ABSTRACT
On 13th August 1935, an heavy storm settled over the Ortiglieto reservoir in the Piedmont region of Northern Italy. The reservoir was created by two dams: the main one, Bric Zerbino, having spilling facilities; the secondary dam, Sella Zerbino, with no spillway function. During the 1935 event, Bric Zerbino spillways were unable to release the inflow discharge and both dams were overtopped. Bric Zerbino dam was not damaged, however, Sella Zerbino dam collapsed, flooding the downstream valley and the small towns of Molare and Ovada. Two physical models, a siphon spillway and the side spillway of the Bric Zerbino Dam were built to estimate the stage-discharge relationships and the maximum discharge released during the 1935 event.
