Controlled Breach At Horseshoe Dam To Start This Month

SHAKER HEIGHTS, OH — Later this month, crews will make an emergency controlled breach of the Horseshoe Lake dam.

River Reach Construction will remove a chunk of the dam, Shaker Heights officials said. The goal is to flow collected water out to the Doan Brook, stopping the lake from overflowing. The project will be performed south of the stone observation deck, the city said.

"This is a necessary step to protect public safety, as a failure of the Horseshoe Lake dam would cause catastrophic property damage and probable loss of life downstream, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, the State's dam regulatory agency," Shaker Heights officials said in a statement.

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Crews will also prevent further structural failure by "shoring up" the tunnel stretching beneath the spillway. Workers will insert pipe into the tunnel and then fill the space between new pipe and tunnel with grout, the city said.

The walkway will be closed to the public during construction. When crews begin the breach, they will install more fencing and signs to warn the public.

Work should take approximately six weeks to complete, the city said.

The Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District previously found the Horseshoe Lake dam was dangerously close to failing. If the dam did fail, it could wreak havoc on the surrounding community and ecosystem, the sewer district said.

A group of residents have rallied to try and save Horseshoe Lake, urging the sewer district and the cities of Shaker Heights and Cleveland Heights to find an alternative way to preserve the dam.