Episode Details

The Dam Ate Its Own Rescue Equipment — Then the Bureau Blamed Nature

Every story in here actually happened. New stories every Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.

Sources: https://www.usbr.gov/pn/teton/about.html; https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/1977/0341/; https://www.usbr.gov/history/damstor/teton.html; https://www.congress.gov/bill/95th-congress/house-bill/4825

Visual credits: - "Aerial View of Teton Dam Embankment Looking Downstream - DPLA - 6c38477b3900f4dd798865e3e95cf8f8 (page 1).jpg" by Department of the Interior. Bureau of Reclamation. Denver Office. 3/4/1988; Public domain https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Aerial View of Teton Dam Embankment Looking Downstream - DPLA - 6c38477b3900f4dd798865e3e95cf8f8 (page 1).jpg; cropped, color-adjusted, and animated for video. - "Breach of Teton Dam - DPLA - 657b673aa7b01ea982116a68bef069b4.jpg" by Department of the Interior. Bureau of Reclamation. Denver Office. 3/4/1988; Public domain https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Breach of Teton Dam - DPLA - 657b673aa7b01ea982116a68bef069b4.jpg; cropped, color-adjusted, and animated for video. - ""Water breaking through earth and rock fill dike at outlet portal of diversion tunnel No. 2 during flash flood of... - NARA - 293727.jpg" by Unknown authorUnknown author or not provided; Public domain https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:"Water breaking through earth and rock fill dike at outlet portal of diversion tunnel No. 2 during flash flood of... - NARA - 293727.jpg; cropped, color-adjusted, and animated for video. - "Contract No. 39, Trunk Line Sewer, Rutland, Holden, refilling sewer pipe trench, looking south from Sta. 39+00, Rutland-Holden Sewer, Holden, Mass., Nov. 8, 1933 - DPLA - 32d10c998eb21a990d44a427dab76a4b.jpg" by Massachusetts. Metropolitan District Water Supply Commission, Pike, Stuart D., 1910-1978; Public domain https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Contract No. 39, Trunk Line Sewer, Rutland, Holden, refilling sewer pipe trench, looking south from Sta. 39+00, Rutland-Holden Sewer, Holden, Mass., Nov. 8, 1933 - DPLA - 32d10c998eb21a990d44a427dab76a4b.jpg; cropped, color-adjusted, and animated for video. - "Aerial View of Teton Dam Embankment Looking Downstream - DPLA - 6c38477b3900f4dd798865e3e95cf8f8 (page 2).jpg" by Department of the Interior. Bureau of Reclamation. Denver Office. 3/4/1988; Public domain https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Aerial View of Teton Dam Embankment Looking Downstream - DPLA - 6c38477b3900f4dd798865e3e95cf8f8 (page 2).jpg; cropped, color-adjusted, and animated for video. - "Contract No. 80, High Level Distribution Reservoir, Weston, looking northeast from a point 250 feet+-- west of Sta. 18+00, dam 1, showing pervious earth fill for dam 1, high level d - DPLA - 14a58589d954574b303fabca784d2a4c.jpg" by Massachusetts. Metropolitan District Water Supply Commission, Kane, Samuel B., 1917-1988; Public domain https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Contract No. 80, High Level Distribution Reservoir, Weston, looking northeast from a point 250 feet+-- west of Sta. 18+00, dam 1, showing pervious earth fill for dam 1, high level d - DPLA - 14a58589d954574b303fabca784d2a4c.jpg; cropped, color-adjusted, and animated for video. - "Whittaker Bros truck with dozer SLWA b1921306.png" by Unknown authorUnknown author; Public domain https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Whittaker Bros truck with dozer SLWA b1921306.png; cropped, color-adjusted, and animated for video.

Visual license note: photographs retain their indicated licenses.

Production disclosure: AI-generated narration; research and editorial review use multi