1978 — Oct 6, temporary cofferdam construction failure, Lake Keowee, near Seneca, SC– 7

–7 Daily Globe, Ironwood, MI. “Dam Inspected Day Before Accident that Killed 7.” 10-7-1978, 1.
–7 AP. “Dam Collapse Kills Workers.” Daily Times-News, Burlington, NC, 10-7-1978, p. 1.

Narrative Information

Oct 7, Associated Press: “Seneca, S.C. (AP) – Seven construction workers were crushed to death or drowned Friday in the collapse of a temporary dam shielding construction work on the floor of Lake Keowee, authorities said. A crew from Southern Construction and Engineering Co. of Birmingham, Ala., was working on a water pipeline when the 35-40-foot cofferdam collapsed. Five workers were trapped beneath concrete pilings, according to Pickens County Civil Defense Director Don Evett. Two other workers atop the dam when it fell at 11 a.m. were missing and presumed drowned, authorities said.

“Charles A Long, Jr., chairman of the board of the company, said the structure had been inspected Thursday afternoon. ‘We had no reason to believe we had anything but a well-conceived, well-designed structure,’ he said.

“He said the rescue operations to recover the bodies would proceed slowly. ‘We don’t want to lose anyone else,’ in the rescue operations, he said. ‘The thing happened in seconds. The is the most tragic accident we’ve had happen since we’ve been in business,’ since around 1890. Company president Joseph L. Cobb said there had been perhaps one or two other deaths on the company’s construction projects, ‘but nothing of this consequence.’

“There was an eighth man standing atop the construction. ‘He heard a snap and then it threw him, fortunately, away. He went about 160 feet in the air and landed in the water,’ Long said. Long declined to identify the man and said he was unavailable to talk to newsmen.

“He said some heavy underwater cutting equipment was being brought from Birmingham to assist divers in dismantling the crumpled and twisted steel structure under the water.

“He said there was nothing unusual about the project and that it was not the largest such project his company has built….

“There was no immediate explanation for the collapse of the dam, on the eastern shore of the lake.

“The dam was located about 15 miles north of Seneca, a town of some 8,000 in the Appalachian foothills in northwestern South Carolina.

“The accident occurred at the site where the construction firm was building a $3.3-million water intake structure. The work was part of a $58-million project to build a 27-mile pipeline for the Greenville, S.C., Water System. The pipeline, which will bring water from Lake Keowee to Greenville, was scheduled to be completed by 1985.” (Associated Press. “Dam Collapse Kills Workers.” Daily Times-News, Burlington, NC, 10-7-1978, p. 1.)

Sources

Associated Press. “Dam Collapse Kills Workers.” Daily Times-News, Burlington, NC, 10-7-1978, p. 1. Accessed 9-24-2021 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/burlington-daily-times-news-oct-07-1978-p-1/

Daily Globe, Ironwood, MI. “Dam Inspected Day Before Accident that Killed 7.” 10-7-1978, 1. Accessed at: https://newspaperarchive.com