California

Oroville Dam Safety Prompts Lawsuit Against California

An NBC Bay Area investigation into the safety of the Oroville Dam has now prompted the City of Oroville itself to sue the state of California.

Last September, following a six-month investigation, NBC Bay Area's Investigative Unit uncovered several issues that experts say raise questions about the safety of the Oroville Dam itself.

This followed the collapse of the dam's spillway during exceptionally heavy rains last February. Events state officials admitted they were not expecting.

On Wednesday, lawmakers from a prominent Bay Area legal firm announced the filing of a lawsuit against California's Department of Water Resources on behalf of the City of Oroville and its 188,000 residents.

The lawsuit, which cites NBC Bay Area's investigation several times, claims warning of safety issues went ignored by DWR for years and that Oroville's citizens remain at-risk because those safety issues have still not been adequately addressed.

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