A flood watch is in effect through Friday evening for parts of western El Paso, Texas, and southern New Mexico amid warnings that Cement Lake Dam could fail, triggering dangerous and fast-moving flooding downstream that could include razor wire in the debris, the National Weather Service (NWS) said.
The potential break of the earthen dam—also known as the Portland Cement Reservoir—would threaten areas below the structure in West El Paso and the Mesilla Valley, including Downtown El Paso, Upper Valley, Sunland Park, Las Cruces and nearby communities in southern Doña Ana County, which encompasses more than 200,000 people.
However, on Friday afternoon, a spokesperson for El Paso Water told Newsweek “there are currently no residents in danger” as if the dam were to break, the water would flow into the dry riverbed of the Rio Grande. Roads in the area, which would be inundated should a failure occur, have been closed…