Uploaded October 2021 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
In May 2020, heavy flooding resulted in the catastrophic failure of the Edenville Dam embankment, sending a wall of water downstream in the Tittabawassee River and completely draining Wixom Lake. The breach wave quickly overwhelmed the downstream Sanford Dam, overtopping and failing the structure. Over 10,000 residents in Sanford, Midland, and Saginaw were evacuated. The independent forensic team charged with investigating the event released an interim report in September 2021. The conclusions of the report include a discussion of a relatively rare phenomenon in earthen dams. Let’s walk through the investigation to try and understand what happened.
IFT Interim Report (PDF): damsafety-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/files/Edenville-Sanford_Interim%20Report_Sept2021_Final.pdf
Watch this video and the entire Practical Engineering catalog ad-free on Nebula: go.nebula.tv/practical-engineering
Practical Engineering is a YouTube channel about infrastructure and the human-made world around us. It is hosted, written, and produced by Grady Hillhouse. We have new videos posted regularly, so please subscribe for updates. If you enjoyed the video, hit that ‘like’ button, give us a comment, or watch another of our videos!
CONNECT WITH ME
____________________________________
Website: http://practical.engineering
Twitter: twitter.com/HillhouseGrady
Instagram: instagram.com/practicalengineering
Reddit: reddit.com/r/PracticalEngineering
Facebook: facebook.com/PracticalEngineerGrady
Patreon: patreon.com/PracticalEngineering
SPONSORSHIP INQUIRIES
____________________________________
Please email my agent at practicalengineering@standard.tv
DISCLAIMER
____________________________________
This is not engineering advice. Everything here is for informational and entertainment purposes only. Contact an engineer licensed to practice in your area if you need professional advice or services. All non-licensed clips used for fair use commentary, criticism, and educational purposes.
SPECIAL THANKS
____________________________________
Stock video and imagery provided by Getty Images, Shutterstock, Pond5, and Videoblocks.
Tonic and Energy by Elexive is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License
Source: youtube.com/watch?v=U6fBPdu8w9U
Producer/Writer/Host: Grady Hillhouse
Assistant Producer: Wesley Crump
Script Editor: Ralph Crewe
In May 2020, heavy flooding resulted in the catastrophic failure of the Edenville Dam embankment, sending a wall of water downstream in the Tittabawassee River and completely draining Wixom Lake. The breach wave quickly overwhelmed the downstream Sanford Dam, overtopping and failing the structure. Over 10,000 residents in Sanford, Midland, and Saginaw were evacuated. The independent forensic team charged with investigating the event released an interim report in September 2021. The conclusions of the report include a discussion of a relatively rare phenomenon in earthen dams. Let’s walk through the investigation to try and understand what happened.
IFT Interim Report (PDF): damsafety-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/files/Edenville-Sanford_Interim%20Report_Sept2021_Final.pdf
Watch this video and the entire Practical Engineering catalog ad-free on Nebula: go.nebula.tv/practical-engineering
Practical Engineering is a YouTube channel about infrastructure and the human-made world around us. It is hosted, written, and produced by Grady Hillhouse. We have new videos posted regularly, so please subscribe for updates. If you enjoyed the video, hit that ‘like’ button, give us a comment, or watch another of our videos!
CONNECT WITH ME
____________________________________
Website: http://practical.engineering
Twitter: twitter.com/HillhouseGrady
Instagram: instagram.com/practicalengineering
Reddit: reddit.com/r/PracticalEngineering
Facebook: facebook.com/PracticalEngineerGrady
Patreon: patreon.com/PracticalEngineering
SPONSORSHIP INQUIRIES
____________________________________
Please email my agent at practicalengineering@standard.tv
DISCLAIMER
____________________________________
This is not engineering advice. Everything here is for informational and entertainment purposes only. Contact an engineer licensed to practice in your area if you need professional advice or services. All non-licensed clips used for fair use commentary, criticism, and educational purposes.
SPECIAL THANKS
____________________________________
Stock video and imagery provided by Getty Images, Shutterstock, Pond5, and Videoblocks.
Tonic and Energy by Elexive is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License
Source: youtube.com/watch?v=U6fBPdu8w9U
Producer/Writer/Host: Grady Hillhouse
Assistant Producer: Wesley Crump
Script Editor: Ralph Crewe
