Rapidan Dam Suffers Partial Failure, Home Teeters On Brink

The Rapidan Dam in south-central Minnesota had a partial failure but has not collapsed. Officials report the failure on the west abutment and the river flow now diverts along the west side. The nearby homes are now at a high risk of collapse.

RAPIDAN TOWNSHIP, Minn. — Flooding on the Blue Earth River breached the Rapidan Dam Monday morning, now it has transformed to the  "imminent failure condition," officials said. Earlier, the official warned that the dam had failed but later they confirmed it was completely broken. 

Monday afternoon, officials reported the dam is still standing, and no mass evacuation is planned. Water now flows around the west side of the dam, the sheriff's office says.

Le Sueur County residents in low-lying areas are in great danger. From the official declaration, they should stay alert and be ready to leave. Following this, the National Weather Service issued a flash flood warning for downstream areas until 10:30 a.m. Tuesday.

This was so hilarious that pieces of an Xcel Energy building were starting to add to the debris in the water. Officials are also closely watching the County Road 33 Bridge and County Road 90 Bridge for debris moving downstream. They might close these bridges if necessary.

The Blue Earth County Sheriff's Office has already known about power outages and now they are working with Xcel Energy to fix them. Xcel expects power to be back for about 600 affected customers by midnight on Tuesday. Xcel Energy plans to use a mobile station to replace the damaged equipment and reconnect customers located west of the Blue Earth River. 

The good news is that the company is working with BENCO Electric Cooperative to restore service to customers in that area. Even further downstream, Xcel has been strengthening other facilities with sandbags and barriers. 

This is all about safeguarding them in case the dam fails and water starts reaching the substations.

The Blue Earth River starts in northern Iowa and joins its west branch in Faribault County, southern Minnesota, per the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency.

It flows northward for 108 miles, passing through towns such as Blue Earth, Winnebago, and Vernon Center, until it reaches Mankato, where it joins the Minnesota River. Overall, the Rapidan Dam’s condition is not good at all, even it is also confirmed by the  National Inventory of Dams.