefaction failure of Edenville dam in Michigan.