© 2025 KVPR | Valley Public Radio - White Ash Broadcasting, Inc. :: 89.3 Fresno / 89.1 Bakersfield
89.3 Fresno | 89.1 Bakersfield
Donate
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Isabella Dam Escapes Damage From Ridgecrest Quakes, Seismic Upgrades Still On Track

KVPR | By Kerry Klein
Published August 9, 2019 at 12:53 PM PDT
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Isabella Dam, which holds Lake Isabella in the Kern County foothills, is in the midst of a $600 million upgrade to prevent overtopping, seepage, and failure during earthquakes.

One of the biggest fears during any earthquake is that the movement could damage major infrastructure. The recent Ridgecrest earthquakes jolted less than 50 miles away from Lake Isabella, where the Isabella Dam is in the midst of a $600 million improvement project by the US Army Corps of Engineers. How did the dam fare during the earthquakes, and how much longer until the upgrades will be complete? We sat down for an update with Army Corps project manager Anthony Burdock.
Tags
Environment Lake IsabellaKern CountyearthquakesArmy Corps of Engineers
Kerry Klein
Kerry Klein is an award-winning reporter whose coverage of public health, air pollution, drinking water access and wildfires in the San Joaquin Valley has been featured on NPR, KQED, Science Friday and Kaiser Health News. Her work has earned numerous regional Edward R. Murrow and Golden Mike Awards and has been recognized by the Association of Health Care Journalists and Society of Environmental Journalists. Her podcast Escape From Mammoth Pool was named a podcast “listeners couldn’t get enough of in 2021” by the radio aggregator NPR One.
See stories by Kerry Klein
Related Content