By Adam Stewart, MSCE, EI
Dams play a crucial role in water management, providing resources for irrigation, drinking water, hydroelectric power, and recreation. However, they also pose significant risks if not properly monitored and managed. The potential for catastrophic flooding in the event of a dam breach necessitates robust safety measures and effective communication strategies. And as studies, show, dam infrastructure in the United States — surely not isolated across the globe — is a growing public safety concern.
Drawing from my background as a water resources engineer involved in creating FEMA floodplain maps and conducting hydraulic and hydrologic studies for over 8 years, I understand the complexities of dam safety. Our suite of technologies — LRAD and Genasys Protect, including ACOUSTICS, ALERT, EVAC, and CONNECT — enhances dam safety and improves emergency response in downstream areas. Dam safety is more than reinforcing structuring integrity and right-sizing spillways. It extends beyond regulating construction in floodways and Zone AE floodplains. Emergency communication planning must be a component of a comprehensive dam safety program to protect the community.
Understanding the Risks: A Water Resources Engineer’s Perspective
Before diving into Genasys’ solutions, it’s important to understand the intricacies involved in dam safety. As a former engineer working on floodplain maps, I gained insight into how critical it is to model flood zones accurately and predict dam breach scenarios. Hydraulic and hydrologic studies provide the foundational data required to develop Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs) that identify flood-prone areas. These maps are vital for planning, risk assessment, and emergency preparedness. You never want to imagine a dam breach occurring, but planning for that devastation is critical in any dam construction and operation.
Dams can fail for various reasons, including overtopping, catastrophic structural failure, years of erosion from seepage, terrorism, or operational errors. A dam breach results in a massive wall of water and debris destroying everything in its path. More than flash-flooding, the impacts from a breach can happen without warning. And when it occurs, little can be done to stop the devastation downstream.
The only option is to have a system of planning, alerting and communication in place to protect people downstream with clear evacuations plans, directions and alerts. Hence, an integrated approach combining early warning detection, intelligent breach-zone evacuation planning, and clear multi-channel notifications is mandatory to save lives.
Genasys Protect software and LRAD acoustic devices provide the tools to monitor for potential breaches, empower rapid evacuation decisions, and communicate clearly to all people in the path of danger so they – and their loved ones, including pets – can evacuate to safety.
Enhancing Dam Safety with Genasys Protect and LRAD
Genasys EVAC: Accelerated Evacuation Management
Effective evacuation management is essential in avoiding life-threatening chaos from a potential dam breach. Genasys EVAC is designed to streamline evacuation processes by providing clear evacuation zones so authorities quickly select the areas for notification without pulling out flood maps and making on-the-fly determinations. As a result, EVAC has reduced the time to get a clear evacuation message created from over an hour to just a few minutes. That time savings is passed along to the people in danger, so they can get to safety.
By enhancing message formulation and reducing notification times, EVAC contributes to a safer and more organized evacuation process. And for people in or near the inundation zone, the Genasys Protect App, fueled by EVAC and ALERT, let them receive notifications and zone-based updates directly on a mobile device.
Genasys ALERT: Proactive Communication for Evacuation Planning
Communication is key in any emergency situation, and Genasys ALERT excels in delivering targeted, location-based messaging to people at risk. The intelligent zones from EVAC can enable ALERT to quickly notify the zones in the path of inundation. Using prepared quick-launch templates, emergency responders can notify people using multiple channels – including acoustic devices – so that everyone can get to safety before it is too late.
During a breach scenario, ALERT can disseminate critical information such as evacuation routes, shelter locations, and safety measures. The system supports multiple communication channels, including SMS, voice calls, social media, and mobile apps, ensuring broad reach and redundancy. ACOUSTICS integrates with ALERT to broadcast clearly-heard voice notifications – not confusing siren tones – to notify everyone of imminent danger. By providing clear and concise instructions, ALERT empowers communities to act swiftly and safely.
In addition, ALERT works with integrated sensors around critical dam infrastructure locations. As a result, these sensors can provide continuous monitoring of dam infrastructure integrity and environmental conditions, including water levels, flow rates, and more. This technology accentuates monitoring by human operators to add a layer of protection; sensors, integrated with ALERT, should be mandatory for dam infrastructure upgrades.
LRAD and Genasys ACOUSTICS: Real-Time Monitoring and Alerts
LRAD (Long Range Acoustic Devices) and Genasys ACOUSTICS are pivotal in enhancing dam safety through broadcasting clearly-heard voice messages for miles. These speakers are the modern evolution from incoherent siren tones. Instead of relying on people to decipher why a siren is booming, LRAD and ACOUSTICS send clear voice messages to give people instructions.
In the event of a detected anomaly, Genasys ACOUSTICS serves as an important channel for ALERT. If operators or the integrated sensors detect the likelihood of a breach, ACOUSTICS can sound to reach everyone in their range. Even visitors and tourists that may not be aware of their danger or may not have a mobile device turned on (or are in an area downstream without cell coverage), can hear the clear messages from ACOUSTICS. These devices are clearly received indoors, so if threats arise overnight, sleeping residents can be alerted to the danger.
ACOUSTICS and LRAD ensure that critical warnings reach all affected areas, even in the absence of cellular or internet connectivity. The ability to penetrate background noise and deliver clear messages enhances situational awareness and compliance with evacuation orders. As part of a comprehensive dam safety strategy, acoustic devices play a vital role in ensuring that no community is left uninformed.
Genasys CONNECT: Integrating Data for Informed Decision-Making
Emergencies require public safety agencies to collaborate in real-time to effectively plan both within the department and across agencies. Genasys CONNECT provides secure and compliant messaging to share text, documents, audio and more. Using CONNECT, public safety teams can engage to effectively help community members evacuate safely when disaster strikes.
A Safer Future with Genasys Technologies
The integration of Genasys solutions — ACOUSTICS, ALERT, EVAC, LRAD, and CONNECT — provides a comprehensive and robust solution for enhancing dam safety and improving emergency response to save lives. Drawing from my experience as a water resources engineer, I understand the complexities and risks associated with dam infrastructure. Genasys’ innovative approach combines monitoring, communication, and data integration to mitigate these risks and protect communities downstream. While engineers focus on structural integrity as well as proper hydrologic sizing, complete dam safety includes the emergency communication technology to keep people safe.
By leveraging cutting-edge technology and into hydrologic and hydraulic principles of dam design, Genasys is committed to building a safer future for all. Our solutions empower authorities, responders, engineers, and communities to act swiftly and effectively, ensuring that lives and property are safeguarded in the face of potential dam-related emergencies.
Contact Genasys to learn more about our suite of dam safety solutions and read our ebook: “Strengthening Dam Safety.”
About the author: Adam Stewart is the Director, Product Marketing at Genasys. Before a long career in tech marketing, Adam was a water resources engineer for Jordan, Jones & Goulding, now part of Jacobs Engineering, for over 8 years, working for clients across the southeastern United States. With two engineering degrees, from Duke University and the Georgia Institute of Technology, he brings a fresh perspective to the comprehensive strategy to modernize dam safety for communities.
