OBSERVE SAFETY RULES AT DAMS

SUMMER is the time of picnics and sunbathing, with visits to water sites, including dams.

Many lakes are formed by dams. They also help control floods and provide hydroelectric power. This is a time when most fatalities near or at dams are due to non-compliance with safety regulations.

Before going to a dam, check the daily or weekly dam levels released by the Department of Water and Sanitation as your guiding tool for safety.

Getting too close to dams can be dangerous. Calm water can quickly, and without warning, become a surge of fast-moving water. This fast-moving water creates strong undercurrents that cannot always be seen from the surface and can drown even the strongest swimmer.

Strong currents and undercurrent can cause anyone who enters the water near a dam to be washed downstream, through the structure, or become pinned against the structure and unable to escape, resulting in drowning or fatal injuries.

The Department of Water and Sanitation placed signs, fences and safety booms simply to warn you of dam hazards that must be observed at all times when entering dam sites.

If water levels begin to change near a dam, back away from the dam immediately.

Never stand, fish, or anchor your boat below a dam.

Avoid sunbathing, picnicking or camping in an area that may become flooded due to dam operations. Water is life, but it does not mix with alcohol.