Subtropical Storm OLGA was Late Season Tropical Depression 94

[Lambada]

I just had a lightbulb moment! The reason the official Government Commission of Enquiry will need so long is because they don't manage to invite everyone who should be invited to the meetings. First meeting, not invited: CODIA, UASD & Coraasan. 'Los directivos del Codia dijeron que trataron de contactar en las Fuerzas Armadas si esa entidad había sido invitada, pero que nadie pudo darle una respuesta exacta.' I bet!
El Nacional, la voz de todos

I don't want to sniff a conspiracy where there isn't one but I believe it was the Sec. of Armed Forces Dept. sending out the invites. Let's just hope we never go to war!

[Lambada]

And someone else says Tavera was preventable:
Bienvenidos al Hoy Digital

[Hillbilly]

He has been a long time critic of how the dams, watersheds and hydro plands are being handled. And he does know what he is talking about.

However, this is just another voice in the wilderness....we all know that the dam was instructed to hold as much water as possible until the very last minute--in truth, it was probably the President himself who gave the order to hold the water, although it seems strange to me that he would even know about suchthings....

HB

[bob saunders]

And why HB are you saying it was probably the president himself that gave the order to hold the water. Is this a fact? I understand that you are justified in being upset at the unneccesary loss of life, but it is highly unlikely that Leonel even knew about the water level.

[Lambada]

Wasn't the President present at the meeting on the Sunday (the Sunday before the Tuesday)?

[Lambada]

From DR1 News today:
Tavera Dam is drained a bit
Now they do it. Representatives from the Committee for the Tavera Watershed, the Emergency Operations Center (COE), Civil Defense and the National Meteorological Office (ONAMET) all got together to announce that they are currently releasing 200 cubic meters of water per second from the Tavera Dam. Octavio Rodriguez told reporters that 100 cubic meters was being used to generate electricity and 100 meters was being released through the floodgates. This measure was taken as a storm system heads towards the Dominican Republic. The water level was to be lowered to 326 MASL (Meters Above Sea Level), which is only 1.5 meters below the limit allowed for the dam. The National Meteorological Office is predicting up to 35 millimeters of rainfall over the next 48 hours.
The COE has announced a Green Alert for the provinces of Santiago, La Vega, Espaillat and the provinces that border the Yaque del Norte River. After last 12 December's disaster when the floodgates were opened, flooding large areas of Santiago and the northwest, the authorities are now providing more information than ever.

It is good that they're providing information. But I have a question: why are these decisions always taken at NIGHT? We all know how easily rumour spreads & how people can get alarmed as El Nacional seems to indicate:
El Nacional, la voz de todos

[Lambada]

Remember Silvio Carrasco, the previous Director of INDRHI, who spoke out about the events of December 12th.? Well...........now the finger of blame is pointing at him.
Responsabiliza a ex director INDRHI por inundaciones en Santiago

[Lambada]

They did it! The voluntary investigation into Tavera opening has produced its report. Full report here:
Comisión determina que hubo un manejo incorrecto de Presa Tavera

Brief summary here:
El Nacional, la voz de todos

Any comments, particularly from our technical posters?

[A.Hidalgo]

The report is scathing. According to it the authorities that manage the damn made errors every step of the way. The details of the events are laid out very concisely, along with the many recommendations on going forward to prevent similar tragedies from repeating again. We can only hope it does not fall on deaf ears.

The report is also here in Microsoft word format. Click on "Informe de Comision de Santiago sobre tragedia presa de Tavera"

CLAVE DIGITAL - DIARIO DIGITAL DOMINICANO DE NOTICIAS - DOCUMENTOS

[Lambada]

Pimentel 'It wasn't me, it was EGEHID & CDEEE'. Read El Caribe for how to weasel your way out of a tight spot:
http://www.elcaribecdn.com/articulo_...5C0&Seccion=63
And let me post today's DR1 News summary for the people who don't read Spanish

Santiago report on Tavera incident

The Santiago Citizens Commission that was put together as a private initiative to look into the handling of the Tavera Dam in the days and hours before the release of more than fifty million gallons of water all at once, which caused more than 100 deaths and billions in financial damage, has issued its findings. One of the main recommendations was that the Emergency Operation Manual for the country's dams needed to be revised and updated. The commission's final conclusion was that there had been negligence in the handling of the six floodgates that were opened in a panic move last 11 and 12 December. The commission was composed of Rafael Corominas, Orlando Franco, Osiris de Leon, Ervin Vargas, Danilo Gonzalez, Rolando Martinez, Roberto Suriel, Carlos Manuel Estrella, Jose Devarez and Emmanuel Castillo. The 150-page report reveals that the six floodgates were not opened gradually, two by two, as required in the current manual, but rather suddenly, all at once, releasing as much as 6,000 cubic meters of water each second (1.584 million gallons per second). The report says, "Upon seeing that at 10:00 o'clock at night the water level in the lake had reached the 326 MASL (meters above sea level) mark, and that it was still raining heavily, the correct move was to inform Civil Defense and the Emergency Operations Committee (COE) in order to evacuate the residents in the areas close to the Yaque River banks, and begin dumping 500 cubic meters per second from the dam". The civilian commission's report was produced before the official government commission has even held one full session, according to commentators from Diario Libre.
For the complete report, see Comisión determina que hubo un manejo incorrecto de Presa Tavera