Michigan Dam Incident Response Review: An Analysis of the 2020 Edenville and Sanford Dam Failure Response

On the evening of May 19, 2020, following several days of heavy rain, the Edenville Dam, located one mile north of Edenville, Michigan, failed. The resulting release of water subsequently caused the Sandford Dam, located a few miles downstream, also to fail.

The record-breaking flooding caused by these dam failures caused widespread damage and destruction to buildings, homes, roads, utility infrastructure, and natural resources. More than 4,000 structures across the region were reportedly impacted by the floodwaters, with estimated losses of roughly $245 million. Fortunately, approximately 11,000 residents successfully evacuated the area with no serious injuries or loss of life reported.

This Dam Incident Response Review examines the causes for these dam failures and identifies the actions taken by the dam owners and emergency managers as the situation developed. Examining this event highlights the causes behind these dam failures, but also provides key insights and lessons for other jurisdictions with dams. The cascading impact of the Edenville dam failure causing the Sanford dam failure shows the dependencies within a water management system and the importance of collaborating across watershed areas.

Specific findings and recommendations from this review include:
- Risk is increasing and dam safety should be considered on a watershed scale.
- Relationships and collaborative planning before an incident greatly impact effective communication, coordination, and response during an emergency incident.
- Exercises provide a valuable opportunity to test plans, to confirm roles and responsibilities, and to identify areas for improvement.
- Data analysis is critical for planning and for impactful post-event analysis.
- Open communications with the community are essential to explain risk and to create more effective alerts and warnings for evacuations and shelter-in-place guidance.