Massive Debris Pile Emerges From Water Near Oroville Dam

OROVILLE, Calif. (AP) – Crews are scrambling to clean up dirt and debris from the base of Oroville Dam after state officials shut off the flow of water from a damaged spillway at the Northern California lake. Officials on Tuesday brought extra heavy equipment when the enormous pile of sediment and debris emerged from under water. Erosion at the dam’s main spillway and an emergency spillway forced authorities to order nearly 200,000 people to evacuate three weeks ago. The water level has risen more than three feet since crews stopped flows out of Lake Oroville. The lake still has room for 60 feet of water, with no imminent rain in the forecast. State lawmakers postponed a Senate hearing scheduled for Tuesday so state water officials could focus on their work at the lake.

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