(Photo provided) This photo shows Upper Grave Creek Watershed Site 9 along Green Valley Road and Fletcher Hill Road near Cameron. Officials have been holding meetings regarding emergency planning in the case of a dam failure.

CAMERON – Marshall County Schools’ personnel and county first responders recently learned more about the city of Cameron’s flood control dams and related emergency plans.

Tom Hart, director of the Marshall County Emergency Management Agency, said the meetings are held periodically to keep local, state and county officials informed about emergency plans related to dam failures.

Underground longwall coal mining is being conducted in the area including under the dams by American Consolidated Natural Resource, previously Murray Energy. ACNR owns the mineral rights under Upper Grave Creek Dams 7, 8 and 9.

The Northern Panhandle Conservation District owns and operates the three dams, categorized as high-hazard status. According to the West Virginia Code of State Rules Series 47-34, the failure of a Class 1 High Hazard dam may result in loss of life and major damage to property.

“It’s about communication, coordination, collaboration and planning together for the response to and recovery from an incident involving the dams,” Hart said.

“Over our past few workshops, we have expanded from the core group to include more community partners. We anticipate additional partners will be included as other areas of expertise, input and support are needed.”

Cameron is home to a high school and elementary school.

The meetings regarding the dams have taken place for a couple years.

“These meetings and workshops have been taking place since just before the mining in that area began and several have been held since then,” he said.

“The West Virginia Conservation Agency has watershed technicians that conduct site inspections of the Upper Grave Creek Flood Control Dams with the primary focus on Site 9,” he said. “They also had engineers conduct inspections there. There are pumps there, waterlines and syphons that are to de-water that dam and Site 7.”

He noted more than a week ago before heavy rainfall occurred, “the pumps were running to de-water the pool in the dam below the intake.”

In her report to the board of education, Superintendent Shelby Haines said the meetings included school personnel.

“The emergency response plans that have been created were reviewed and discussed as they are always being evaluated and revised,” she said. “The team also reviewed specifics for Cameron Elementary School including details such as where each teacher takes their students if need be. The second meeting was a virtual meeting with state and local officials. At this meeting the status of the dams and pumps were discussed. These meetings will continue bi-weekly unless there is significant rain and they will occur more frequently.”

Hart said Tuesday that another meeting was held that day at the Cameron Volunteer Fire Department.

“There were representatives both in person and virtually from several fire departments, EMS, public health, city officials, schools, nursing home, state and county emergency management,” he said. “During these workshops we discuss preincident, active incident and post incident phases that include response and recovery to and from a dam incident.”

Officials with the Northern Panhandle Conservation District previously said repairs to one dam could cost $16 million.