CALIFORNIA IN BRIEF : NORTHERN CALIFORNIA : Dams Suffer Little Earthquake Damage

The earthquake that struck Northern California on Oct. 17 caused little or no damage to most of the 102 dams within 50 miles of its epicenter, state engineers reported. The most severe cracking was to the Austrian Dam on Lake Elsman, owned by the San Jose Water Co., seven miles south-southeast of Los Gatos and about eight miles from the epicenter, they said. Engineers conducted the survey for the Division of Safety of Dams, which is in the Department of Water Resources. Repairs are in progress at the Austrian Dam and will begin shortly at several other dams in the area owned by the Santa Clara Valley Water District. They are Lexington Dam, two miles south of Los Gatos; Vasona Dam, two miles north of Los Gatos, and Guadalupe Dam, five miles southeast of Los Gatos. Minor longitudinal cracking was discovered at Newell Dam, owned by the city of Santa Cruz, nine miles southwest of Los Gatos.