The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nashville District will begin controlled spillway gate water release operations for Center Hill Dam, in Lancaster, Tennessee, at noon Sunday.
Water release operations will continue until further notice to accommodate recovery of flood control storage capacity, following the significant rain event over the area this past week.
USACE expects to increase overall water releases at Center Hill Dam to 18,000 cubic-feet per second (cfs). This includes 11,000 cfs from hydropower generators and 7,000 cfs from spillway gate operation.
River conditions below Center Hill dam will be extremely dangerous and the public is discouraged from recreating in the area. Boaters are urged to use extreme caution, wear life jackets and practice responsible water safety.
The district manages 10 locks and dams on the Cumberland River that serve various purposes. Wolf Creek, J. Percy Priest, Dale Hollow and Center Hill dams serve as flood storage projects. USACE main river projects used to maintain stable water levels for navigation are Cordell Hull, Old Hickory, Cheatham and Barkley locks & dams. USACE locks and dams continue to perform as designed throughout the Cumberland River Basin.
Various USACE Nashville District projects become particularly important during times of heavy rainfall. The National Weather Service provides USACE with radar rainfall estimates and forecasts of inflows to our reservoirs. USACE in turn provides real-time information and forecasts for the operations of projects and corresponding discharges which are incorporated into official river flood forecasts provided to the public.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nashville District manages the Cumberland River and its tributaries, balancing the demands for water releases to flood risk management, commercial navigation, production of hydropower, recreation, fish and wildlife, water supply and water quality.
According to Adam May, TVA senior media specialist, the river system received between half an inch to as much as 3.5 inches of rainfall, much of that concentrated in the central portion of the system.
As a result, TVA is moving a large amount of water across the mainstem of the Tennessee River by spilling water at all nine dams on the waterway to move as much water as quickly as possible.
Tributary systems are holding water as designed, he said, and the TVA is using the water to continue to fill those reservoirs toward summer pool levels.
The TVA River Forecast Center will be coordinating flood control operations with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Lakes and Rivers Division due to high flood levels on the lower Ohio and Mississippi River at Cario, Illinois, and the expectation is for lake levels at Kentucky and Barkley to rise about 2-3 feet above normal summer pool.
Because of the additional flows, May said anyone who plans to be on the reservoirs to use extreme caution over the next several weeks. Obey all signage and warnings, especially near or below any dam that is spilling.
Watch for debris, even in familiar areas.
Editor’s Note: All photos and video came from Cumberland River, May 10, 2024, flood on the river side of Liberty Park in Clarksville, Tennessee.
Images and Videos drone taken by: Elevated Visuals, By R. Taylor III
Contact Information: elevatedvisuals@outlook.com.
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