Hydrolics | Grand Rapids Whitewater

Posts Tagged ‘hydrolics’

Low Head Dam Tragedy On The Grand

Posted by Chip Richards on October 26th, 2009

Filed under Lowhead Dam, Safety, Whitewater
Tags: dam modification, drowning machine, Grand River, hydrolics, Low head dam, Richard Briggs, Sharon Briggs
No Comments

Let’s Face It

Posted by Chip Richards on July 26th, 2009

Do you prefer this cascading waterfall?

Conceptual photograph of 'landscaped' 4th St dam.

Or this lowhead dam?

Existing dam, known by river experts as a 'drowning machine.'

Could Grand Rapids’ benefit from a picturesque new tourist attraction? A wild, scenic, cascading waterfall right downtown? It’s known by several names; The 6th Street Dam, 4th St. Dam, Fishing Dam and even The Falls. Read the rest of this entry »

Filed under Economy, Safety
Tags: 6th St dam, artificial whitewater park, dam modification, drowning machine, Grand Rapids, Grand River, hydrolics, Low head dam, low head dam modification
1 Comment

Low-Head Dam Dangers

Posted by Chip Richards on April 20th, 2009

Grand Rapids currently has 5 low head dams downtown. They are also known as drowning machines. Most fishermen are aware of the inherent dangers and know to avoid them.

“I thought maybe it was gonna be a little dam that I could go over like the whitewater rafters. It didn’t work out like that,” said Joe Hileski. “I almost died.” On Wednesday April 8, 2009, Joe set out for an adventure on the Grand River.

Read the rest of this entry »