A water portal to hell?

A huge hole opens in a lake in California - which is the surprising reason for its formation

The network is left confused by "The Portal to Hell" - a 22-foot-diameter hole that opened in a lake in California and created a spectacular-looking vortex effect - and there is a very surprising reason for its formation (and one death)

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08/05/2022

Sunday, 08 May 2022, 23:38

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This is what the hole in the lake (Fergus Hammond) looks like

As a flood descends in the eastern Napa Valley of California, it also opens a water gate to hell: a 22-foot-diameter hole opens up in the lake and creates a spectacular-looking vortex effect that attracts thousands of visitors.

The vortex that at first seems like an optical illusion has been created there frequently in recent years.

In fact, when the water level in the Lake Bryce reservoir at the top of the Monticello Dam rises too high, the excess water begins to spin into a large hole that appears to have been hewn on the surface of the water.

The hole affectionately known by the locals as "Glory Hall" (not what you think) is not really a portal to hell, but a spillway built by engineers in the 1950s.

The hole is an alternative to a more classic lateral shaft, used to control the flow of water out of the dam.

Since there is a very narrow gap between the cliffs, the lateral shaft will have nowhere to carry the water.

Instead, the engineers set up a large drainage opening in the lake, just like the one in the bathtub or home sink.

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To the full article

A hole in a lake in California attracts crowds of visitors (Photo: Giphy)

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Look at this wonder:

The structure also known as the "bell" was erected with the aim of controlling the water level of several other dams around the world.

However, Glory Hall in Napa is one of the more famous because it makes for a pretty spectacular spectacle - and not infrequently.

He was indeed "asleep" for 11 years but woke up during the particularly rainy year that was in 2017, when crowds gathered around to look with an open mouth at the huge abyss, the New York Times reported.

In 2019, after another heavy season of rains, "The Hole of Glory" went into action again - and this time too it attracted thousands of curious viewers.

That same year, in fact, an unfortunate cormorant (waterfowl) made headlines when photographed being sucked into a shaft (some reports claim it survived).

Fortunately, nowadays that accident probably would not have befell a human swimmer.

First, the reservoir is surrounded by a rope with instructions prohibiting swimming or boating on the lake.

Second, most people will be able to swim easily against the speed and strength of the vortex, even when it is at its highest intensity.

The only human death ever recorded in a guy was in 1997, when a woman (Emily Schwalk) swam to the concrete structure.

She reportedly clung to the edge for 20 minutes, but the rescue came too late.

Her body was found several hours later.

All in all, it's a funnel - but it looks like a vortex when the water rises (Photo: Screenshot, Evan K / Youtube)

While the vortex may seem threatening from above, those who know it well suggest that the speed of the water is not so great.

A relatively large amount of water drains at once so there is a feeling of a strong vortex.

Every second the drain hole that reaches a diameter of 22 meters and a depth of 75 meters is able to "swallow" about 1,360 cubic meters of water.

After the initial fall into the opening of the hole, the water enters a narrower pipe that empties into the nearby Pota River, after more than half a mile of horizontal flow.

When it rains tourists often surround the settings to see the hole in action.

In the 1950s, when engineers built the hole, they thought it would only be used once in 50 years in extreme scenarios.

Since the turn of the century, however, the vortex has opened three times.

What was built for an unlikely scenario has now become more of a seasonal sensation - another reminder that the global climate is changing.

Stunning images of the hole have gone viral since being posted on the social media platform Gfycat back in 2018, and then redistributed on reddit and garnering hundreds of thousands of views.

"Why is there a huge hole in the middle of the lake where people swim?", One wrote in amazement and another added: "It looks very unsafe."

Another person stated: "It looks like the gate to hell."

To remind you, in the heart of the Karakum Desert in Turkmenistan there is another "gate of hell" - a huge crater that has been burning in flames for 50 years without a break.

The spectacular tourist attraction attracts crowds of tourists around the world although recently the President of Turkmenistan, Gurbangoli Berdymukhammedov, ordered the great fire extinguished and the gate finally closed.

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