page_title: Hauser Dam
section_title: Collapse of first dam
hierarchical_section_title: Hauser Dam / History / Collapse of first dam
caption_attribution_description: English: Looking upstream at en:Hauser Dam in Lewis &amp; Clark County, Montana, United States, in 1908 after the en:steel dam's catastrophic collapse on April 14, 1908. A 300 feet (91&#160;m) center section of the dam has broken away, leaving only the ends attached to bedrock on either side. The spillway with its supporting timbers, can be seen on the left side of the image. The undamaged powerhouse is just visible on the far left.
context_page_description: Hauser Dam is a hydroelectric straight gravity dam on the Missouri River about 14 miles northeast of Helena, Montana, in the United States. The original dam, built between 1905 and 1907, failed in 1908 and caused severe flooding and damage downstream. A second dam was built on the site in 1908 and opened in 1911 and comprises the present structure. The current Hauser Dam is 700 feet long and 80 feet high. The reservoir formed by the dam, Hauser Lake is 25 miles long, has a surface area of 3,800 acres, and has a storage capacity of 98,000 acre feet of water when full.
  The dam is a "run-of-the-river" dam because it can generate electricity without needing to store additional water supplies behind the dam. The powerhouse contains six generators, bringing Hauser dam's generating capacity to 17 MW.
context_section_description: On April 14, 1908, at about 2:30 p.m., Hauser Dam failed after water pressure undermined the masonry footings (the steel dam itself being structurally sound). The first sign of trouble was when silt-heavy water began gushing from the base of the dam near the powerhouse. A power company employee, spotting the problem, ran into the powerhouse and told everyone to flee for their lives. About 15 minutes later, the masonry footings gave way, causing the upstream section of the dam to settle and a 30-foot (9 m) wide breach to open in the dam. The water pouring through the breach further undermined the dam's footing, and six minutes later a 300-foot (91 m) wide section of the dam tore loose. The powerhouse was only slightly damaged. A surge of water 25 to 30 feet (7.6 to 9.1 m) high swept downstream. The remaining sections of the dam, anchored to bedrock, helped hold back some of the water for a time, reducing the destructiveness of the flood. In the state capital of Helena at the time, Gerry received a telephone call from the dam operators alerting him to the dam's destruction. He immediately sent telegrams to all towns and cities downstream, warning them of the coming flood. A Great Northern Railway locomotive was dispatched to the city of Great Falls, 70 miles (110 km) downstream, warning stations along the way about the dam break.
  The warnings and the geology of the Missouri River below Hauser Dam helped save numerous lives. The construction camp at Holter Dam (then being built) was swept away. Future motion picture actor Gary Cooper and his family, living at the Seven Bar Nine Ranch, were notified in time and evacuated before the floodwaters tore across a portion of their property. The flood reached the small town of Craig, Montana, around 7:00 p.m., but the narrow canyons of the Missouri River above the town helped hold back part of the floodwaters and dissipated much of their energy. The residents of the town received plenty of warning, and were evacuated. At first, the press reported that the town had been swept away, but this proved inaccurate as only a few shacks and the railroad station were uprooted. The famous iron Craig Bridge (normally 25 feet (7.6 m) above water) had more than 2 feet (1 m) of water over its deck and was feared doomed, but it held. The Great Northern Railway tracks from Craig to Ulm, Montana, were under water. Workers at the Boston and Montana Smelter in Great Falls improvised a wing dam to deflect the floodwaters away from the smelter site and dynamited a portion of Black Eagle Dam to allow the floodwaters to go downstream. Their efforts were not needed, as the Missouri River only rose 7 feet (2.1 m) by the time it reached that city. Nonetheless, damages were estimated at more than $1 million.
  At the end of the 20th century, pieces of the steel dam could still be found on the banks of the Missouri River.
caption: Looking upstream at Hauser Dam after its catastrophic collapse on April 14, 1908
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