National Dam Safety Program. Little Bear Lake Dam (MO 30533), Mississippi - Kaskaskia - St. Louis Basin, Cape Girardeau County, Missouri. Phase I Inspection Report

The purpose of the inspection was to make an assessment of the general conditions of the dam with respect to safety, based upon available data and visual inspection, in order to determine if the dam poses hazards to human life or property. The inspection and evaluation indicates that the spillways do not meet the criteria set forth in the 'Recommended Guidelines for Safety Inspection of Dams' for a small dam having a high hazard potential. Considering the small volume of water impounded, 50% of the Probable Maximum Flood is the appropriate design flood. The spillways will pass the 100-year flood (1% probability flood - a flood having a 1% chance of being exceeded in any one year) without overtopping the dam. The spillways will also pass 30% of the Probable Maximum Flood without overtopping the dam. The Probable Maximum Flood is defined as the flood that may be expected from the most severe combination of critical meteorologic and hydrologic conditions that are possible in the region.