Despite tropical storm, water levels drop at Clarks Hill Lake
APPLING, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - Water levels are dropping at Clarks Hill Lake, even after Tropical Storm Debby brought heavy rain and flooding to parts of the region.
But it missed the lake.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has already activated its drought plan as it works to conserve water.
Despite all the rainfall, Debby just missed our local lakes, and that caused Clarks Hill Lake to drop by 5 feet, which is a much faster rate than they usually see this time of year.
With lower-than-expected levels come more obstacles out on the water for you to watch out for.
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Sea Tow Captain Jon Gridley is out on the water- every day.
He says a lot of problems are starting to wash up on the job.
“Every other call we get right now is an ungrounding. Somebody running into a shoal, shallow area, or their boats are stuck on the beach from the water levels dropping overnight,” said Gridley.
Gridley says with water levels as low as this, boaters are more likely to run into hazards.
“They were stuck over there and there was no moon. It was just black as night, and you couldn’t even see anything. I couldn’t tell which way the boat was grounded,” said Gridley.
Shoals, tree stumps and sandbars are all causing significant damage to boats.
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Tony Turner, the service manager for Clarks Hill Marina, said: “The one over here someone hit a rock or a stump and it takes a chunk out of the blade.”
The Army Corps of Engineers is trying to keep the lake levels in check by reducing the outflow of water at the Thurmond Dam.
But that comes at the cost of limiting the production of hydropower for its contracts.
Meanwhile, Gridley urges people to be more careful before it’s too late.
“I’ve been to on groundings where people have gotten severely injured, and you get to the boat, it looks like a crime scene,” he said.
Gridley urges people to pay attention to their maps and follow the buoys in the water to know how to avoid the shallow water.
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