The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Wilmington District, has scheduled a routine cleaning and dive inspection of Philpott Dam the week of July 7-11 as part of its reservoir maintenance operations.
These comprehensive inspections occur periodically to remove debris from the gate areas to ensure efficient sealing of the gates.
About 11 divers from the 74 th Engineer Dive Detachment, based at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Va., will examine areas of the dam that were not inspected in a previous dive performed in 2012.
Since the powerhouse at Philpott will be unable to operate generators while the divers are in the water (from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.), engineers will be running minimum flows during portions of the day to protect aquatic life, and will increase flows intermittently to help mitigate low flow and temperature impacts to the downstream aquatic environment and to maintain downstream water supplies. The safety of the divers is the paramount concern for all outflows, which will be adjusted accordingly.
Philpott is one of three Wilmington District dams undergoing dive inspections in 2014. Other dams inspected this year include W. Kerr Scott in Wilkesboro, N.C., and John H. Kerr in Boydton, Va.
USACE, July 4, 2014