Water Resources: Hydraulics and Hydrology
A:
That did it. I decided not to do any more consulting.
Enough of that, huh?
A:
Had enough of that. Well, my wife was already in a nursing home, and I felt I ought to
be here in case something happens. My two sons aren't nearby, so I'm glad I did it.
Consulting Work
Dam, Pakistan
I enjoy dams the most, and there was a greater need for consulting hydraulic engineers on
dams than on channels. There was plenty of consulting work then for dams, but now most
of the large dams throughout the world are built, and this consulting work is limited.
I worked on the
Dam which is located in Pakistan. The engineering
of
Tibbetts, Abbott, McCarthy, and Stratton [TAMS], located in New York, did the design
and followed through on the construction and operation. During the design stage, I served
as the hydraulic design consultant and met with TAMS in the New York office on
hydraulic aspects of design. Later, during the construction and operations stages, the
Pakistanis set up a consulting board, and I was made a member of that board. When I was
appointed, four large tunnels had been completed and were being used for diversion, three
of them were to be changed to power tunnels, and one of them was to remain as a
diversion tunnel. Also, the power house still needed to be constructed.
While all four tunnels were being used for diversion, a tremendous flood occurred and an
attempt was made to control the outflow by closing the upstream gates of the tunnel that
would not be converted to a power tunnel. Unfortunately, this gate had not been designed
for operation under high heads, and the tunnel collapsed. The whole reservoir had to be
emptied in order to repair the damaged tunnel.
The consulting board was much involved in design and reconstruction of the tunnel as well
as design and construction of the spillways and problems with sink holes in the reservoir.
It held meetings at the dam site about every three or four months. I went there 13 times
in three years, and believe me, I had my fill of riding airplanes from Washington to
Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan [laughs].
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