EMBREY DAM TO FALL IN FEBRUARY
An Air Force Reserve unit, the 555 Red Horse out of Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada, and the 7th Transportation Group Dive Company, an active Army unit from Fort Eustis, will do the demolition work. It’s part of the Defense Department’s Innovative Readiness Training Program for reserves to hone their skills.
The two units will meet at the dam Dec. 12 to go over final details.
Rheinhart said they’ll probably use C4, a plastic explosive, to bring down a 100-foot section of Embrey Dam near the Fredericksburg shore. Charges will be placed on the concrete buttresses on the downstream side, which support the structure, and underneath.
“They’re designing that now and estimating the amount of explosives they’ll use,” Rheinhart said.
As for the explosion itself, it’s not likely to be anything spectacular–for obvious reasons. Fredericksburg’s big bang will be a controlled explosion to do the job without affecting spectators, nearby houses or property.
Oh, but it should be spectacular! We could have a couple of F-16s from the Virginia Air National Guard swoop in, use a couple of Sidewinders, and KABOOM!!!