City still working on Sloss dam

By Staff
Jonathan Willis
Russellville officials are still looking into what can be done to repair the broken dam at Sloss Lake.
City employees found two leaks in the earthen dam last week. Crews began pumping water from the lake almost immediately in an attempt to take pressure off the dam so that a break would not flood Alabama 24 and nearby homes.
Mayor Johnny Brown said that city officials are still looking at ways to repair the dam and make sure that a similar problem does not happen again.
This is the fourth time the dam has needed repairs in the last 40 years. The lake, which was used to wash iron ore in the early 1900s, was built about 120 years ago.
"After we get the water down, we will get engineers in here to help us work through a few options of what we can do," Brown said. "We hope to have most of the water out by the end of the week."
Five large pumps were brought in to move the water from the lake and into channels that eventually flow into Cedar Creek.
One of the largest obstacles in draining the lake has been due to the fact that the valves are obsolete and no longer open, allowing the water to drain.
Brown said one possible solution might be to dig trenches on the side of the lake near Desa Fmi and the baseball fields. The trenches would allow water to flow into the existing creeks if water in the lake reached certain levels.
"We are going to control this water," Brown said. "If we didn't we would just have the same problem again."
If the valves, which are estimated to be about 80 years old, can't be fixed, Brown said he would recommend putting a new system in after the dam is repaired.
"We are doing all we can out here right now," Brown said. "We just have to wait until the water is down before we can do anything."