Disaster

After nearly a year since the first protest camp sprung up in opposition to the Dakota Access Pipeline, it looks as if the Governor of North Dakota, Doug Burgum, has finally had enough and has signed an executive order demanding that protesters evacuate by February 22nd.

Gov. Burgum has issued an exec order reinforcing @OmahaUSACE's Feb. 22 deadline for vacating the main protest camp. https://t.co/PJc0iXZBnY

— Doug Burgum (@DougBurgum) February 16, 2017

As discussed previously, the biggest priority for California officials tasked with restoring the damaged Oroville Dam as they race against a coming Wednesday storm, is to plug the hole in the damaged spillway while draining as much water as possible ahead of the coming rainfall.

After discovering a hole in Oroville Dam's emergency spillway, officials said late Sunday that they will attempt to plug it using sandbags and rocks. But, as the LA Times notes, they stressed the situation remains dangerous and urged thousands of residents downstream to evacuate to higher ground. Video from television helicopters Sunday evening showed water flowing into a parking lot next to the dam, with large flows going down both the damaged main spillway and the emergency spillway.

Following a woefully belated response by California authorities' to the dangerous situation unfolding at the Lake Oroville Dam in Northern California over the weekend, an evacuation order forcing some 200,000 people living below the tallest dam in the US remained in place early on Monday after residents were abruptly told to flee when a spillway appeared in danger of collapse.