San Diego’s Lake Hodges already has an “extremely high” flood risk. Regulators fear a dam breach would cause “considerable loss of human life” where more than 1,000 people live. But as El Niño threatens torrential rain this winter, the downstream danger could be even greater.
An October state audit painted a bleak picture of California’s dams ahead of expected heavy rain this winter, and called on the Legislature to increase the state Department of Water Resources’ enforcement authority and require new emergency action plans from dam owners.
The 108-year-old Lake Hodges Dam in northeastern San Diego County is the most at-risk among more than 1,200 monitored by the California Department of Water Resources’ Division of Safety of Dams. It is the only one labeled “unsatisfactory,” meaning it requires immediate or emergency action…