DUE TO CONTINUED RAINFALL AND FORECAST INFLOWS INTO THE GAVINS POINT RESERVOIR FROM THE NIOBRARA RIVER, AND OTHER TRIBUTARIES, RELEASES FROM FORT RANDALL AND GAVINS POINT DAMS IN SOUTH DAKOTA ARE CHANGING.
RELEASES FROM FORT RANDALL HAVE ALREADY BEEN DECREASED AS LOW AS THEY CAN BE AND WILL HAVE SOME PERIODS OF ZERO RELEASE.
CURRENT RELEASES FROM GAVINS POINT ARE 24,000 CUBIC FEET PER SECOND AND WILL REMAIN AT THAT RATE UNTIL SUNDAY.
INFLOWS INTO GAVINS POINT ARE ABOUT 35,000 CFS AND EXPECTED TO INCREASE SIGNIFICANTLY OVER THE NEXT FEW DAYS.
JOHN REMUS, CHIEF OF THE MISSOURI BASIN WATER MANAGEMENT DIVISION, SAYS.THE PEAK INFLOWS WILL REACH GAVINS POINT RESERVOIR LATER THAN ORIGINALLY FORECAST.
HE SAYS INFLOWS FROM THE NIOBRARA RIVER ARE STILL HIGHER THAN THE CURRENT GAVINS POINT RELEASES, WHICH WILL RESULT IN INCREASED POOL ELEVATIONS ON LEWIS AND CLARK LAKE.
BY HOLDING RELEASES AT 24,000 CFS SATURDAY, THEY WILL HAVE MORE FLEXIBILITY TO MANAGE RELEASES AS THE INFLOWS PEAK LATER IN THE WEEK..
Updated 9:15 p.m. 6/22/24
THE HEAVY RAINS OF THE PAST FEW DAYS ARE INCREASING RUNOFF INTO THE MISSOURI RIVER BASIN WITH FLOODING FORECAST ON SEVERAL TRIBUTARIES DOWNSTREAM FROM GAVINS POINT DAM AT YANKTON.
BECAUSE OF THAT, THE U.S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS WILL BE REDUCING RELEASES FROM GAVINS POINT DAM TO 16,000 CUBIC FEET PER SECOND.
THE SOUTH DAKOTA OFFICE OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT HAS BEEN IN CONTACT WITH UNION COUNTY OFFICIALS REGARDING DAKOTA DUNES AND THE POTENTIAL IMPACT OF ADDITIONAL FORECASTED RAINFALL AND RUNOFF THROUGHOUT THE JAMES, VERMILLION, AND BIG SIOUX RIVER BASIN THAT WILL INCREASE THE MISSOURI RIVER FLOW LEVELS.
THE PEAK FLOW LEVELS IN THIS AREA ARE EXPECTED BETWEEN MONDAY AND TUESDAY.
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