Hoover Dam Is Losing Power. Inside the ‘Slowest-Moving Train Wreck in History’ (All of Vegas will be for sale soon)

The Colorado River is approaching thresholds its dams were never meant to cross. What happens next could transform how water and electricity move across the American Southwest. There isn’t a flashing gauge or a chart on the canyon wall that warns visitors when one of the most important machines in America begins to fail. There’s only an invisible number: 3,490 feet above sea level. Engineers call it “minimum power pool.” Above that elevation, Lake Powell can still push water through Glen Canyon Dam’s massive penstocks, spin its turbines, and send electricity across the Southwest with no trouble. Below it, the...