All 14 panama canal locks opened to prevent further flooding 20161125 p5uzq5.html – Breaking News & Latest Updates 2026
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All 14 Panama Canal locks opened to prevent further flooding

nine.com.au staff

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All 14 lock gates of the Panama Canal have been opened at the same time for the first time in four years to prevent further flooding across the country as a result of Hurricane Otto.

Water can be seen spilling aggressively out of the lock holes, foaming and frothing with the intensity being released.

The equivalent of two Olympic-sized swimming pools pour through the gates every second.

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The water was released into Panama's artificial Lake Gatun - the source of the canal and much of the country's drinking water.

Panama Canal administrator Jorge Luis Quijano tweeted about the plan to allow the water to move freely through all 14 of the Gatun locks on Tuesday.

Civil defence officials in Panama confirmed on Tuesday that two people had already died in landslides and a child was killed when a tree fell on top of a car outside a Panama City school.

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