Renewed instability concerns following ISIS control
Maintenance had been deferred during the
Battle for Mosul Dam due to security concerns, and many workers did not work because of the risk of attacks by ISIS and due to lack of pay. Half of the workers who worked at the dam have quit because they had not been paid for over five months, and budget shortfalls and political infighting between the Kurdish regional government and the central government of Iraq have made it difficult to hire new workers. Together these factors have made Mosul Dam the "most dangerous dam in the world", because there are "almost certainly an unprecedented level of untreated voids" in the dam's foundation."
[15]
Growing instability concerns due to the
Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) previous control of the dam and poor security led the Iraq government to award a US$2 billion contract to an Italian company, Trevi, in December 2015. The contract covers repairs to the dam and the Italian government plans to send 450 additional troops to provide security at the dam site.
[16]
In January 2016, U.S. General
Sean MacFarland warned that the dam might undergo a "catastrophic" collapse. He added, “What we do know is this—if this dam were in the United States, we would have drained the lake behind it".
[17] Maintenance had suffered as ISIS had removed equipment and chased technicians away in August 2014, and the grouting schedule had not been maintained.
[18] He indicated that contingency plans are in the works to protect people downstream in case of a collapse.
[18] Some Iraqi officials continued to dismiss claims of a potential failure. In February 2016, the Minister of Water Resources, Muhsin al-Shammari stated "The looming danger to Mosul dam is one in a thousand. This risk level is present in all the world's dams".
[19]
According to
The Economist, "One study says that if the dam collapses, Mosul would be submerged within hours. Another warns that half a million Iraqis could be killed by floodwaters, and more than a million forced from their homes. Disease and looting as the floodwaters raced through
Baiji,
Tikrit,
Samarra and even parts of
Baghdad would complete that dreadful scenario."
[17]
In February 2016, the
United States Embassy in Iraq warned of a "serious and unprecedented" danger of the dam collapsing and suggester plans for evacuation should be made, as the cities
Mosul,
Tikrit,
Samarra, and
Baghdad could be at risk in the event of collapse, and that up to 1.5 million people could be killed due to
flash floods.
[20] The
Prime Minister of Iraq,
Haider al-Abadi, repeated these concerns and called for citizens in Mosul to evacuate and move at least 3.5 miles away from the river.
[21]
On February 29, a Trevi spokesman said that the contract had still not been signed. There are concerns that the dam could collapse before the repair works begin.
[22]
Click to expand...
(at saying the same thing i twas going to,not the sabotage)
