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The Conversation USA

West Coast levee failures show growing risks from America’s aging flood defenses

  • Written by Farshid Vahedifard, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Tufts University
imageDays of heavy rain caused a levee on the White River to breach, sending water into Pacific, Wash., on Dec. 16, 2025. Brandon Bell/Getty Images

In recent weeks, powerful atmospheric river storms have swept across Washington, Oregon and California, unloading enormous amounts of rain. As rivers surged, they overtopped or breached multiple levees &ndash...

Read more: West Coast levee failures show growing risks from America’s aging flood defenses

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