> Or more commonly and much worse, these dams are abandoned by their owner and gradually fall into disrepair.

That turned into a catastrophic problem last year in Michigan. Heavy rains breached the Edenville Dam, and then the Sanford Dam downstream, on the Tittabawassee River. They're still cleaning up even now.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edenville_Dam

https://www.metrotimes.com/news-hits/archives/2021/05/17/vic...