Another point is that if the dam is 10m tall, it has to be built to withstand 10m of water. just because it sits at 5m most of the time doesn’t mean a heavy rain couldn’t raise the level, and if the dam collapses that’s going to be catastrophic vs just spilling over the top.
No, that’s absolutely true. Dynamic loads will need to be accounted for in real world examples.
Another point is that if the dam is 10m tall, it has to be built to withstand 10m of water. just because it sits at 5m most of the time doesn’t mean a heavy rain couldn’t raise the level, and if the dam collapses that’s going to be catastrophic vs just spilling over the top.
I’ve seen a few dynamic loads in my day and in my professional opinion I must agree