UPDATE: Spills over the auxiliary spillway have ceased. 100,000 cfs continue down the main spillway.
CA - DWR (@CA_DWR) February 12, 2017 10:19 PM
Governor Jerry Brown's office as of 10:46 p.m. also released this statement via twitter:
.@JerryBrownGov Issues Emergency Order to Help Response to #OrovilleSpillway http://bit.ly/2ladU52
The emergency spillway of the Oroville Dam is expected to fail, according to the Department of Water Resources.
An immediate evacuation order has been issued for low levels of Oroville, a town of nearly 16,000 just north of Sacramento.
EMERGENCY EVACUATION: Auxiliary spillway at Oroville Dam predicted to fail within the next hour. Oroville residents evacuate northward.
— CA - DWR (@CA_DWR) February 13, 2017
Officials say that operation of the auxiliary spillway has resulted in "severe erosion that could lead to a failure of the structure." Such a failure would result in an uncontrolled release of flood waters from Lake Oroville.
This story is developing, check back for updates.
