NEWARK – The new dam under construction at Buckeye Lake may have already prevented a catastrophe during last week's heavy rains that flooded southern Licking County.

That's the opinion of Licking County Emergency Management Agency Director Sean Grady, who saw the flooding along the South Fork of the Licking River.

“If this rain had happened with the old dam, there’s a good chance we’d had a breach," Grady said. "There’s no way it’d held up.”

In 2015, the state announced a five-year project to build a new dam, after the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers concluded the 4.1-mile earthen dam is at risk of failing, endangering up to 3,000 residents and employees in the area.

A week ago, heavy rains flooded areas of southern Licking County, forcing the evacuation of residents from Buckeye Lake Estates Mobile Home Park, and closing Interstate 70 through much of Licking County, the Ohio 79 ramps to the interstate, and numerous county and township roads.

Water reached the bottom of some new bridges built higher than 100-year flood elevations, Licking County Engineer Jared Knerr said.

Ian Nickey, spokesman for the contractors working on the project, said “It is impossible to know exactly what may have occurred, but the Army Corps report concluded that failure under such circumstances could certainly occur.

“To the degree it could be compromised and whether or not embankment failure would have occurred will fortunately never be known since ODNR took responsible steps to begin to remedy the situation.”

Although the dam is not completed, an embankment stability berm was completed in March 2016, and a cutoff wall put in place in May 2016. A supporting buttress is now being constructed, to be followed by a concrete cap over the old dam.

Grady said water released from the lake at Amil Gate and Seller's Point Spillway contributed to filling up the feeder canals, and water was actually running backwards.

Nickey said the plan is to fully open the Seller’s Point drain when the lake water level increases three inches or the forecast is for two inches of rain in 24 hours. Both spillways are fully opened when the level rises six inches or six inches of rain is forecast in 24 hours.

“Dams inherently reduce potential flooding and the available capacity at Buckeye Lake was able to store some of the storm water runoff and reduce potential flooding for this particular event,” Nickey said.

Grady said he also observed numerous large obstructions in the South Fork of the Licking River during the flooding.

"The South Fork of the Licking River had a lot of debris in it," Grady said. "There were probably 15 tree trunks in Little Texas (in Newark)."

The South Fork and North Fork of the Licking River converge in Newark's Little Texas neighborhood.

Denise Natoli Brooks, program administrator for the Licking County Soil and Water Conservation District, said debris in the river is a problem, but downed trees near the river should also be removed

“We’re also looking at where does storm water have to go to get to the rivers and streams,” Natoli Brooks said.

The Licking County Commissioners complained in May that the Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District has not provided much help to Licking County to pay for removal of debris in the river, despite Licking Countians making annual payments to the district for a decade.

The conservancy district said the county has benefited from a flood remediation study for Hebron and a restoration of the Log Pond Run Diversion Channel in Newark.

Logjams have blocked the flow of the South Fork and re-routed its flow, threatening the edge of the Newark Ohio Industrial Park in Hebron.

Natoli Brooks said the recent rains and flooding could alter a planned proposal to the conservancy district’s debris removal program.

“Where some debris was, it may no longer be there,” Natoli Brooks said. “After every rain, the river will look different. We have a lot of evaluation to do throughout the whole South Fork now.”

kmallett@newark

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