Aiken County officials hope to lower the Langley Pond's water level by mid-May to begin additional investigations into what caused the dam to leak.
Visitors still can't get to the dam or walk to the edge of Langley Pond because the area is considered a construction site. County Administrator Clay Killian said crews are still installing the permanent siphons into the dam, which will allow the water level to decrease enough to fix the problem. Valves were placed on top of each siphon so crews can lower the water's level without having to open the more than 100-year-old gates.
"If we were building a dam today, these are the types of things they would put in," Killian said.
In February, Killian said the County could spend nearly $800,000 to investigate the cause of the Langley Dam leak, which was discovered around November 2014, and install siphons. A man walking his dog notified the County that water appeared to be bubbling on top of the pond, raising his concerns. Because of the ongoing investigation and repair of the dam, staff has canceled several events at Langley Pond this year, including the annual Augusta Invitational Rowing Regatta.
On top of the federal grant, Council had previously allocated $300,000 from the County budget for the dam's assessment and repair.
Killian said the additional permanent siphons should be installed by mid-April, allowing crews to further reduce the water level in the pond.
"That should take about one week and then by mid-June we hope to have some alternatives for the full fix to be able to discuss," Killian said.
Killian said crews have a "pretty good idea" of what caused the dam to leak, however the water level needs to come down even more before fixing the problem.
"What they (crews) are pretty sure of ... there's a gap right here (in the spillway) that we think is part of the problem," Killian said. "We're pretty sure there are some empty spots underneath the settling pool, parts that have eroded over 100 years. ... Usually water is flowing over the spillway, then there's a settling pool and the natural flow of the stream has just eroded the dirt behind the wall."
Killian said it's likely the County will set up large boulders to help alleviate the water's pressure.
"We don't think we're going to have to rebuild that wall, but we may have to drill into this wall and full holes underneath the concrete," Killian said.
Once an approach on how to fix the leak is decided on, Killian said the County will have to go through the regular bidding and permitting process before construction can begin.
Maayan Schechter is the local government reporter with Aiken Standard. Follow her on Twitter @MaayanSchechter.