Torrejón-el-Rubio Dam
Coordinates: 39 ° 49 ′ 50 ″ N , 5 ° 59 ′ 10 ″ W.
The Torrejón el Rubio dam burst on October 22, 1965 near Torrejón el Rubio in the province of Cáceres in Spain claimed up to 70 deaths and caused millions in damage. The dam is located northeast of Cáceres and west of Madrid .
The dam breach occurred at 9:30 a.m. on the morning of October 22nd on the right side of the dam. The tidal wave crashed into a dry river bed where about 400 workers were working. About 50 workers were trapped in a tunnel connecting the dam with another ( Presa del Tietar ). Machines, tractors, turbines and tools were also buried under water. The exact number of deaths is not known, the various reports speak of 30, 35, 38 or 70 deaths. After 42 years, in 2007, another man's body was found.
The dam on the Rio Tajo shortly before the confluence of the Rio Tiétar was built by Hidroeléctrica Española (now Iberdrola ) to generate electricity from hydropower. The reservoir contained 140 million cubic meters of water, which caused a maximum discharge of 2000 m³ / s when the dam broke .
See also
Web links
- El Desastre de Torrejón 22-10-1965
- El desastre de Torrejón
- Newspaper report, with a sketch of the location (Spanish)
- Hallan después de 42 años la tumba de un hombre fallecido en la presa de Torrejón (after 42 years a man's grave was found at the Torrejón dam)
- Una tragedia manchada de agua