I doubt that "they" deliberately created an emergency to test the emergency spillway.
I never thought to test-fire the ejection seat in my A-4 to see if it would work if I needed it to.
People who run dams love being in control. To ensure their careers they tend to be too conservative. We have always complained that the people running Shasta Dam never want the lake within 30 feet of the top, in case big, late Spring rain totals occur. They almost never happen, then we wind up looking at a big dirt ring around the lake all summer, and their isn't enough cool water for the salmon in the river downstream during the later part of the summer.
People who love being in control don't want to lose control, which is what happens when dams overflow.
Nifty-250
"If you don't know where you're going, you may wind up somewhere else". Yogi Berra
