EL PASO — El Paso Water has made significant progress in reducing the risk of dam failure at the Cement Lake Dam (also known as the Portland Reservoir) in West El Paso, allowing for the safe reopening of the closed roadways. Crews will continue working on-site to remove more water from the dam.

“We had a very close call with a near-dam collapse, but it has been stabilized, and the risk is now very low,” said EPWater President and CEO John Balliew. “Our crews acted quickly and decisively to protect public safety and critical infrastructure.”

Over the past several days, crews deployed as many as 16 pumps to lower water levels by approximately 17 feet by Sunday morning. This aggressive effort significantly reduced pressure on the dam. Water pumped from the lake was released near culverts that drain to the Rio Grande. Lake water quality was previously tested and met Texas Commission on Environmental Quality standards for release to the river.

On Saturday, April 25, crews were able to safely resume critical earthwork operations near the embankment to reinforce the compromised section of the dam.

Earthwork activities had been halted late Thursday night after multiple indicators signaled a potential dam failure. Conditions at the time made it too dangerous for personnel to remain in the immediate vicinity of the dam’s compromised section, which had already shown signs of breaching and posed a serious hazard to major roadways.

While roadway access has been restored, the area in and around the lake remains closed to all but authorized personnel as EPWater continues essential infrastructure repairs and stabilization efforts. Reopened roads, stabilization measures and reduced pressures of the dam reflect the coordinated work of response teams that have worked around the clock since Wednesday. The City-County Office of Emergency Management and partner agencies played a key role in keeping the community safe.

EPWater is shifting from emergency response to planning and executing a long-term solution for Cement Lake Dam.