North Fork Park Pond Dam

About North Fork Park Pond Dam

The primary purpose of North Fork Park Pond Dam is flood risk reduction. The dam is designed to control downstream flooding by temporarily storing excess water during storms and releasing it at a controlled rate. The dam is owned by University Of Virginia Foundation (private). It impounds the Flat Branch.

The dam stands 33 feet tall and stretches 343 feet across, creates a reservoir covering 4 acres, has a maximum storage capacity of 120 acre-feet, and collects water from a drainage area of 0 square miles.

This dam carries a high hazard potential classification, which means that a failure or uncontrolled release of water would likely cause loss of human life. This classification reflects the consequences of failure, not the likelihood — it indicates that people live or work in the area downstream. Its condition is rated fair — the dam has minor deficiencies that are being addressed or do not pose an immediate safety threat. An emergency action plan is in place for this dam. The most recent inspection on record was 03/14/2019. That was 7 years ago, which is on the longer end for a high-hazard structure.

At 33 feet, this dam is taller than 78% of dams nationwide.

Living Downstream

If you live or work downstream of this dam, consider taking these steps: learn your local evacuation routes, check whether your county emergency management office has a dam failure inundation map, and sign up for local emergency alerts. The Virginia dam safety program can provide more specific information about emergency planning for this structure.

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