Posted on 10/01/2017 1:04:39 PM PDT by janetjanet998
The current lake level is 16.3 feet. Army Corps spokesman John Campbell says at 16 feet they started doing weekly inspections of the Herbert Hoover Dike. If the water gets to 16.5 feet they will increase that to twice a week. At 17 feet, they will begin doing daily inspections.
Since Hurricane Irma, the lake has risen about 2-and-a-half feet. So far, the Corps has performed three inspections....
...
He says, "Where we've seen issues in the past is where the level has gotten above 17 and a half and 18 and so were still a little bit away from that and one of the reasons we try to aggressively manage the water the way we do."
The South Florida Water Management District is also doing its part to lower canals ahead of the several inches of rain expected.
Tammy Jackson-Moore looks out for her neighbors as a founder of Guardians of the Glades. She says the expected rainfall and the high lake level is the talk of the town. "There's discussion about that in the community right now as a matter of fact, because people are concerned, they already know that its 16.3 feet now."
Some years ago, I travelled through Belle Glade when Lake Okeechobee was at flood level. I stopped and climbed up the levee to a public viewing area. The lake surface was whipped up by a northerly wind, generating large waves and piling up dirty foam against the shore. It was an impressive if ugly sight — and it was obvious that Belle Glade would be under water except for the dike. The churning Mississippi at spring flood in New Orleans is a grander sight but less ominous in that the levees there are far more substantial and better defended structures. Belle Glade has cause to worry.
Thanks for the post.
16.44 + .01
Lake Okeechobee water hits highest level since 2005
The Corps is releasing water into the Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie rivers and performing weekly inspections on the southern half of the Herbert Hoover Dike that surrounds the lake, Corps spokesman John Campbell said. Some 4.7 billion gallons of water a day are flowing into the Caloosahatchee.
“We continue to release as much water as we can to the Caloosahatchee River and the St. Lucie Canal while not releasing so much that we would cause any flooding downstream,” Campbell said.
The releases have been blamed for brown, murky water and toxic algae blooms along the rivers.
The lake stage is 16.44 feet, higher than the 16.4 feet it hit in February 2016 and the highest since it spiked to 17.12 feet in the 2015 aftermath of Hurricane Wilma.
http://www.winknews.com/2017/10/02/lake-okeechobee-water-hits-highest-level-since-2005/
Okeechobee Inflows (cfs):
S65E 7155 S65EX1 5648 Fisheating Cr -NR-
S154 181 S191 1041 S135 Pumps 91
S84 2277 S133 Pumps 166 S2 Pumps 0
S84X 298 S127 Pumps 47 S3 Pumps 0
S71 671 S129 Pumps 73 S4 Pumps 0
S72 158 S131 Pumps 54 C5 0
Total Inflows: 17858
Okeechobee Outflows (cfs):
S135 Culverts 0 S354 0 S77 7468
S127 Culverts 0 S351 0 S308 3395
S129 Culverts 0 S352 0
S131 Culverts 0 L8 Canal Pt -49
Total Outflows: 10813
Yep, the Dikes are on a “Watch List”.
We know how well THAT usually works out.
Well, the Miss. could flood the Gulf. Ask ManBearPig.
16.50 +.06
Okeechobee Inflows (cfs):
S65E 7165 S65EX1 5839 Fisheating Cr -NR-
S154 170 S191 2699 S135 Pumps 230
S84 2106 S133 Pumps 164 S2 Pumps 0
S84X 300 S127 Pumps 95 S3 Pumps 0
S71 775 S129 Pumps 66 S4 Pumps 0
S72 245 S131 Pumps 48 C5 0
Total Inflows: 19902
Okeechobee Outflows (cfs):
S135 Culverts 0 S354 0 S77 7628
S127 Culverts 0 S351 0 S308 -NR-
S129 Culverts 0 S352 0
S131 Culverts 0 L8 Canal Pt -192
Total Outflows: No Report Due To Missing S77 or S308 Discharge Data
Ping
16.56. +.06
Okeechobee Inflows (cfs):
S65E 7146 S65EX1 5962 Fisheating Cr 1938
S154 184 S191 2993 S135 Pumps 219
S84 2353 S133 Pumps 214 S2 Pumps 0
S84X 544 S127 Pumps 117 S3 Pumps 0
S71 674 S129 Pumps 82 S4 Pumps 0
S72 197 S131 Pumps 32 C5 0
Total Inflows: 22656
Okeechobee Outflows (cfs):
S135 Culverts 0 S354 0 S77 7257
S127 Culverts 0 S351 0 S308 -0
S129 Culverts 0 S352 0
S131 Culverts 0 L8 Canal Pt -292
Total Outflows: 6965
Corps stops Lake Okeechobee discharges due to flooding concerns downstream
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has stopped releasing Lake Okeechobee water into the St Lucie Estuary.
It is in response to flooding already happening downstream along the Treasure Coast.
On the South Fork of the St. Lucie River, Jim Harter sees two issues: water quality and flooding.
“How high the water (is) coming up on them,” as he points to homes along the water.
Outside his home, water is coming up on the street. “It’s really discouraging,” said Harter.
There was more flooding in Stuart at Shepard Park as well.
Lake Okeechobee releases and king tides are the main cause of the flooding.
The Corps has stopped releases to alleviate flooding.
Now there’s another issue.
Lake levels are now more than 16 and a half feet and rising.
The Corps will now inspect the Herbert Hoover Dike twice a week and continue to monitor the situation.
A Corps spokesperson says the organization will refrain from discharging more water until the tides come down.
Canal runoff is still being released into the St. Lucie Estuary.
16.67. +.11. lots more rain on the ay
Lake O hits highest level since 2005, raising concerns its dike could fail
Rainfall from Hurricane Irma has pushed the water level in Lake Okeechobee to its highest point since 2005. Now, with more wet weather in the forecast, nearby residents fear a collapse of the 80-year-old dike around the lake.
“If the dike fails, it would be catastrophic for our communities,” a south-of-the-lake group called the Everglades Agricultural Area Farmers said in a news release this week.
As of Tuesday, the lake had hit 16.56 feet, exceeding last year’s high of 16.4. That put it at the highest level since Hurricane Wilma hit 12 years ago, when it topped 17 feet. By Wednesday it had crept up to 16.67 feet.
“The rate of rise has accelerated,” Campbell said Thursday.
The lake’s highest recorded level was nearly 18½ feet in 1947, the result of an unnamed Category 4 hurricane that slammed into Fort Lauderdale.
Lake water has for years slowly seeped through the earthen embankment. But once the water level reaches a certain point, the pressure inside the dike begins forcing even more water out at the bottom, often carrying sand and debris with it, a dangerous situation.
“Any time we get above 17½ or 18 feet, we have seen issues with increased seepage,” Campbell said.
That’s why the Corps has to step up its inspections, to watch for any sign of a breach.
“The seepage can cause a weak spot and it could cause a chain reaction that could cause a collapse of the dike,” explained Tommy Strowd, an engineer who held a variety of top positions at the South Florida Water Management District from 1996 to 2014.
16.78 +.11
correct today is 16.83. up .16
at least NATE will miss FL....wet this weekend.....then a dry period...and maybe more wet weather next weekend
No areas of concern after dike inspections at Lake Okeechobee
GLADES COUNTY, Fla. — Inspections of the Herbert Hoover Dike around Lake Okeechobee this week have found no new areas of concern, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
The Corps conducted two inspections this week on the southern half of the dike (between Moore Haven and Port Mayaca), and one inspection on the northern half of the dike.
All inspection teams report no significant seepage activity or issues with the structural integrity of the dike.
The only notable seepage site was at an ongoing leak at the southern half of the dike, where seepage has been observed since 2009 when the lake reaches stages above 15.5 feet. No change in the flow was noted from previous inspections, and it is being maintained in a controlled manner with sandbags.
http://www.fox4now.com/news/local-news/no-areas-of-concern-after-dike-inspections-at-lake-okeechobee
17.00 +.17
heavy rain band set up right right over the middle of the lake this evening dumping 1-3 inches ......
also some scattered heavy over the watershed up north...perhaps another wet day tomorrow ....then a break..but more tropical moisture late in the week
...........................................
From Glades to suburbs, South Florida historically soaked
All this rain and a busy hurricane season have left South Florida the wettest it’s been in 86 years, according to the South Florida Water Management District.
And how wet is that? More than three weeks after Hurricane Irma brought heavy rains and pushed a massive storm surge across South Florida triggering widespread flooding, Lake Okeechobee continues to fill so fast that its dike is at increasing risk of springing leaks, or worse — despite millions in repairs to the aging structure over the past decade.
And farther to the south in Miami-Dade, the popular Shark Valley destination in Everglades National Park remains under water. Two feet covered the parking lot near the visitor center Thursday off Tamiami Trail and park offices are in danger of flooding. Further along the Trail, water was so high in the Big Cypress National Preserve that it submerged westbound lanes for a time just past the Collier County line. And with a seasonal high tide and inshore winds this week, water managers say they’re having trouble moving water in drainage canals offshore to make room for more.
Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/environment/article177311846.html#storylink=cpy
17.08. +.01
17.08 +.08 correction
they have started water flowing back east again....to St Lucie (s308)..but about at 1/2 what it was a week ago...more training heavy rain possible again today over the kissimmee river basin..then more scattered stuff tomrrow before a dry spell until next weeknd.....
Okeechobee Inflows (cfs):
S65E 6370 S65EX1 5551 Fisheating Cr 1521
S154 276 S191 1947 S135 Pumps 203
S84 1768 S133 Pumps 178 S2 Pumps 0
S84X 81 S127 Pumps 128 S3 Pumps 0
S71 505 S129 Pumps 70 S4 Pumps 256
S72 308 S131 Pumps 32 C5 0
Total Inflows: 19194
Okeechobee Outflows (cfs):
S135 Culverts 0 S354 0 S77 6501
S127 Culverts 0 S351 0 S308 2074
S129 Culverts 0 S352 0
S131 Culverts 0 L8 Canal Pt -554
Total Outflows: 8020
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