Breach of beaver dam deluges charity golf tourney ANDOVER — Golfers were tempted to swap putters for paddles yesterday when the breaching of a
beaver dam flooded a charity event at Andover Country Club. State workers apparently breached the nearby beaver dam too quickly, sending a rush of water downstream and soaking the second half of the 14th annual Lazarus House charity golf tournament, officials said. Andover Conservation Director Bob Douglas said he believes the state was permitted to breach the dam, but the job was done too quickly, causing a “major pulse of water downstream, which is quite simply against the law.” Some charity golfers were on the course and about 120 others were waiting to tee off as water poured onto the course. Large puddles quickly formed, briefly stranding some golfers. “What I saw on the golf course was pretty catastrophic,” said Douglas. “It seems they just breached it in one giant gush, which really causes problems downstream.” Lawrence mayor and charity golfer Michael Sullivan said “water was pouring across the first and 10th holes and it wasn’t stopping,” he said. “Everyone was talking about whether the dam had burst.”
Organizers decided to postpone the second half of the tournament, a major annual Lazarus House fundraiser, until later this summer.