Rotary Club learns about Narrows Dam

Diane Golden of the Army Corp of Engineers spoke to the Nashville Rotary Club on Wednesday.

Golden has been with the Corp for over 17 years, but she moved from Louisiana in 2018 to work at Narrows Dam on Lake Greeson in 2018. She explained the difference between the dams that she worked with in Louisiana and Narrows Dam.

Golden said Martin Greeson was responsible for getting Narrows Dam built. She said he was appointed to the Arkansas Flood Commission in 1920 and in 1941 the dam was finally approved for construction. However, World War II started, and it wouldn’t be until 1947 that construction on the dam would begin. Golden said the dam was completed in 1950 and dedicated in 1951, but Greeson never saw it finished because he passed away in 1949. Golden said the dam was built for flood control but it’s a hydro-electric dam and generates electricity that is generated and sold to the public by SWEPCO. She said the dam produces enough energy to power 2,800 homes.

Golden said the Corp does not control the dam until Lake Greeson reaches flood stage.

Golden explained they monitor the dam every 12-hours when the lake level reaches 548 feet and every six-hours when it reaches its flood stage at 552 feet. She said water has only gone over the spillway three times, once in 1968, 2009 and 2018.

Golden said the Narrows Dam is a Class 4 dam and is one of the safest dams in the nation. However, if the dam should ever break, it would take approximately 45-minutes for water to reach Murfreesboro and within 2 and a half hours Murfreesboro would be under water.